The Society of Asexuals and Aromantics of Alberta was invited to participate in the Telus World of Science’s adults-only evening “Science of Sex”. This is an annual event at the Edmonton science centre, and it was the first time that the organizers sought to include an a-spec perspective. We were extremely grateful and honoured that they extended this invitation to our society. Two of our board members, Rowan Wiebe (President) and Sasha Bauer (Director at Large), attended the event and connected with hundreds of Edmontonions over the evening.
Some highlights:
Rowan was one of four panelist speakers. Nier presentation was titled “Asexuality: Not Just for Amoebas” and followed an informal speaking style, mixing education & facts with comedy. It was a sold-out presentation and very well-received. When walking around the science centre afterwards, ney was repeatedly approached by attendees with comments & questions.
SAAA also had a booth. (Conveniently, our booth was located in the science centre’s aerospace hall, which made for great puns throughout the night!) At our booth, we distributed almost a hundred brochures, and sold 12 copies of our recent Aromanticism Zine. Countless guests came to us with sincere curiosity; many of them had never heard of a-spec identities before, while others were familiar or identified as a-spec themselves, and reacted with pleased surprise to learn of our society.
This was also the first time that we launched our new Split Attraction Worksheet. (Created by Sasha and Rowan specifically for the event, this worksheet was later expanded into the version you can download from our website today - see the Resources tab.) The worksheet was a resounding success! We talked many of the night’s guests through the concept of split attraction, and were delighted to see guests take copies to work on with their partners and friends at nearby benches.
As the night wrapped up, Rowan and Sasha took a lap around the entire science centre. We spoke with various organizations including 2SLGBTQIA+ groups, healthcare providers, sex work advocates, and more, and handed out our business card to many folks who expressed an interest in collaborating.
Overall, "Science of Sex" was a highly rewarding event for SAAA. We look forward to further conversations with the people we met - both those from other organizations that we networked with, as well as all of those guests in attendance who were so eager & willing to learn about a-spec issues. Keep an eye out for our next Edmonton meet-up! We hope to see you there.
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