The journey to a Ph.D. is never smooth sailing, plenty who have dared to tackle it will agree. But what if this strenuous, maybe even torturous, endeavor is the easiest part of your life? Welcome to my journey, which I am calling “Transitioning during your PhD”. Let’s start with a quick backstory. My doctoral journey started in 2024 and I was early in my transition. I came out to my friends and fa ...[Read More]
Allyship is a choice: A letter from small town Brazil to the world on how my allyship is action
I thought a lot about how to write this piece because it is not easy to think of myself as an ally to my queer friends. This is only because it is, to me, completely unfathomable that we, in this century, in 2026, still need to be allies. Honestly, there is convenience in moving on with our lives, turning a blind eye to injustice, and even questioning the mere existence of campaigns like the pride ...[Read More]
Pride month in the era of DEI rollbacks: Reflections on resilience, and why pride was a riot after all
Pride month arrives this year against a backdrop of institutional irony. In the United States, federal research funding has been thoroughly weaponised and forced a massive scientific brain drain across the Atlantic. In Europe, a multi-million-euro effort to capture that exiled talent is underway, even as Europe’s own domestic politics fracture along the exact same ideological fault lines. Fo ...[Read More]
On LGBTQIA+ Challenges and Allyship in STEM
During November, several important dates are recognised, including the International LGBTQIA+ in STEM Day on November 18. This month is also designated as Transgender Awareness Month, culminating in the recognition of Transgender Day of Remembrance yesterday, November 20. In celebration of our LGBTQIA+ community, this blog highlights some of the activities we undertook throughout the last year. Be ...[Read More]