This event has already happened. You can watch the recording of the event here.
This event has already happened. You can watch the recording of the event here.
Conversations about identity can be particularly challenging when they intersect with biology, culture (including faith), and lived experience. In the current social and political moment, many people are seeking a richer understanding of sex and gender, drawing on insights from current science and from other ways of knowing. How do these concepts overlap, and how are they different? How have ideas about sex and gender changed over time, and why? How can (or should) society respond?
We invite you to join the AAAS-DoSER program for a conversation about sex, gender and identity. Together we will consider scientific perspectives on these concepts as they relate to humans and other organisms – AND share ideas about fostering constructive conversations about sex, gender and identity in religious spaces, recognizing the challenges and opportunities of the current moment.
The event is free and open to the public, both in-person (COVID guidelines permitting) and streamed online, but pre-registration is required. The 90-minute event will include a round of short reflections from panelists, a moderated discussion, and Q&A with the audience. It will be followed by a reception for in-person attendees.
The code of conduct for AAAS meetings is here: https://meetings.aaas.org/policies/.
Anne Fausto-Sterling (she/her/hers), Brown University
Dr. Anne Fausto-Sterling is the Nancy Duke Lewis Professor Emerita of Biology and Gender Studies in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Biochemistry at Brown University, and founder and former director of the Science & Technology Studies Program at Brown University. She is currently focused on applying dynamic systems theory to the study of gender differentiation in early childhood. She has authored three books on sex and gender, and writes regularly for scientific and general audiences. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Meredith Reiches (she/her/hers), University of Massachusetts Boston
Dr. Meredith Reiches is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Massachusetts Boston, and a rabbinical student at Hebrew College. She works at the intersection of evolutionary biology and gender and race ideology, asking not only how human bodies grow and reproduce, but also how human histories and power relations structure what kinds of questions–and answers–researchers and publics are able to formulate and metabolize. She has published peer-reviewed research in a biological, anthropological and social science journals as well as articles for wider audiences.
August Laperche (they/them/theirs), Q Christian Fellowship
August Laperche, MATS is interim co-executive director and program director for the Q Christian Fellowship (QCF), whose organizational mission is to “cultivate radical belonging among LGBTQ+ people and allies through a commitment to growth, community, and relational justice.” They work to create and disseminate resources on sexuality, gender, for clergy, families, and individuals, and create spaces for safe and inclusive dialogue among diverse Christian communities. They grew up “denominationally ambiguous” in the Christian faith tradition. They hold a bachelor’s degree in Social Work, and those studies introduced them to progressive values that sparked a passion for social justice. They came out as queer, trans, and non-binary in their early 20s and since then has been an active advocate for the LGBTQIA+ community; especially those folks within Christianity and with faith backgrounds. August is a graduate of Phillips Theological Seminary, and holds a Master of Arts in Theological Studies. They wrote their thesis on the use of Moral Injury as a framework for understanding and responding to conversion “therapy” efforts in Christian spaces.
Moderator: Robert O’Malley (he/him/his), AAAS DoSER
Dr. Robert O’Malley (moderator) is a Project Director for DoSER with oversight of the Engaging Scientists and Faith Communities project. He earned a B.A. in anthropology and zoology at Miami University of Ohio, a M.A. in anthropology at the University of Alberta, and a Ph.D. in integrative and evolutionary biology at the University of Southern California. His subsequent postdoctoral research at the George Washington University and the National Zoological Park focused on diet and foraging behavior in eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) at Gombe National Park in Tanzania. Rob taught biological anthropology at four colleges and universities across the U.S. for twelve years, and has organized or participated in public engagement with science activities at science fiction conventions, seminaries, science museums, and online.
