Recommendations

Based on the insights gathered, the following recommendations have been developed.

Safety Recommendations

Physical and psychological safety has become a pressing issue following the gender-diversity and expression hate-motivated attack in Hagey Hall on June 28, 2023.^[34]In response to the incident, various University departments and services have enhanced their security protocols. For example, Policy 34 (Health, Safety and Environment) was revised on September 1, 2024. ^[35] A new emergency notification system, Regroup Mobile, replaced the WatSAFE notification system.^[36] The mandatory “Workplace Violence Awareness Training (SO1081)” is now required for all university employees. IMPACT (Integrated Mobile Police and Crisis Team), a partnership between the UW Special Constable Service, Counselling Services, and the Canadian Mental Health Association, also provides out-of-hours mental healthcare.^[37]

However, during the consultations, trans and non-binary community members pointed out that security protocols and services need to be more specific in addressing the needs of 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ students and employees, and made the following recommendations:

Renew and/or redesign the Walksafe program on campus. In the past, the Walksafe service provided an additional level of safety to students by providing an escort or companion when walking on or off campus at night; the program was discontinued in 2010 due to high operating costs. The program has been recommended for renewal several times since then.^[38]
Proceed with Phase III of the All-Gender Washrooms Project^[39] to construct new or redesign existing all-gender washrooms into single-stall washrooms in strategic locations across campus. The strategic locations need to be identified in consultation with 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ community members. Introducing more single-stall washrooms will provide better accommodations to trans, non-binary, and queer students and employees.
Develop awareness-raising and rapid-response protocols to actively respond to anti-2SLGBTQIA+ and anti-2STNBGNC+ vandalism in individual departments and divisions, addressing concerns reported by students and employees.
Develop an education and awareness program that specifically addresses gender-based violence risks and prevention for trans, non-binary, and queer students and employees. Strongly encourage all faculty and staff to take the training on 2SLGBTQIA+ related gender-based violence prevention
Develop and implement cyber-bullying awareness and prevention programs addressing transphobia, homophobia, and gender-identity-based harassment.
Promote the Office of EDI-R's confidential online reporting form^[40] as a safe and community-informed mechanism for reporting and addressing instances of homophobia and transphobia in classrooms, campus facilities, among university employees and in other settings.
Create a web resource with safety tips, resources and emergency numbers that could be shared across different university departments and platforms.
Design a communication campaign on the measures taken to improve trans, non-binary, and queer safety on campus to provide information on new and existing programs and supports, and to foster a sense of safety and trust.

Medical Wellbeing and Gender-Affirming Care Recommendations

University of Waterloo has invested in providing trans and non-binary-tailored medical services and wellbeing programs. Various gender-affirming care programs have been put in place to support trans and non-binary students (e.g., Gender Journeys, 2SLGBTQIA+ Counsellor). Campus Wellness (CW) has a Nurse Practitioner (NP), and doctors who can provide gender affirming care. Students have a choice to see either a doctor or NP according to their preferences. There are currently no wait times at CW. Long wait times were a real issue in the past, but this issue has now been resolved. In addition, CW provides STI/STD testing for students who request it, but it is also looking into developing/managing a contact tracing system to reduce further transmission.

In addition to the existing services, the following recommendations for enhancing trans and non-binary community wellbeing were suggested during the consultation:

9. Improve communication by frequently re-announcing new and updated gender-affirming student services offered by Campus Wellness (CW) in a transparent way. Many 2STNBGNC+ reported that they were unaware of the changes and new services at CW.

10. Continue (and expand on) programs to support gender-affirming care and activities, such as voice training, Gender Journeys, Binder Try-Ons, and ensure that current recommended best practices in Ontario, Canada Professional Association for Transgender Health (CPATH)^[41], and World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH)^[42] are followed.^[43]

11. Develop and implement training to build up or achieve competency in existing and new providers of trans, non-binary and general gender-affirming medical care, especially related to hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) and gender-affirming surgeries.

12. Expand the network of existing gender-affirming care resources and include services from local off-campus health care providers in Waterloo Region.

13. Work with GreenShield and StudentCare to expand employee and student insurance respectively to fully cover gender-affirming care and medication, considering financial sensitivities associated with medical costs experienced by trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming students.

14. Re-evaluate and find alternatives for existing mental health support for 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ employees, and for those employees who directly support trans, non-binary, and queer community members and experience additional emotional pressures because of it. According to 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ community members Homewood Health does not provide adequate mental health support. It is recommended to investigate alternative solutions and/or increase mental health support coverage through GreenShield Insurance, in compliance with Policy 67^[44]and Employment Assistance Program (EAP)^[45].

Social Wellbeing and Belonging Recommendations

Recognition and acceptance are key requirements for trans and non-binary social wellness on campus. The following is recommended in addition to existing programs:

15. Evaluate and redesign shared showers and washrooms in student residences to make facilities more non-binary and trans inclusive.

16. For all departments, increase the visibility of trans, non-binary and queer friendly spaces by displaying Pride flags or stickers. In cases where employees are adequately educated and are willing and able to support trans, non-binary and queer folks, encourage them to identify themselves as allies.

Recognition and Support of 2STNBGNC+ Identities Recommendations

Several university offices, groups and committees already actively promote the respectful use and sharing of personal pronouns, including but not limited to the Queer Trans Alliance (QTA), Information Systems and Technology (IST), the Office of the Registrar, and other student and department-based groups.

To foster inclusion and equity for trans, non-binary, and queer students and employees, it is important to support institutional culture that recognizes the consensual use of personal pronouns and chosen names, recognizes the associated harm, and actively discourages misgendering and deadnaming:

17. Create and implement a program to make personal pronouns available in MS Teams and Outlook that is based on the informed consent principle and is aware of the risks associated with involuntary outing and potential harms to trans, non-binary, and queer students and employees.

18. Develop a university-wide protocol for the sharing of preferred names and personal pronouns between different university platforms, including but not limited to MS Teams and Outlook, LEARN, Quest, WaterlooWorks, email display name, class lists, exam lists, Dean's Honours List and other graduation awards, Watcard, OAT (MSCS), Accessibility Online System, Accuro (Campus Wellness), Workday, and other systems. The project needs to be based on the informed consent principle and an awareness of the risks associated with involuntary outing and potential harms to trans, non-binary, and queer students and employe

19. Develop and implement a university-wide campaign to educate all departments and services about the dangers of non-consensual collection, sharing and storage of personal information, considering the risks associated with 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ identities. On all occasions, communicate in a clear and transparent manner who (and how and when they) can access personal information about students and employees on each platform and share personal data between platforms. Raise awareness about the principle of informed consent at all levels.

Community Education and Training Recommendations

The Office of EDI-R provides a variety of resources for community education on gender and sexual diversity. These include a list of resources for trans students^[46] with information on how to update student IDs in different university systems, mental health services for trans and non-binary students, gender-affirming health care^[47], information on the location of all-gender washrooms on campus^[48], 2SLGBTQIA+ peer support groups, and student housing and living arrangement options. The Office of EDI-R’s education and outreach function also offers a variety of comprehensive workshops on equity, which include segments about gender identity and expression.

This impactful work could be enhanced by the meaningful and strategic implementation of trans, non-binary, and queer support initiatives addressing campus community education about gender identity, sexual identity, gender expression, and the various challenges faced by different identities under the 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ umbrellas. Based on the community consultations, it is recommended to:

20. Create, implement and strongly encourage enrolment in an educational program to address and prevent homophobia, transphobia and related harassment, bullying and microaggressions against 2STNBGNC+ students and employees.

21. Develop faculty training on building up or achieving competency in how to support trans, non-binary, and queer students, understand their needs and social risks, and prevent misgendering in the classroom and in student-faculty interactions. Make this training an essential part of professional faculty evaluation.

22. Develop and integrate curriculum revision initiatives to make the curriculum 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ aware across departments, disciplines and programs.

23. Develop and implement gender-inclusive training for communications departments and officers to activate the knowledge from the Inclusive Communications Guide^[49] and implement gender-neutral and inclusive language in all University documents and communications.

24. Create and implement public awareness campaigns to educate students and employees about gender diversity and non-conformity, barriers and risks reported by community members.

25. Develop and implement an outreach campaign to educate the UW community about days of significance and prominent social and political figures that contributed to 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ visibility and success. Potential partnerships might include and are not limited to QTA, Library, Inclusive Communications, and more.

26. Develop an educational resource hub on 2SLGBTQIA+ issues that will provide current reference materials and information about best practices to support 2SLGBTQIA+ students and employees.

2SLGBTQIA+ Community Development and Sustainability Recommendations

In addition to various initiatives on campus, such as those implemented by the Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association (WUSA), consultation participants recommended the following:

27. Create a designated space for various 2STNBGNC+ and 2SLGBTQIA+ students’ and employees’ organizations on campus to meet and network, including and not limited to GLOW, RAISE, QTA, and more.

28. Develop and implement a program to recognize and reward the invisible labour that UW community members invest into advocacy and community building, which is often done on a volunteer basis.