INIA is a new international research network which will train a cohort of 10 early stage researchers
The INIA Innovative Training Network is supported by a grant from the European Commission’s Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions program under project number 859869. Inters*x people’s healthcare, social and human rights issues are often overlooked. They continue to face exposure to multiple forms of human rights violations and discrimination, requiring cross-sectoral policy responses in fields including
healthcare, education, and the law. The INIA Consortium aims to conduct research that will support the wellbeing and rights of inters*x people and those who are born with some variations of s*x characteristics but do not identify as inters*x (hereafter: inters*x people/people with variations of s*x characteristics). This includes people who are given the label of DSD (disorders or differences of s*x development) in medical contexts. The INIA project’s objectives are to:
• Generate knowledge that supports the wellbeing and social/economic contributions of inters*x people/people with variations of s*x characteristics.
• Use innovative interdisciplinary academic resources to push forward understandings of inters*x and inform academic fields.
• Produce excellent research and evidence to help address societal challenges associated with inters*x.
The training objectives of INIA are:
• Train a cohort of experts in the area of inters*x and develop original sector-specific and intersectoral competencies.
• Develop researcher capacities in research methods with inters*x people and their families and with stakeholders (including generating action learning).
• Establish a collaborative network of highly skilled researchers and national/international stakeholders. The INIA project started on 1 March 2020 and will run for 48 months. It will train a cohort of 10 early stage researchers working collaboratively to develop knowledge that will inform policy making and practice across a range of key sectors. It has been established by the University of Huddersfield, the Université Libre de Bruxelles, Dublin City University, the University of Zurich, the Escuela Andaluza de Salud Pública / Andalusian School of Public Health and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in collaboration with inters*x activists and advocates, clinicians, and other specialists. It will enable 21 organisations from more than 10 countries to work together on issues relating to inters*x people / people with variations of s*x characteristics, in a unique multidisciplinary and transectoral network. The Consortium includes international experts from a wide range of countries across the globe. The INIA work-package themes are shared across the main partners and the INIA projects, and they include:
• The life experiences of inters*x people/people with variations of s*x characteristics
• Service provision to inters*x people/people with variations of s*x characteristics and their families
• The legal aspects of inters*x and variation of s*x characteristics
• Critical approaches to social policy and inters*x/variations of s*x characteristics
We have appointed 10 Early Stage Researchers (who will become PhD students) across the whole consortium. We are providing a pioneering multi-disciplinary, multiagency international training environment which will prepare the Early Stage Researchers for future careers in academia, NGOs, policy making, or service provision. Each Early Stage Researcher will benefit from 2-3 secondments to other countries which will be hosted by NGOs, healthcare providers, and/or Universities.
• INIA and Human Rights and Wellbeing •
INIA recognises the need for human rights for inters*x people/people with variations of s*x characteristics, and that these rights are regularly infringed. We recognise the pressing need for the implementation of inters*x human rights. INIA supports the position taken by the UN regarding inters*x. The United Nations recognises that medically unnecessary surgeries and other procedures on inters*x children before they are able to provide informed consent constitute harmful practice and they make a number of recommendations including State enactment of legislation to prohibit these practices. Other international and national bodies also address these practices as human rights abuses, including the Council of Europe and the European Parliament. INIA draws on the Yogyakarta Principles:
• Principle 10: The Right to Freedom from Torture and Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
• Principle 18: Protection from Medical Abuses
INIA also draws on the Yogyakarta Principles plus 10:
• Principle 30: The Right to State Protection
• Principle 32: The Right to Bodily and Mental Integrity
• Principle 37: The Right to Truth
INIA recognises that organisations and individuals support the human rights and wellbeing of inters*x people/people with variations of s*x characteristics in different ways, including direct work on human rights issues, developing implementation tools and frameworks raising awareness, community organisation, political lobbying and activism, running support groups, and providing healthcare that maximises the bodily integrity, choice and agency of inters*x infants, children, young people, and adults. INIA takes the position that these should be underpinned by the human rights principles discussed above.
05/11/2024
💡 Silences and Erasures in Inters*x Policy 💡
Why are inters*x voices so often silenced in discussions on equality, diversity, and inclusion?
Surya Monro, Sean Saifa Wall, & Kate Wood tackle these crucial questions in their paper:
"Inters*x equality, diversity and inclusion and social policy: Silences, absences, and erasures in Ireland and the UK"
This research exposes the gaps in social policy and the pressing need for inters*x inclusion in EDI (Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion) frameworks. An eye-opener for anyone involved in policy and advocacy!
✊ Controversies in Activism: The Chicago Consensus ✊
The participation of inters*x activists in key medical and social policy decisions has always sparked debate.
In Audrey Aegerter's thought-provoking paper,
"Enjeux et controverses quant à la participation d'activistes inters*xes au Consensus de Chicago (2005)"
she unpacks the issues surrounding inters*x activism within medical frameworks like the Chicago Consensus. An important reflection on activism and advocacy within the medical context!
📅 Published: June 15, 2023
📖 Read here: https://doi.org/10.3917/spub.hs2.0059
Dive in and discuss the complex role of inters*x activism in policy! *xActivism
🗣️ Visibility Matters! 🗣️ How do we make inters*x lives visible without falling into the trap of exceptionalism?
Audrey Aegerter, Gaëlle Larrieu, & Michal Raz tackle this vital question in their insightful paper:
"Visibiliser les i sans (en faire une) exception"
The research explores the fine line between visibility and tokenism in public health discourses around inters*x issues. An essential reading for those passionate about social justice and advocacy!
📅 Published: June 15, 2023
📖 Read here: https://doi.org/10.3917/spub.hs2.0103
Let's keep fighting for authentic visibility and empowerment for the inters*x community! *xVisibility
Visibiliser les i sans (en faire une) exception
1 Ce texte a pour objectif de proposer des orientations de recherche pour des travaux futurs sur l’inters*xuation. Membres du bureau du Réseau francophone de recherche sur l’inters*xuation (Réfri), nous menons depuis plusieurs années des recherches dans ce domaine. Pour pallier les difficult....
30/09/2024
Hello dear People! We welcome autumn full of knowlegde. Here is our Research Highlight for the week! 🌟
Are you passionate about healthcare and the rights of inters*x individuals? Check out Martin Gramc's latest publication:
"Challenges in Transition of Care for People with Variations in S*x Characteristics in the European Context"
This paper goes deep into the hurdles inters*x people face in navigating healthcare systems across Europe and emphasizes the need for inclusive, rights-based care. A must-read for activists and defenders of inters*x people's human rights!
📅 Published: January 30, 2024
📖 Read here: https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare12030354
Join the conversation with us and help push for better care for the inters*x community! *xRights
We are delighted to let you know that a new INIA paper has been published, about the need for better psychosocial care as part of the multi-disciplinary teams working in the area of minors with Variations of S*x Characteristics. The paper is open access and can be found here:
A research team including staff of the World Health Organization has just published an important and groundbreaking first systematic review of clinical rationales for early surgical interventions on children with innate variations of s*x characteristics.
The research is available (open access) here:
Muschialli, Luke, Connor Luke Allen, Evelyn Boy-Mena, Aiysha Malik, Christina Pallitto, Åsa Nihlén, and Lianne Gonsalves. 2024. 'Perspectives on Conducting "S*x-Normalising" Inters*x Surgeries Conducted in Infancy: A Systematic Review'. PLOS Global Public Health 4 (8): e0003568. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0003568
A statement by IHRA is available on their website and on the new Inters*x Depath project website at:
An important study has just been published - the link to the press release and the paper is here:
PRESS RELEASE: Oxford-led Study Calls for End to “Medically Unnecessary” Inters*x Surgeries
New International Consensus Calls for Healthcare Providers to Stop Performing Medically Unnecessary Ge***al Surgeries in Prepubertal Children and Infants, Regardless of S*x or Gender A new study led by researchers at the University of Oxford’s Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics published today in ...
28/08/2024
We are happy to announce the publication of the article "'These Researchers Think They Come From Heaven with Analytical Superpowers When They Don't': A Qualitative Analysis of Research Experiences in Inters*x-Related Studies" in Social Sciences, as part of the Special Issue Selected Papers from Centring Inters*x: Global and Local Dimensions—International Conference.
Inters*x Joy and Happiness is motivated by the recent turn toward joy in anti-interphobic work as well as in q***r, trans, crip, Indigenous, and Black studies. We are interested in determining what a sustained focus on happiness, joy, pleasure, or even euphoria might bring to inters*x studies, inters*x activism, and feminists concerned with these emotions and experiences. Specifically, we want to explore joyful inters*x scholarship because joy is not unimportant or absent from inters*x studies, activism, or inters*x people's lives. While feminists have long theorized about joy and happiness, anti-interphobic perspectives appear largely absent.
Celeste Orr and Casey Burkholder are thankful for your time and consideration. If you are interested in contributing, can you please email them directly to let them know at your earliest convenience. In the next steps, they will need a title and an article abstract from you, with full submissions due in January 2025.
We are happy to inform you about the publication of a new paper: "Brújula Inters*xual: Working Strategies, the Emergence of the Mexican Inters*x Community, and Its Relationship with the Inters*x Movement", published in Social Sciences as part of the Special Issue Selected Papers from Centring Inters*x: Global and Local Dimensions—International Conference.
We are pleased to inform you that the article "Uncertain Knowledge: The
Medicalisation of Inters*x People and the Production of Ignorance" has been
published in Social Sciences as part of the Special Issue Selected Papers
from Centring Inters*x: Global and Local Dimensions—International
Conference and is available online:
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