Inque[e]ry

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Inque(e)ry is committed to the creation of an accessible, inclusive, and diverse network of people who identify as lesbian, dyke, bisexual, (FTM and MTF) transgendered, queer, homosexual and Two-Spirited women and who are doing research on issues related to that identification.

Herstory of Inque[e]ry

Inque[e]ry: The Lesbian, Bi, Trans and Two-Spirited Women’s Research Network of BC emerged during the spring of 2002 out of a project funded by Status of Women of Canada sponsored by the Women’s Creative Network located in Victoria. The project developed a network of lesbian researchers working within the Province of BC on lesbian issues and was coordinated by Jannit Rabinovitch.

For the purposes of the project, the word "lesbian" was short-hand to include all people who define themselves as women and/or female and choose to have affectional/sexual relations with women. This includes (FTM and MTF) transgendered, bisexual, and queer women, dykes, homosexual women, and any other self-identification that included women and females who have primary emotional and/or sexual relationships with a women. [see Principles]

For the purposes of this network, research is also being broadly defined and includes academic research, legal investigations, studies and explorations related to the experience, history, culture, health and status of lesbians. The Network will not have a physical location or paid staff. It is meant to increase communication, provide support, share information, develop partnerships, increase collaboration and identify and fill research gaps. [see Principles]

One of the first tasks undertaken by the network was the creation of a comprehensive bibliography of any work that has been done in BC. This is a work in progress and will continue to be updated. As a result of a province wide outreach to universities, research institutes, community organizations and individuals 50 women signed up to be members of the network. In May 2002, the Network held a symposium to develop a vision and action plan. The symposium was held in Vancouver and was attended by 30 women from around BC including Prince George, Fort Nelson, Cowichan Lake, Salt Spring Island, Victoria, and the lower mainland.

Fundamental aspects of the symposium were to develop network capacity of queer women researchers, and to build on existing knowledge, skills and partnerships. Some of the discussions at the symposium surfaced around issues of accessibility of non-mainstream researchers, legitimacy of non-traditional research studies, issues of exploitation of community-based studies, access to resources, developing networks between academic and community research, and mentorship. There was interest in developing an online database of research studies authored by queer women in British Columbia.

Those in attendance were dismayed that almost all of the participants were white and the group made a strong commitment to including women of colour in the Network. To that end a series of focus groups were conducted during July and August 2002 to:

look at the working principles to be applied both to the network and to research undertaken through the network
suggest how the network could more effectively reach out to Aboriginal women and women of colour
suggest methods or mechanisms that can be used by the network to include Aboriginal women and women of colour
reach out to Aboriginal women and women of colour who are engaged in lesbian or queer research or who might be interested in exploring such a possibility
look for areas of research or research topics of particular interest to Aboriginal women or women of colour.

At the symposium, those in attendance generated ideas for a number of proposed research projects, identified a wide range of interests, brain stormed an impressive list of potential funding sources and had the opportunity to hear presentations on a number of exciting research projects undertaken by members of the network including:

Dr. Theresa Healy "Out in the Cold - The Context of Lesbian Health in Northern British Columbia"
Oline Luinenburg "The Dominatrix Ethnographer: Re-Thinking Qualitative Research Methodology"
Emilie Adin "Where’s the Old Dykes Home?"
Karen A. Gallagher "Centering the Margins: What Can Be Learning By Listening to the Voices of Lesbians Over 55?"
Jill Stainsby "Within These Walls"
Dr. Becki Ross "Critical Sexuality Studies: Leaving No Rock Unturned"

Over the course of the weekend animated discussion ranged from which disciplines most easily embrace research on lesbian and queer issues to how to collaborate successfully with academics and community based researchers.


	home > about us Inque(e)ry is committed to the creation of an accessible, inclusive, and diverse network of people who identify as lesbian, dyke, bisexual, (FTM and MTF) transgendered, queer, homosexual and Two-Spirited women and who are doing research on issues related to that identification. Herstory of Inque[e]ry Inque[e]ry: The Lesbian, Bi, Trans and Two-Spirited Women’s Research Network of BC emerged during the spring of 2002 out of a project funded by Status of Women of Canada sponsored by the Women’s Creative Network located in Victoria. The project developed a network of lesbian researchers working within the Province of BC on lesbian issues and was coordinated by Jannit Rabinovitch. For the purposes of the project, the word "lesbian" was short-hand to include all people who define themselves as women and/or female and choose to have affectional/sexual relations with women. This includes (FTM and MTF) transgendered, bisexual, and queer women, dykes, homosexual women, and any other self-identification that included women and females who have primary emotional and/or sexual relationships with a women. [see Principles] For the purposes of this network, research is also being broadly defined and includes academic research, legal investigations, studies and explorations related to the experience, history, culture, health and status of lesbians. The Network will not have a physical location or paid staff. It is meant to increase communication, provide support, share information, develop partnerships, increase collaboration and identify and fill research gaps. [see Principles] One of the first tasks undertaken by the network was the creation of a comprehensive bibliography of any work that has been done in BC. This is a work in progress and will continue to be updated. As a result of a province wide outreach to universities, research institutes, community organizations and individuals 50 women signed up to be members of the network. In May 2002, the Network held a symposium to develop a vision and action plan. The symposium was held in Vancouver and was attended by 30 women from around BC including Prince George, Fort Nelson, Cowichan Lake, Salt Spring Island, Victoria, and the lower mainland. Fundamental aspects of the symposium were to develop network capacity of queer women researchers, and to build on existing knowledge, skills and partnerships. Some of the discussions at the symposium surfaced around issues of accessibility of non-mainstream researchers, legitimacy of non-traditional research studies, issues of exploitation of community-based studies, access to resources, developing networks between academic and community research, and mentorship. There was interest in developing an online database of research studies authored by queer women in British Columbia. Those in attendance were dismayed that almost all of the participants were white and the group made a strong commitment to including women of colour in the Network. To that end a series of focus groups were conducted during July and August 2002 to: look at the working principles to be applied both to the network and to research undertaken through the network suggest how the network could more effectively reach out to Aboriginal women and women of colour suggest methods or mechanisms that can be used by the network to include Aboriginal women and women of colour reach out to Aboriginal women and women of colour who are engaged in lesbian or queer research or who might be interested in exploring such a possibility look for areas of research or research topics of particular interest to Aboriginal women or women of colour. At the symposium, those in attendance generated ideas for a number of proposed research projects, identified a wide range of interests, brain stormed an impressive list of potential funding sources and had the opportunity to hear presentations on a number of exciting research projects undertaken by members of the network including: Dr. Theresa Healy "Out in the Cold - The Context of Lesbian Health in Northern British Columbia" Oline Luinenburg "The Dominatrix Ethnographer: Re-Thinking Qualitative Research Methodology" Emilie Adin "Where’s the Old Dykes Home?" Karen A. Gallagher "Centering the Margins: What Can Be Learning By Listening to the Voices of Lesbians Over 55?" Jill Stainsby "Within These Walls" Dr. Becki Ross "Critical Sexuality Studies: Leaving No Rock Unturned" Over the course of the weekend animated discussion ranged from which disciplines most easily embrace research on lesbian and queer issues to how to collaborate successfully with academics and community based researchers. Principles back to top

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