About
I am a collaborative, culturally competent (and curious!) sexuality educator, communicator and instructional designer.
Background
My background as a multilingual, third culture individual with international third-sector experience plays an integral role in my approach to sexuality education facilitation and communication. Prior to becoming a sexuality educator, I worked in Communications and Design and Project Management, in both the third sector as well as at a multinational cosmetics company.
In my subsequent roles in community development in Latin America I perceived a lack of spaces to intentionally and constructively dismantle unhelpful taboos around sexual health and rights, and I founded TabuTabu - a socially-focused business that co-creates sexuality education initiatives with communities in Brazil and Honduras.
Areas of Focus
Co-creation &
Participatory Approaches
It starts with working with communities, not in communities nor for them. It continues with actively listening, and acknowledging and centering their innate ability to envision, create and realize their own solutions.
International Mindset &
Intersectional Lens
European with 7+ years living and working with underserved communities in Latin America. Lifetime third culture individual, with the privileges and limitations this entails: I was born into cultural curiosity and sensitivity.
Communications &
Instructional Design
Do more good with better word choice, better design, and better learner experience. Before moving into sexual health and rights work, I studied Product Design and worked in Design and Communications for 5 years
Personal Journey
I am a white, cisgendered, heterosexual, able-bodied woman who was born into a Spanish family living in Germany. My two older brothers and I grew up as third culture kids, attending an international school with students from all over the world. In Germany we were “the Spaniards,” and in Spain we were “the Germans,” never quite belonging, but always safe. I was aware only in theory of my privileges, and comfortably distant from other far less comfortable realities.
After finishing school, graduating from university, and climbing the career ladder for five years, I left Europe and the corporate world. It was through my different roles in development across Latin America that I reexamined my privileges: Working at the intersection of poverty, lack of access to quality education, and gender-based violence and sexual abuse, I began to appreciate the profound impact that comprehensive sexuality education can have on societies and individuals.
I would visit Europe and notice that, whilst the contexts were very different, sexuality is a loaded topic across geographies. I also became acutely aware of the privilege it was for me to be able to access different contexts and communities because of my positionality, languages, network and background: I can participate in professional and educational spaces in the “Global North”, and my approach to sexuality education and social impact also resonates with very grassroots organizations, communities and individuals in the “Global South” (specifically in Latin America) that welcome me to work and learn with them. Most importantly, I have come to understand that I can leverage this bilateral privilege in support of the work I do with communities that don't share these privileges. I continue to learn and unlearn, and never lose sight of the interplay between culture and people, between societies and individuals, between systems and personal agency.
I find joy in music and dance; in pairing a nice wine with a tasty home-cooked meal (especially when cooked by my amazing partner); in a good night's sleep; and in feeling the cold Atlantic water flood my feet and splash my legs at any of the beaches that my current home city, Rio de Janeiro, has to offer.
Confronting and Countering Gender-Based Violence
(Afrontar y combatir la
violencia de género)
February 2024
May 2023
Health Pedagogy:
Sexuality and Education
(Pedagogia da Saúde:
Sexualidade e Educação)
January 2022
Gerando Falcões Educational Methodology
(Metodologia Educacional
Gerando Falcões)
December 2021
Training Program: Management for Civil Society Organizations and Social Entrepreneurs
(Programa de Capacitação: Gestão
para Organizações e
Empreendedores Sociais)
September 2021
Sexual Health Certificate Program - Sexuality Education
February 2021
Stewards of Children: Introductory Training to End Child Sexual Abuse
September 2018
Sexuality and Education
(Sexualidad y Educación)
February 2018
Certificates, Certifications & More
In comparing my experiences living in Latin America and having grown up in Europe, I realized that the taboos around sexuality, and the need for safe spaces in which to dismantle them, transcend social class and geography. I also understood that I am uniquely positioned to access a wide range of professional and grassroots spaces and to leverage this access to maximize impact in more marginalized communities. In 2020 I launched TabuTabu to co-create sexual health and rights initiatives with communities in Brazil and Honduras, tackling their most pressing, self-identified learning needs.