Date: Thursday 19th February 2026
Time: 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm AEDT
NUAA is hosting an EXPAND webinar on the intersections of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) and the LGBTQ+ community.
Drugs have long been part of queer spaces, connected to celebration, pleasure, connection, and community. This session creates space to talk openly about these experiences and asks how we can better support the LGBTQ+ community in ways that are affirming, respectful, and led by lived and living experience.
We’ll explore the cultural context of drug use in LGBTQ+ communities, the ways queer communities care for one another, and how services can better support autonomy, choice, and control around drug use and help-seeking. We’ll also look at how gender and sexuality shape these experiences.
The panelists are:
George Hartigan, Lived Experience Participation & Inclusion Lead, Neami National
Graeme Kalb, Community Health Promotion Officer, Chemsex Peer Support, ACON
Dr Lucy Watson, Knowledge Translation Lead, NCCRED
Moderator (TBC)
*In line with ACON, a leading Australian LGBTQ health organization, NUAA recognizes "queer" as a reclaimed, often political, umbrella term for sexual and gender minorities, particularly favored by younger generations to describe identities outside heterosexual or cisgender norms. While used to celebrate difference, it may still carry negative connotations for some, especially older individuals.
To register, please visit: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/nSRA7A64Rf-VGMWJN6qD0w