Oct 032016
 

sds2016
Sex Down SouthOctober 13-15, 2016, was born out of a desire to create a safe space in the Southeast where folks could explore sex and sexuality. Our focus is intentionally broad, catering to a diverse range of people: from those who are curious but not quite committed, to those who have been around the block…and then some! Our mission is to create a sex-positive space for people of all walks of life to come together, explore, connect, and share knowledge and skills. It’s your exploration destination for all things sex and erotic. Our goal is to foster learning, inspiration, and wonder – and provoke conversations that matter. From sex education and sexual health, to healthy communication and relationship skills; from alternative lifestyles such as kink and polyamory, to sex and spirituality and navigating sexual trauma. We’ll look at how race, gender, class, ability, religion, and other factors influence our experiences of our bodies and our sexualities. We’ll examine how our desires are directly linked to our empowerment and satisfaction in life. Sex Down South is a space for everyday people and “sexperts” alike to teach and share extraordinary things – and for participants to leave knowing more about their own sexualities and desires than when they arrived.
Location: Hilton Atlanta, 255 Courtland Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30303
Admission: $179-229 (day pass, student and volunteer discounts available)

Jul 042016
 

boot-clipart-boot
Join me at Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit for my Sex Educator Boot Camps Level2 and 3 as pre-cons on August 4. Online Registration ends on July 31 at 11:59 pm ET. If you are attending Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit, you get special pricing and must register through the Woodhull site. If you are *not* attending the Summit, please register via Eventbrite hereTickets WILL be available at the door for both levels.

August 4, 9:00 am-12:30 pm
Sex Educator Boot Camp Level 2: Intermediate at Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit
Have you begun your journey as a sex educator and are ready to get serious, streamline your business, and get paid for what you love doing? In this intermediate course, Tristan Taormino, one of the most well-known educators in the field, shares her experience, skills, and insight to help you create a vibrant, fulfilling career in sex education. You’ll learn how to: hone your mission and unique point of view; make your work accessible to diverse audiences and communities; develop and create business, branding, and marketing plans; use web-based tools and social media to connect with media professionals, other sex educators, and potential clients, employers and fans; garner media coverage in order to raise your public profile; embrace the value of your work and develop pricing structures and rates. Plus, you’ll have an opportunity to ask Tristan questions about your specific issues and concerns in an intimate environment. This course is ideal for people who have: worked as a professional sex educator or in the sex education field for at least a year; and/or completed Sex Educator Boot Camp 1: Basic.

August 4, 2:00-6:00 pm
Sex Educator Boot Camp Level 3: Advanced at Woodhulls Sexual Freedom Summit
with special presentation by 
Trina Scott, Cindy Lee Alves, and Aida Manduley
Are you a sex educator ready to take your career and business to the next level? World-renowned sex educator Tristan Taormino reveals her proven techniques for success. You’ll learn how to: write promotional materials and create media buzz about your work; build strategic partnerships and coalitions with individuals, organizations, and companies that boost your reach, credibility, and visibility; shape your public identity and boost your credibility; leverage a local/regional presence into a national one; transform a part-time job into a full time career; monetize your expertise and experience; clarify your goals and prioritize your work accordingly; stop doing work that doesn’t have a clear path toward supporting yourself; integrate your values and politics with your business practices; explore what personal blocks may be holding you back; expand your offerings, grow your business, and make your career sustainable. There will be real talk about money, community politics, and burnout. You’ll have the chance to network, brainstorm, and collaborate with other attendees in smaller breakout groups. Plus, you’ll get sample pitch letters for colleges, media, sponsors, potential employers, and more. In addition, there will be a special presentation on advancing racial justice in sex education by Trina Scott, Cindy Lee Alves, and Aida Manduley of Women of Color Sexual Health Network (WOCSHN). This course is ideal for people who have worked in sex education for at least three years and/or have completed Sex Educator Boot Camp 1: Basic and 2: Intermediate.

Information for Both Boot Camps:

Location: Hilton Alexandria Mark Center, 5000 Seminary Road, Alexandria, VA  22311
Admission: Pre-registration is strongly encouraged. Boot Camp tickets will be available at the door if space permits, but the prices go up. We are dedicated to racial, economic, and social justice: there are volunteer positions, scholarships, and sliding scale spots, with priority given to educators who represent and work with underserved communities. To get more information or a scholarship application, please email tristan [at] puckerup.com. Scholarship applications are accepted on a rolling basis through July 5, 2016. If you want to register for the Summit by the Early Bird deadline, your scholarship application must be received no later than March 15, 2016.
Registration: Note: Online Registration ends on July 31 at 11:59 pm ET. If you are attending Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit, you get special pricing and must register through the Woodhull site. If you are *not* attending the Summit, please register via Eventbrite hereTickets WILL be available at the door for both levels.

Mar 272016
 

24057-consent-summit-152x300Attitudes are changing about consent, and it’s time to join in the conversation. April 23rd in Seattle, WA

The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom’s Consent Summit is an all-day event of workshops and discussions on consent. Attitudes are changing about consent, and it’s time to join in the conversation. Affirmative consent, college campuses, power exchange relationships, the law and consent. It’s important enough to devote an entire summit to it!

10am – 6pm on April 23rd

@ the Center for Sex-Positive Culture, 1602 15th Ave W, Seattle, WA

Register here.

Sponsored by the Seattle Erotic Arts Festival and the Foundation and Center for Sex-Positive Culture

Tristan Taormino will give the Keynote at the Luncheon from noon to 1 pm. Tristan Taormino is an award-winning writer, sex educator, speaker, filmmaker, and radio host. She is the editor of 25 anthologies and author of eight books, including The Ultimate Guide to Kink and The Feminist Porn Book: The Politics of Producing Pleasure. As the head of Smart Ass Productions, she has directed and produced twenty-four sex educational and erotic films. She is the host of Sex Out Loud, a weekly radio show on the VoiceAmerica Network.

Along with Tristan, other experts including Judge Rudy Serra, consent activist Kitty Stryker, Brett Houghton, Sar Surmick, Jim Duvall, Judy Guerin, Kevin Carlson, Susan Wright and more will headline the Panel Discussions and Workshops:

Consent & the Law
Consent Activism: Past, Present and Future
Affirmative Consent and College Campuses
Negotiation & Consent
Consent in Power Exchange Relationships
Train the Trainers: How to educate about consent

Tickets:
$50 – All day event with luncheon ticket for Keynote
$40 – All day event without luncheon
$35 – All day reduced price and students
$30 – Luncheon and Keynote ticket
$75 – All day event with luncheon ticket and pay it forward

All tickets include Seattle Erotic Arts Festival admission on Sunday and 15% off the Weekend Pass for the Seattle Erotic Arts Festival. Register here: https://www.strangertickets.com/events/31789308/ncsf-consent-summit.

The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom is committed to creating a political, legal, and social environment in the United States that advances the equal rights of consenting adults who practice forms of alternative sexual and relationship expression. NCSF advances the rights and advocates for consenting adults in the BDSM-Leather-Fetish, swing, and polyamory communities. We pursue our vision through direct services, education, advocacy, and outreach in conjunction with our partner organizations to directly benefit these communities.

Dec 222015
 

ComeSeeMe
Come see Tristan at SHE Sexual Health Expo in Los Angeles  January 16-17, 2016. Featuring today’s leaders in sex, intimacy and romance, SHE will deliver a crash course in understanding modern sexual relationships with must-attend workshops and captivating intimacy product showcases — all with the chic backdrop of its stylish venues. Sex experts include Amy Jo Goddard, Elle Chase, Charlie Glickman, Mollena Williams, Allison Moon, Reid Mihalko, Rachel Kramer Bussel, Chris Donaghue, and many more.

Tristan’s appearances will all be on Saturday, January 16. Her schedule is:

4:30-5:20 pm Designing Your Open Relationship Workshop
Are you considering an open relationship? Does your current open relationship need some tweaking? There are few established scripts or visible role models for open relationships, so people in them can struggle without support and guidance. In this interactive workshop, relationship expert and author of Opening Up, Tristan Taormino gives practical advice on how to craft responsible, fulfilling nonmonogamous relationships. Tristan will explore common myths, real-life benefits and challenges, and how to decide if an open relationship is right for you. She will share some of the most common styles of open relationships-from partnered nonmonogamy to solo polyamory-and discuss how to customize them to meet your individual needs and wants. Through creative exercises, you’ll learn to articulate what you want, identify and negotiate limits and boundaries, communicate with your partner(s) in productive ways, and create relationships that work for you.

5:30-6:00 pm Booksigning
Tristan will be signing her books The Ultimate Guide to Anal Sex for Women, Opening Up, The Ultimate Guide to Kink, 50 Shades of Kink, Anal Sex Position Guide, and Secrets of Great G-Spot Orgasms and Female Ejaculation. The books will be for sale from The Pleasure Chest booth.

6:00 pm Mix & Meet
Tristan will be on hand to meet with attendees, plus she’ll have her books and other products for sale.

Hilton Universal City Hotel, Los Angeles, CA
Admission: Tickets are $25 each, buy them at Eventbrite. Get 2-for-1 tickets when you use promotional code TRISTANT.

Oct 202015
 

Children holding hands

The LA Academy of Sex Education presents Opening Up: An Open Relationship Intensive Workshop with Tristan Taormino on Sunday, November 15 from 1:00-4:00 pm at The Stockroom in Los Angeles. How do people create nontraditional partnerships that are loving and fulfilling? There are few established scripts or visible role models for open relationships, so people in them can often struggle without support and guidance. In this four hour intensive program, sex and relationship educator Tristan Taormino shares some of the key principles that can help your open relationships succeed. She will review some of the most common styles of open relationships, from partnered nonmonogamy to solo polyamory, and discuss how to customize them to meet your individual needs and wants. She will share wisdom from the over 100 people she interviewed and profiled in her bestselling book Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Sustaining Open Relationships. The workshop will address common issues and problems including: new relationship energy, time management, sexual and emotional safety, boundary setting, agreement violations, and coping with change. Through creative exercises, you’ll discover how to unpack all the different elements of jealousy and identify what triggers your jealousy and how it manifests for you; learn to develop coping strategies and find access points to the practice of compersion. Learn how to tackle challenges including: communicating about highly-charged topics, conflict resolution skills, the art of re-negotiation, roadblocks to fulfillment, and confronting fear. Whether you’re a newcomer or veteran to the world beyond monogamy, come discover strategies to help you nurture and grow your open relationships. Open to people in all kinds of relationship configurations as well as solos and singles of all genders and sexual orientations. Seating is limited and pre-registration is strongly encouraged.

Location: The Stockroom, 2809 1/2 Sunset Boulevard 
Los Angeles, CA 90026.
Admission:
Register at Eventbrite. Open to people in all kinds of relationship configurations as well as solos and singles of all genders and sexual orientations. Seating is limited and pre-registration is strongly encouraged.

We have several different ticket types available:

Regular $100
VIP $125: priority seating, personalized signed copy of Opening Up, gift bag
VIP + Dinner $200: priority seating, personalized signed copy of Opening Up, autographed DVD, luxury gift bag, dinner with Tristan after the workshop

 

Oct 042015
 

SDS
Tristan is headed to the Southeast in October, so catch her at one of these places:

October 13  
Florida Atlantic University
, Boca Raton, FL

October 15-17
Sex Down South, Atlanta, GA

October 18
Sex Educator Boot Camp 1.5, Washington DC

October 19  
Anal Sex for Everyone at Sugar, Baltimore, MD

Sep 152015
 

The Stranger and the Portland Mercury once again invite amateur filmmakers, porn stars, porn-star wannabes, hotties, kinksters, regular folks, and all other creative types to make short porn films—five minutes max—for HUMP! 2015. HUMP! 2015 films can be hardcore, softcore, live action, animated, kinky, vanilla, straight, gay, lez, bi, trans, genderqueer—anything goes at HUMP! (Well, almost anything: No poop, no animals, no minors.)

HUMP! films are not released online or in any other form. Filmmakers retain all rights. Appearing in a film for HUMP! means getting to be a porn star exclusively in our festival—no where else. This year, all of the accepted films will travel on an national tour with the 2016 festival. That means that ALL FILMMAKERS WILL RECIEVE A PORTION OF OUR TOUR’S TICKET SALES! If your film makes the cut and gets into the Festival, you will earn $$!

CASH PRIZES!

Three first place prizes and one grand prize are awarded at HUMP! — all decided by secret audience ballot. Films may qualify in more than one prize category.

  • Best Humor: $1,000 First Prize, $250 First Runner-Up
  • Best Sex: $1,000 First Prize, $250 First Runner-Up
  • Best Kink: $1,000 First Prize, $250 First Runner-Upunnamed
  • Best in Show: $5,000 Grand Prize

Visit the HUMP! page for more information about submissions

 Hot Stuff  Comments Off on Dan Savage’s HUMP! Call for Submissions
Jun 152015
 

AMOROUS REVOLT

AR new logo
Amorous Revolt
is a brand new Queer Camping event happening from July 31-August 2, 2015. This event is designed by queer people for queer people to build and foster intentional communities for support, education and play. Amorous Revolt features skillshares and workshops including kink, crafts, health, life skills and spirituality, as well as networking events, dance parties, and performances.

In an effort to make the event as accessible as possible, we have an organized rideshare system, ASL interpreters, 24/7 medical staff, and an emotional support space. We also have community organized cabin, play and workshop spaces for People of Color, Transgender/Gender Nonconforming People, Sober folks, and Neurodiverse folks.

Please join us at the first ever Amorous Revolt July 31-August 2, 2015 at Ramblewood in Darlington, Maryland. For more information visit our site or join us on Fetlife, Facebook, and Twitter.

ALSO in JULY….

hearts
In Dallas, Texas on July 24 2015, PolyDallas2015 is hosting the Affirming Polyamorous and Non-Monogamous Relationship Symposium. It is being held at the office of Vantage Point Counseling Services. This is the first symposium, with a primary focus on polyamorous relationship and family structure, to be held in the Dallas/Fort Worth [DFW] area. Co-Presenters Ruby B Johnson and Shawn Chrisman hope to contribute to the knowledge base of mental health practitioners and other community providers. For those attendees who are not in the DFW area, this symposium is offered as a live webinar stream.

Polyamorous and Non-Monogamous relationships have become more visible over the last decade. The way individuals, in their 20s to early 30s (Millennials), are relating, connecting, attracting, and permitting themselves to have non-traditional relationships is creating a more sex positive and dynamic relationship structure. However, Generation X proves to have a different experience and expectation of relationships and their structure.

Hence the exposure, experience, and knowledge base of these different relationships is mysterious to many mental health and substance abuse providers within the community. Demystifying and educating providers is key to providing a conducive non-shaming therapeutic environment. Providing knowledge is a practice of cultural competence; infusing cultural humility into practice creates authenticity and positive regard within the clinician.

To support these principles of the helping relationship, the content richly addresses definitions of polyamory and non-monogamy, coupled with a graph which offers a visual aid for attendees. Heteronormative and monogamous privilege is exposed as well as how those forms of privilege create challenges to provider’s beliefs, values, and norms of relationships. To assist with unpacking privilege, myths and misconceptions of these relationships are debunked. Next, the focus shifts to the therapist and other helping professionals.

With each one of the tenets of cultural humility, solutions, techniques, and suggestions for change are offered that include (not limited to) unconscious bias, racial bias, counter transference, professional boundaries, dual relationships, microaggressions,, social, political, economic bias, sex positivity versus sex addiction, and intellectual privilege (Dunning-Kruger Effect).

Certain theories have been shown to assist with effective practice such as systems, constructivism, Bowenian, feminist, and gender queer. Techniques such as the genogram, gender/relationship inclusive assessments, narrative versus structured assessment, collaborative (with client) treatment planning and interventions, including considerations for cultural, social, community, and services barriers. Additionally, one must be aware of community resources and support.

Please follow us on Twitter @polydallas2015.

Presenters:

Ruby B Johnson (LMSW, LCDC, SAP, CSAT Candidate) received her Bachelors of Social Work in 2003 from Texas Women’s University and her Masters of Social Work in 2005 from the University of Texas at Arlington. Since 2003, Ruby’s roles have included clinical practitioner, community and professional development educator, and graduate and under graduate adjunct professor. In private practice, her areas of expertise are substance use disorders, sex addiction, intimacy and love addiction, multi-cultural families and couples, SOGIE, polyamorous/non monogamous partnerships/families, and Kink/BDSM. Ruby Johnson provides therapeutic support, care, and intervention with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender variant/non-binary, queer, and same gender loving communities. Currently, Ruby is in private practice at Vantage Point Counseling Services and Inamorata LLC.

She has presented at several national, state, and local conferences including Society of Social Work Research Conference, Council of Social Work Education Conference, DFW Behavioral Health Symposium, and, most recently, her proposals were accepted at The State Texas Association of Addiction Professionals Conference and Black Families, Black Relationships, and Black Sexuality Conference in Philadelphia. Ruby is a member of various professional organizations including Texas Association of Addiction Professionals [TAAP], Association of Addiction Professionals [NAADAC], International Institute of Trauma and Addiction Professionals [IITAP], American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapists [AASECT], Society for Advancement of Sexual Health [SASH] and most recently, Association of Black Sexologists and Clinicians [ABSC].

Shawn Chrisman (MS, LPC, PhD Candidate) is currently a practicing Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Texas.  He received his clinical training with a Master’s in Counseling from Southern Methodist University, and is currently working towards his doctorate degree in Human Sexuality from Widener University.

Shawn works with individuals and couples on sexuality-related issues, including addressing intimacy, sexual identity, gender dysphoria, sexual dysfunctions and other concerns.  Shawn also identifies as a kink-aware therapist and works with couples enjoying diverse relationship structures, such as open or polyamorous relationships.  Shawn is an active member of American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) and The Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality (SSSS).  He has also presented workshops for professionals and community members at local universities and organizations. Shawn has been published in Qualitative Health Research.

Jun 032015
 

hearts
Cultural Humility and Affirming Polyamorous and Non-Monogamous Relationships
Organized and facilitated by Shawn Chrisman and Ruby B Johnson
June 26, 2015
Vantage Point Counseling
3300 Oaklawn Ave, Suite 415
Dallas, Texas 75219
for more details, go to polydallas2015.com.

Polyamorous and Non-Monogamous relationships have increased over the last decade. The way individuals, in the 20’s to early 30’s or Millennials, are relating, connecting, attracting, and permitting themselves to have non-traditional relationships is creating a more sex positive and dynamic relationship structure. However, Generation X proves to have a different experience and expectation of relationships and their structure.

Hence the exposure, experience, and knowledge base of these different relationships is esoteric to many mental health and substance abuse providers within the community. Demystifying and educating providers is key to providing a conducive non-shaming therapeutic environment. However providing knowledge is a practice of cultural competence, infusing cultural humility into practice creates authenticity and positive regard within the clinician.

To support these principles of the helping relationship, the content richly addresses definitions of polyamory and non-monogamy, coupled with a graph which offers a visual aide for attendees, under language, Unpacking heteronormative and monogamy privilege is exposed as well as the challenge to provider’s beliefs, values, and norms of relationships. To assist with unpacking privilege, myths and misconceptions of these relationships are debunked. Next, the focus shifts to the therapist.
The way of being, in the helping profession, is cultural humility. The four tenants of cultural humility are:

Commitment to lifelong learning & critical self-reflection
Recognize/challenge power imbalances
Develop & maintain mutually respectful dynamic partnerships based on mutual trust
Institutional accountability

With each one of the tenets, solutions, techniques, and suggestions for change are offered that include (not limited to) unconscious bias, racial bias, counter transference, professional boundaries, dual relationships, microaggressions,, social, political, economic bias, sex positivity versus sex addiction, and intellectual privilege (Dunning-Kruger Affect).

Certain theories have been shown to assist with effective practice such systems, constructivism, Bowenian, feminist, and gender queer. Techniques such as the genogram, gender/relationship
inclusive assessments, narrative versus structured assessment, collaborative (with client) treatment planning and interventions, including considerations for cultural, social, community, and services barriers. Additionally, one must be aware of community resources and support.

Sep 182014
 

Entertainment media have long been identified as having a key role to play in education about sex and relationships. All too often in studies of sexual learning the media have been assessed for their potentially negative effects on young people. For example, studies have correlated consumption of particular media forms with early sexual intercourse or teenage pregnancy, while parents and schools have been seen as providing a positive corrective.

However empirical research shows that this simple binary is not always accurate: in some instances entertainment media may offer positive information and representations while school or parents often offer more moralizing or conservative perspectives. For example, a young person growing up in a homophobic family may see happy queer characters in a sitcom; or young people attending a school that emphasizes young women’s role as gatekeepers and controllers of men’s sexuality may find helpful TV dramas that explore women’s active sexual agency.

This special issue of the journal Sex Education will engage with these and related concerns, pausing to take stock of where we are now, especially with respect to the positive role that old and newer forms of media can play in learning about sex.

Papers may focus on any aspect of the entertainment media, and on any aspect of healthy sexual development – including, but not limited to, open communication about sex, assertiveness, sexual agency, sexual identity, or an acceptance that sex can be pleasurable.

If you are not sure whether your article is appropriate for this special issue, please feel free to send an abstract in the first instance to a.mckee@qut.edu.au

Articles for the special issue will be subject to normal peer review in line with the procedures of the journal.

You should submit your article for review by the 24th the journal’s instructions for authors at: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?

Peer review:

Articles for the special issue will be subject to normal peer review in line with the procedures of the journal.

Timeline:

You should submit your article for review by the 24th October 2014. You can find the journal’s instructions for authors at:

http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?journalCode=csed20&page=instructions#.Utent_27yf0

When you submit your article will be asked whether you are submitting for a special issue. Please use the pull-down menu to note that you are submitting your paper for the special issue The Media’s Evolving Role in Sex Education. Please also note in the manuscript of your article that you are submitting it for this special issue. If you have any questions about the mechanics of submitting a paper for Sex Education you should find the answers in the guidelines for authors mentioned above.

More on the guest editors

Alan McKee is a Professor in the Creative Industries Faculty at Queensland University of Technology, and leads the ‘Promoting Healthy Sexual Development’ research group at QUT. He is particularly interested in the relationship between media consumption and healthy sexual development. He has published in the Journal of Sex Research, Archives of Sexual Behavior, International Journal of Sexual Health and Sex Education.

Sara Bragg is a Senior Research Fellow in the Education Research Centre at the University of Brighton. She is co-author of many books, reports and articles on young people’s cultures including Young People, Sex and the Media (with David Buckingham, 2004); co-editor of Children and Young People’s Cultural Worlds (with Mary Jane Kehily, 2013) and of Rethinking Youth Cultures in the Age of Global Media (with Buckingham and Kehily, 2014) .

Tristan Taormino is an award-winning writer, sex educator, speaker, filmmaker, and radio host. She is the editor of 25 anthologies, author of seven books, and co-editor of The Feminist Porn Book: The Politics of Producing Pleasure. As the head of Smart Ass Productions, she has directed and produced sixteen sex-ed films. Tristan’s work, writing and films are routinely used in college courses to explore the complex issues of relationship and sexual diversity, politics, and media.