Bianca Alba is a Chicago-based sex educator, sexual health coach, and journalist. She received her MPH from Indiana University Bloomington in 2014, where she assisted with research at the Center for Sexual Health Promotion and the Kinsey Institute. She created the New York Times’ Wirecutter’s guides to sex toys and condoms in 2014, and continues to update them regularly. She has written for the Kinsey Confidential sex education blog, Daily Dot, Huffington Post, TBD Health, and others.
Laura Boyle is a well-known relationship coach and sexuality educator focused on consensual non-monogamy and kink. She created and maintains the most-cited online polyamory glossary, hosts the Ready for Polyamory Podcast, and has been featured in many national publications, including The Economist, Cosmopolitan, and Parents magazine. She is the author of Ready for Polyamory: A Pragmatic Guide to Consensual Non-Monogamy.
Maya is an Award-Winning Product Manager, Educator, Speaker, and Entrepreneur in New York City. An ex financial analyst turned web developer turned product manager, she’s spent the bulk of her career at the intersection of FinTech and EdTech leveraging her product, technical, and operating expertise. Currently, Maya is an MBA Candidate at Harvard Business School and is building Privy Photos, a blockchain-enabled platform to protect content from leaks and abuse. Maya is also the Co-Organizer of Blockchain NYC, the largest local meetup of blockchain enthusiasts in the New York Area (10K+ members) where she develops programming around Web3 Consumer Tech & Diversity & Access. Maya earned her Bachelor’s degree in Economics from New York University and holds professional certifications in Web Development, JavaScript, Python, Blockchain, and Cybersecurity. Distinguished fellowships include The Harvard Business School Arthur Rock Summer Fellowship and the Gitcoin Kernel Block Fellowship (Block 7).
Ley David Elliette Cray, PhD (she/they) is an LGBTQIA+ consultant, BDSM educator, bodyworker, and professional game master based out of Las Cruces, NM. She serves as LGBTQIA+ Curriculum Coordinator for the Sexual Health Alliance and is the founder of Transentience Coaching, through which she aids clients facing existential struggles related to gender, sexuality, relationships, and identity.
Venessa Farn is an AASECT-certified sex therapist and is a licensed professional counselor in Wisconsin. She is also a Certified Canadian Counselor in Edmonton, Canada. She completed her MSc in Counseling at UW-Whitewater in 2009 and completed the Sexual Health Certificate Program at U-Michigan in 2018. She maintains a private online practice in Wisconsin and also practices at a sex therapy clinic in Edmonton. She also provides direct service to clients at the CHEW Project, a drop in center that supports at-risk 2SLQBTQ+ youth and emerging adults.
Kurt Fowler is a professor of criminal justice at Penn State Abington, he earned his doctorate from Rutgers University in 2019 and publishes frequently on digital deviance and the role of technology in criminal justice. His book -The Rise of Digital Sex Work- examines how virtual communities facilitate safety, security, and best practices for providers all over the world.
Chasity Fowlkes (nee Chandler) is a Relationship & Sex Therapist I'm Florida, Massachusetts & New Jersey. She has multiple certifications and over 21 years of experience in helping individuals, families and organizations in the mental health and sexual health fields. Chasity is also the Founder and CEO of the National Institute for Sexual Health & Wellness, which is the first Sex Therapy Certification Program and Sexuality Institute that is geared towards Black, Indigenous and People of Color in the world.
Albert Fox Cahn is the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project’s ( S.T.O.P.’s) founder and executive director. He is also a Practitioner-in-Residence at N.Y.U Law School’s Information Law Institute and a fellow at Yale Law School’s Information Society Project, Ashoka, and TED. As a lawyer, technologist, and activist, Albert has become a leading voice on how to govern and build the technologies of the future. He started S.T.O.P. with the belief that local surveillance is an unprecedented threat to public safety, equity, and democracy. Albert is a frequent commentator, with more than 100 articles in the New York Times, Boston Globe, Guardian, WIRED, Slate, NBC Think, Newsweek, and other publications. His TED Talk has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times. Albert received his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School (where he was an editor of the Harvard Law & Policy Review), and his B.A. in Politics and Philosophy from Brandeis University.
Eva Galperin is the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Director of Cybersecurity. Prior to 2007, when she came to work for EFF, Eva worked in security and IT in Silicon Valley and earned degrees in Political Science and International Relations from SFSU. Her work is primarily focused on providing privacy and security for vulnerable populations around the world. To that end, she has applied the combination of her political science and technical background to everything from organizing EFF's Tor Relay Challenge, to writing privacy and security training materials (including Surveillance Self Defense and the Digital First Aid Kit), and publishing research on malware in Syria, Vietnam, Lebanon, and Kazakhstan. Since 2018, she has worked on addressing the digital privacy and security needs of survivors or domestic abuse. She is also a co-founder of the Coalition Against Stalkerware.
Award winning author of The Leather Couch: Clinical Practice with Kinky Clients, the advanced practice sequel, Kink-Affirming Practice: Culturally Competent Therapy from The Leather Chair, and With Sprinkles On Top: Everything Vanilla People and Their Kinky Partners Need to Communicate, Explore, and Connect; Stefani describes herself as an expert on the edges and a bridge builder between the margins and the mainstream. An expert in working with Gender, Relationship, and Sexuality Differences, as well as with those from minority religious traditions, Stefani is a Certified Sex Therapist, a Board Certified Diplomate of Sexology and an expert voice for Cosmopolitan, The New Yorker, The New York Post, Shape, Women's Health, Marie Claire, The American Spectator, and many more.
Dr. Elyssa Helfer (she/her), founder of Elevated Healing Center and Healing With Elyssa, is an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist and Clinical Sexologist in the Los Angeles area. She has earned a Ph.D. in Clinical Sexology and an MA in Clinical Psychology with an Emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy. Elyssa is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist serving clientele in California, Colorado, and Florida. As an Adjunct Professor at Antioch University- Seattle, Elyssa specializes in and teaches about working with erotically marginalized communities, primarily the kink population. In addition to her therapy practice, Elyssa creates and presents kink/BDSM- related coursework and workshops, writes for Psychology Today, and is a Research Associate at The Alternative Sexualities Health Research Alliance (TASHRA).
Amanda Jepson (she/her) is one of the co-founders of Respark Foundation—a 501(c)(3) non-profit serving survivors of sexual harm, a Clinical Therapist at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs Veterans Health and Trauma Clinic at the Lyda Hill Institute for Human Resilience, and an adjunct lecturer for the University of Colorado-Denver. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor, ASSECT-certified Sex Therapist, Certified Sexologist, and Approved Clinical Supervisor who has been working with survivors of trauma for over a decade. She specializes in combat trauma, physical or sexual abuse, sexual assault, and vicarious trauma as well as helping clients navigate issues and interests related to sex, sexuality, consensual nonmonogamy, and kink. She is passionate about empowering her clients as they reclaim their whole selves, providing consultation to both seasoned and new providers, and being a sex-positive provocateur in clinical and educational spaces
Dr. Jasmonae Joyriel is a licensed psychologist and the founder of Ignite Anew and a therapy practice working with professionals and couples on sex and intimacy, life changes, and career stress. She received her M.A. from Northwestern University and her PsyD from the University of Denver. Dr. Joyriel aspires to increase access to transformative discussions surrounding mental wellness, sex and intimacy, and igniting your life anew!
Dr. David J. Ley is a world-renowned clinical psychologist, known for bringing scientifically-accurate and clinically sound information to discussions about modern sexuality. He serves on the board of the Sexual Health Alliance as an expert advisor and is an internationally-recognized expert on issues related to sexuality, pornography and mental health. He has appeared on television with Anderson Cooper, Katie Couric, Dr. Phil and others. He has been interviewed in publications ranging from the New York Times, Washington Post, LA Times and the London Telegraph, to Playboy and Hustler magazines. Dr. Ley has published extensively in both the academic and “pop” realms of literature. His latest book, Ethical Porn for Dicks, A Man's Guide to Responsible Viewing Pleasure has endorsements from Dan Savage and Pornhub.com and is a humorous and provocative handbook for men who want to think more comprehensively about porn.
Trailblazing educator, artist, and irritant to banality, Midori teaches, coaches, and consults on alternative sexuality, BDSM, Shibari cultural competency, and joyful empowerment through D/s and thoughtful kink. She began teaching in the mid 90’s in San Francisco and shortly after established her company Fire Horse Productions. Midori is known for having penned the first English instruction book on Shibari, “Seductive Art of Japanese Bondage” in 2001, paving the way for the popularity of rope today.
Midori founded Rope Dojo in 2002 and ForteFemme: Women’s Dominance Intensive in 2004. in 2020 she launched the monthly deep dive discussion youtube program Consent Dojo. Currently, she is working on a follow-up book about Shibari and strategies for engaged play. Midori is the Co-Director of Curriculum for Kink Informed Certification, part of the Sexual Health Alliance, training therapists and helping professionals to provide safe, compassionate, and inclusive service to their clients.
She is the recipient of the 2022 Humanitarian Award from the American Association of Sex Educators Therapists & Counselors (AASECT) and the 2022 Effing Foundation Grant, along with having been honored with a Sainthood by The Sisters of Perpetual indulgence. She also authored “Wild Side Sex,” “Master Han’s Daughter,” “Toybag Guide to Foot and Shoe Worship,” and “Silk Threads.”
Midori founded Rope Dojo in 2002 and ForteFemme: Women’s Dominance Intensive in 2004. in 2020 she launched the monthly deep dive discussion youtube program Consent Dojo. Currently, she is working on a follow-up book about Shibari and strategies for engaged play. Midori is the Co-Director of Curriculum for Kink Informed Certification, part of the Sexual Health Alliance, training therapists and helping professionals to provide safe, compassionate, and inclusive service to their clients.
She is the recipient of the 2022 Humanitarian Award from the American Association of Sex Educators Therapists & Counselors (AASECT) and the 2022 Effing Foundation Grant, along with having been honored with a Sainthood by The Sisters of Perpetual indulgence. She also authored “Wild Side Sex,” “Master Han’s Daughter,” “Toybag Guide to Foot and Shoe Worship,” and “Silk Threads.”
Erika Miley, PhD, LMHC (Dr. E) is a passionate therapist, researcher, podcaster, crocheter…mom..and expert in helping people who are neurodiverse, dealing with sexual trauma, and eating disorders. Erika earned her Bachelor’s in Psychology, and Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Whitworth University. She defended her PhD in Clinical Sexology from Modern Sex Therapy Institutes doing quantitative and qualitative research on cis-women’s experience with ADHD and how it impacts their sexual functioning. She is currently licensed in Washington State, and Colorado, and owns a group practice. She also continues to do research on neurodiverse populations especially since the sex lives of people who are differently abled has been so ignored and stigmatized. Erika has been the host of the show Sex Talk with Erika Miley for the past 5 years with well over 125,000 downloads.
Brad "RenderMan" Haines" has been hacking things his whole life, but has been doing it professionally for over 20 years. Based out of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, he has done work to expose vulnerabilities in wireless networks, Government and corporate networks around the world, Air Traffic Control systems, and most recently, connected sex toys. He is the founder of the Internet of Dongs project (https://internetofdon.gs) where he and his wife, Circuitswan, work to educate consumers, retailers and the smart sex toy industry about safety and security issues before they become front page news.
Dr. Aunshul Rege is an Associate Professor & Director of the CARE Lab at Temple University. She is part of the Social Engineering Community at Defcon & on the Advisory Board of Raices Cyber, Black Girls Hack, and Breaking Barriers Women in Cybersecurity. Dr. Rege has a B.Sc. in Computer Science, a B.A. & M.A. in Criminology, and a M.A. & Ph.D. in Criminal Justice. Her work is funded by several National Science Foundation grants and featured by BBC World Service, Security Week, and Dark Reading.
Nicole Schwartz (a.k.a. CircuitSwan) speaks about DevSecOps, Agile, Diversity & Inclusion, and Women in Technology. She is currently a Product Manager at ActiveState, the deputy Chief Operating Officer in charge of Pre-Event Planning for The Diana Initiative, one of the organizers for the SkyTalks village at DEF CON, and one of the Security Researchers at Internet of Dongs. When not worrying about the above (rare) she is mom to a giant rabbit and 2 tuxedo cats while reviewing tea.
Brian Stearns has worked for 25 years in technical instruction and systems & software engineering. He earned his MS in Operations Research from George Mason University and has since developed broad, deep experience across the public and private sectors in information security, digital forensics, and secure communications. His work has taken him across many areas of the Global South, including northern Africa, the Levant, and Southwest Asia. As parts of our global society shift into deeper division and inequity, Brian founded the Institute for Secure Activism in order to better focus his skill set on supporting activists, organizers, and protesters who advocate for social justice for LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, and other marginalized communities.
Dr. Markie L. C. Twist is Teaching Faculty at Antioch University New England working with doctoral and masters level couple and family therapy students in the Applied Psychology Program. Dr. Markie is a LMFT and LMHC, AAMFT Professional Member holding the Clinical Fellow and Approved Supervisor designations, and certified sexuality educator and supervisor through the AASECT. Dr. Markie serves as Editor-in-Chief of Sexual and Relationship Therapy. Website: drmarkie.com.