Ruth Pearce, Senior Lecturer in Community Development at the University of Glasgow, is without question one of the most dynamic and generous trans scholars in Europe. Her previous education was at the University of Warwick where she defended her PhD thesis 10 years ago.

Ruth engages with diverse projects encompassing all aspects of trans health and wellbeing as well as sex and gender in health research, including current work on the Cass review in the UK. Her oldest book on this is from 2018, with two later edited volumes.

She is an interdisplinary scholar who writes for diverse audiences, from gender scholars and sociologists, to biomedical scientists, to community members. In addition to her own creative and field-defining work, Ruth generously contributes to diverse collaborations and can be counted on to respond constructively and with enthusiasm to requests for advice, or invitations to speak, leading to a very strong track record on public engagement in a very polarized field.

She has been consulted as an expert for critical policy decisions including trans healthcare reform in the UK, and is involved in diverse spaces of activism. Ruth uses her unique positionality, genius, and kindness to advance gender theory AND make the world livable for transgender people.

Currently, she is working with a co-author (Kirsty Lohman) on a contracted book for Policy Press on Sex, Punk and Politics: How to win a culture war. This is not just theory, and she is also a punk musician and DJ herself.