One Queen’s retreat for students uses the power of nature to build community.
The Yellow House and Student Wellness Services (SWS) have teamed up to host Queens’s first-ever Gender Diverse Wellness Retreat. The retreat promises a weekend of connection, reflection, and celebration for gender-diverse students in Elbow Lake on April 27 and 28.
The retreat is open to trans, non-binary, genderqueer, agender, and other gender-diverse undergraduate and graduate students. Of 5,420 first-year undergraduate students, 33 identified as non-binary, with 16 of 3,965 first-year graduate students identifying as non-binary, according to Queen’s 2022-23 enrolment report.
Kel Martin, sexual and gender diversity advisor at Yellow House, said students emphasized the importance of having a space for reflection in nature. This evolved to include making connections between gender-diverse peers and role models, as well as celebrating gender diversity through artistic expression.
“This retreat was inspired by gender-diverse students accessing Yellow House programs and resources. Through events like Solidarity Swims (a gender-diverse swim space), Gender Splendor (a gender-diverse group), and one-on-one student advising appointments, I’ve received valuable insight from students who are interested in sharing ideas for future programs and initiatives they’d like to see coming from the Yellow House,” Martin said in a statement to The Journal.
The retreat will cater to varying students’ interests. Participants can fish and canoe, have movie nights, bonfires, and practice meditations and mindfulness.
“Each day provides choice, opportunities for rest and solitude, or movement and socialization— there’s lots of flexibility,” Martin added.
Martin wants students to share their stories and learn from each other at the retreat. The goal is to equip gender-diverse students with collective strength amongst rising attacks on the protection of human rights through policy changes as well as in public spaces and services.
“Bringing the gender-diverse community together and being surrounded by deeply caring and knowledgeable wellness professionals, community , and peers, is magical, healing, and empowering,” Martin said.
Tags
All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s) in Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be ed, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to [email protected].