Plenary Sessions

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This interactive session challenges dominant (Western-centric) perspectives of intimacy, pleasure, connection and sex with reference to learnings from workshops in 45+ countries. Highlighting differences and tensions between collectivist and individualistic cultures, participants will explore how cultural frameworks can influence sexual research, theory, experience and practice. Together, we’ll examine personal biases and cultural conditioning to cultivate more, effective, justice-focused and culturally responsive practices.

Jess O’Reilly is a sexuality professional whose work reaches millions of couples and singles across the globe. Her advice is featured weekly in international media outlets including Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Shape, Men’s Fitness, Women’s Health, The Huffington Post, Showtime, MSN, ABC Spark, CBC, CTV, PlayboyTV, CBS Radio and Global Television. She has worked with thousands of couples who can attest to the efficacy of her programs in improving communication, deepening intimacy and boosting relationship satisfaction. 

Jess’ research focused on support and training for classroom teachers with an emphasis on healthy relationships, HIV/AIDS and intersectionality. She is passionate about accessible, classroom-based education and continues to work and volunteer in the field of public education as a guest lecturer at schools, colleges and universities. Her behavioural psychology studies focused on the relationship between marital satisfaction and workplace outcomes.  

Jess has worked with corporations, private therapy practices, school boards, government agencies and social service organizations to develop programming on a range of sexual health topics including sex and disability, support for PHAs, sexual health counselling, solution-focused brief therapy, telephone-based sexuality counselling, sex-positive parenting, overcoming sexual challenges, and healthy relationships. 

As part of her media brand, she distills the latest relationship research weekly on Global Television’s The Morning Show and CityTV’s Breakfast Television. She also engages with a wide range of sexuality and relationship topics on her weekly show, The Sex With Dr. Jess Podcast (co-hosted by her life partner, Brandon Ware). Alongside guest experts, they address issues ranging from dealing with affairs and managing desire differentials to BDSM for POC and centering the voices and experiences of sex-workers in therapy.  

A sought-after speaker, Jess travels extensively to engage with audiences large and small. She has delivered hundreds of workshops and speeches in 45+ countries putting audiences at ease with her gentle humour, thorough subject knowledge and friendly disposition. Her clients include folks from all walks of life and her mixed-race background (her biological parents are Chinese-Jamaican and Irish) has provided her with a unique perspective for considering sexuality and relationships from an intercultural lens. She strives to thoughtfully draw from each of these cultural influences and takes pleasure in engaging with and learning from the diverse cultures encountered in her business travels. She has recently facilitated workshops for business leaders and their spouses in Lebanon, India, China, Thailand, Turkey, Switzerland, Philippines, Jerusalem, Spain, Italy, Czech Republic, Mexico, Costa Rica, France, Canada and the United States. 

Jess has authored four best-selling books and her latest, The Ultimate Guide to Seduction and Foreplay, co-authored by Marla Renee Stewart, aims to be a comprehensive guide for folks of all genders who want to better understand their own sexual needs and those of their partner(s). 

You can follow Jess on Instagram (@SexWithDrJess) for short-form insights (and many food and travel stories) and listen to the SexWithDrJess Podcast for both personal and professional musings on sex and relationship topics. 

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This keynote explores developing professional disposition and humility within sexuality. By engaging collaboratively with colleagues and communities, professionals can create inclusive, client-centered services that prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and community care. 

Tanya Bass, PhD, MS, MEd, CHES®, CSE (she/her/hers) an award-winning sexuality educator and the “Foundress” of the North Carolina Sexual Health Conference (NCSEXCON), a conference that provides opportunities for agencies and individuals to share information, strategies, and best practices around sexual health across the lifespan. Dr. Bass is an alumna of North Carolina Central University’s (NCCU) Department of Public Health Education, where she has served as an adjunct instructor for several years and is currently the lead instructor for Human Sexuality. She completed her PhD in Education at Widener University in the Center for Human Sexuality Studies. 

Dr. Bass remains committed to seeking professional development and is a member of the NC Society for Public Health Educators, the Women of Color Sexual Health Network (WoCSHN), the Association of Black Sexologists and Clinicians (ABSC), and the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapists (AASECT). She is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) and an AASECT Certified Sexuality Educator (CSE). Tanya is a current member of the editorial board for the American Journal of Sexuality Education. 

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to be announced

Alex Iantaffi, PhD, MS, SEP, CST, CST-S, LMFT (they/he/lui) is an award-winning author, family therapist, WPATH certified gender specialist, AASECT certified sex therapist, Somatic ExperiencingⓇ practitioner, and clinical supervisor. Alex is Past President of the Minnesota Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (MAMFT) and Past Chair of the Trans and Queer interest network of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). They were the recipient of the 2023 AASECT Humanitarian Award, the 2019 MAMFT Distinguished Service Award, the 2013 Twin Cities Deaf Pride Community Organization Award, the 2012 Breaking the Silence Award at the University of Minnesota, and the 2000 Best Dissertation Award from the British Educational Research Association. Alex has researched, presented and published extensively on gender, disability, sexuality, relationships, and HIV.  They are a trans masculine, nonbinary, bi queer, neurodivergent, disabled, Italian immigrant who has been living, loving, organizing, parenting and working on Dakota and Anishinaabe territories, currently known as Minnesota (US) since 2008. Alex is the author of “Gender Trauma: healing cultural, social, and historical gendered trauma”, which was awarded the Nautilus award (gold category) in 2022 and the AASECT Book Award for Sexuality Professionals in 2023. They are the co-author of the books “How to Understand Your Gender: a practical guide for exploring who you are”,  “Life Isn’t Binary”, “Hell Yeah Self-Care: a Trauma-Informed Workbook”, “How To Understand Your Sexuality: a practical guide for exploring who you are”, “How to Understand Your Relationships: a practical guide”, with Meg-John Barker, and editor of the “Trans and Disabled” anthology. They also host the podcast Gender Stories. You can find out more about them at www.alexiantaffi.com or follow them on Instagram @xtaffi and @genderstories  

All Audiences

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This plenary explores the multifaceted nature of sexual liberation, moving beyond individual expression to its potent socio-political implications. It will articulate how embodied ritual can reclaim agency and disrupt intersectionally oppressive cultural, relationship, and self recipes, fostering individual, relational, and communal healing and self-discovery. It will then represent cutting-edge research methodologies that center marginalized voices and experiences, revealing the ecology of barriers to and facilitators of good sex. Finally, it will address how sexual liberation functions as a form of resistance against current politics and power structures, challenging dominant narratives and advocating for intimate justice. By integrating ritual, rigorous research, and strategic resistance, this plenary will illuminate the transformative potential of good sex, radically imagining pathways towards an equitable and liberated future.

Leading Expert in Sex Research, Dr. Candice Nicole Hargons is an award-winning associate professor at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, where she studies sexual wellness and liberation. With over 70 published articles, Dr. Hargons has made substantial contributions to the field, positioning herself as a leading authority in her discipline. Her innovative work has been widely recognized and featured in major podcasts and publications such as the Huffington Post, Essence, Good Housekeeping, Women’s Health, Blavity, Cosmopolitan, and the New York Times. As a thought leader, Dr. Hargons continues to shape the conversation around sexual wellness, advocating for liberation and wellness within marginalized communities. 
 
Her debut book, Good Sex, will be published by Row House February 2025. 

Website: www.drcandicenicole.com 

Instagram, Threads & Facebook: @dr.candicenicole on IG, Threads, and Facebook;  

Book Sales (Good Sex: Stories, Science, and Strategies for Sexual Liberation): https://www.charisbooksandmore.com/book/9781955905794