Rainbow Tick | Toitū Takatāpui’s Post

Welcome to Katherine Martin, Ringa Rehe Mōhio | Education Specialist (Ko wai koe?) Kia ora, Ko Katherine tōku ingoa. My pronouns are she/her and I identify as queer. I am originally from Canada but have lived in the UK for most of my life. I moved to Aotearoa five years ago for what was meant to be a one-year trip, but this is now very much my home. (What has led you to this mahi?) Over the course of my 8 years experience in education, I have been consistently drawn to opportunities to work with and progress the inclusion of the rainbow community. I have supported the founding of a Rainbow network for the NZIE’s teacher union, meeting with other teachers and setting the network's goals and key areas of interest. In another education role I worked at a museum, where I started an initiative called ‘people like me’. I worked with rainbow networks within the engineering field to collect and present the stories of LGBTTQIA+ engineers, ensuring that all visitors were able to see people like them represented. After experiencing the challenges of working in some less inclusive environments, I have found myself drawn to looking for ways to support Rainbow communities in my workplaces. (What aspects of rainbow inclusion at work are you particularly passionate about or do you think deserve more attention?) It's easy for some to be unaware of instances of heteronormativity and cisnormativity at work, but the impact these can have on our rainbow whānau can be considerable. For example, being asked what your husband does when you have a wife, when are you going to have children, or even when people are surprise by the way you identify, because “you don’t look...”. Comments like these have a cumulative impact.

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Louise Bristow

Project Management Contractor

8mo

Keep up the great work!

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