Researchers Seek Queer Peri/menopausal Women for Digital Storytelling Project

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Researchers affiliated with the Health Environment and the Arts (HEART) Initiative at UMass seek sexual and/or gender minority people experiencing peri/menopause to participate in a digital storytelling project.

“Queering Menopause: Building Collaboration for Understanding Menopause Among Sexual and/or Gender Minority People” invites participants to tell their stories related to being in the peri/menopausal stage of their lives, bringing together social science researchers and peri/menopausal individuals to produce a digital story about an important moment in their lives.

Participants will be asked to attend a digital storytelling workshop to be held on the UMass Amherst campus from January 6th–8th, 2026. The workshop will be conducted over three days, each day for five hours, for a total of 15 hours. 

At the end of the workshop, participants will have produced a 1- to 3-minute digital story related to their experiences as a member of the LGBTQ+ community who is in the peri/menopausal phase of life. As part of the digital storytelling process, participants will be asked to share their story ideas in a story circle and final digital story in a story screening at the end of the workshop. Participation is voluntary.

With participant consent, the researchers also plan to share the stories with various audiences (e.g., workshop participants, allied community-based organizations and advocacy networks, public health workers). 

Participants will receive $300 for completing the digital storytelling workshop. Tasty snacks and meals will be provided.

If you're interested in participating, please contact principal investigators Krystal Kittle (kkittle [at] umass [dot] edu (kkittle[at]umass[dot]edu)) and Aline Gubrium (agubrium [at] schoolph [dot] umass [dot] edu (agubrium[at]schoolph[dot]umass[dot]edu)).