Dear Friends,
2017 was an exciting year for GATE! Our organization completed a solid institutional transition with the invaluable collaboration of Masen Davis as our Interim Co-Director; and a new plan of work was approved by our Board of Directors. During 2017, we grew by adding new members to our staff: Erika Castellanos as Director of Programs; and Naomhán O’Connor as Communications Officer.
The following report demonstrates key actions GATE took throughout 2017. It provides an overview of each program area, highlighting events that we hosted or took part in, and giving details of our publications, statements, articles and submissions made to oversight committees in support of trans, gender diverse and intersex movements.
Our involvement with the international HIV response has seen an expansion of opportunities for meaningful engagements, diverse alliances and ethical distribution of resources, particularly within the international trans communities. Our continued commitment to movement building resulted in the publication of two reports on the state of funding: for the intersex movement; and the trans and gender diverse movement. Our work on depathologization of our identities, expressions, sexualities and bodies continues to be one of our key program areas. Our work engaging with the ICD-11 revision process is ongoing, and we are actively working to counter structural exclusion from UN-level engagement by providing training and networking opportunities for intersex, and trans and gender diverse activists.
One of our biggest achievements during 2017 was our participation in collective initiatives and collaborative efforts. In times of ferocious competition for scarce resources, we are proud members of political communities that are investing in mutual cooperation. The past year showed clearly how sharing our passion is the best way to multiplying its impact.
Yours sincerely,
Mauro Cabral Grinspan, Executive Director, GATE
