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Plants and Queerness

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  Plant life is queer life. Plant life resists classification, redefines sex and reimagines ways of being. Plant life takes root underground, in the darkness, and spreads its limbs towards the light. Plant life is unshakable resilience. Plant life is perpetual growth. Plant life is a gift. Not…

Transitioning in the lab

  I work as a bioinformatics-focussed research assistant in the Osbourn group at the JIC, which is the same lab I did my PhD in. Our lab focusses on plant natural product biosynthesis, and my own research involves leveraging the huge (and ever increasing..!) wealth and diversity of ‘omics data…

It’s not about who you know, but how to find them

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  Growing up as an LGBTQ+ person in the UK, my experience has come down to one thing: surrounding myself with the right people. While it’s no longer illegal, the undercurrent of intolerance towards LGBTQ+ people is still strong. What’s important is surrounding yourself with the right people.…

June 2022: choosing to be hopeful

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              Living in California and being surrounded by people who celebrate queerness has given me so much hope for the future. I fantasize about a world where young queer kids have queer role models in STEM, and dont have to face discrimination during their formative years. What…

Distance, and living as your authentic self — a journey to the UK

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  Okay, so first I would like to start with the usual disclaimer that this is a blog post about my experiences. Everyone’s experiences may vary greatly even if they have a similar background or situation going on, but I can only really talk about my own personal experiences. Therefore, this…

Celebrate Pride 2022 with the LGBTQ+ Plant Scientist Network Blog Series!

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Image by Sarita Muñoz-Gómez (@biosarita1)   I am very excited to introduce the LGBTQ+ Plant Scientist Pride Month Blog series for 2022! All the posts are from members of the plant science community who provide their unique perspectives. The posts ranging from personal memories and growth,…

Considerations for LGBTQ+ Friendly Field Work

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              Pride Month coincides with the middle of the field season for biologists sampling floral communities across many parts of the world. Field work often takes place in areas far from home and can require tolerating close quarters, strenuous labor, long hours, and adverse…

A queer stroll through the meadow

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            The world is so complicated, and it is changing so fast. I seldom feel like I have my footing. I never know what the right thing to do is, and I never know how I should be thinking about things. I fixate on this as I walk into a familiar meadow in autumn. I open a book of poems…

Letter to the editor: Creating supportive environments in academia for Black scientists to thrive

This letter by Kevin Cox, Kiona Elliott, and Taylor Harris is the 4th in our series on diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM disciplines. Read the editorial call for letters here: Sowing the seeds of equity and diversity in academia and STEM disciplines. Cox KL Jr, Elliott KR, Harris TM (2021) Creating…