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WCS LGBTQ+ Awards 2025 | Grassroots Community Activism.

Updated: 13 minutes ago

This year's WCS | Awards are celebrating Queer Leaders around the world - LGBTQ+ change-makers who are using their platforms, profile and roles to drive change, making the world a more inclusive place for all LGBTQ+ people. The Grassroots and Community Activism Award celebrates the achievements of individuals or groups who significantly impact LGBTQ+ rights and community wellbeing through grassroots organizing and community initiatives.


Grassroots Community Activism | Our 2025 Awardees:


Other Award Categories:



Adam Holcroft-Tebbutt.

(he/him) Community & Grassroots Activism


Adam is the founder of Rainbow & Co, a queer-led business that fuses visibility, advocacy, and community care. As an autistic trans man, Adam leads from lived experience, using his platform to challenge stereotypes, celebrate diversity, and create safer, more inclusive spaces for LGBTQIA+ people. His work spans grassroots support, inclusive product design, and public education, with projects like Cultural Pioneers and collaborations with Wave of Nostalgia offering support for under-represented identities. Adam doesn’t just create space; he shares it, empowering others through mentorship, resources, and visibility. He embodies queer leadership by listening deeply, responding authentically, and holding space for joy, resilience, and change. Through Rainbow & Co, Adam proves that business can be a radical tool for representation, empowerment, and systemic impact.




Alberto Antón Benítez.

(any pronouns)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Alberto is an advertising professional and volunteer dedicating his time over the last few years to a wide range of LGBTQ+ initiatives and efforts in Barcelona. Alberto is driven by the idea that the happiness and growth of the community is rooted in the establishment of a solid and healthy social fabric.




Dr Alfredo Carpineti.

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Dr Alfredo is a queer Italian astrophysicist, science journalist, and social activist. He is the Senior Staff Writer & Space Correspondent for IFLScience where he has worked for 8 years, writing over 5,000 articles that millions have read. He's writing his debut book called Invisible Rainbows, coming out in March 2026. He is the chair and founder of Pride in STEM, an award-nominated British charity dedicated to supporting and showcasing LGBTQIA+ people in science, technology, engineering, and maths. Pride in STEM and other sibling organisations launched and continue to promote LGBTQ+STEM Day, the international day for LGBTQIA+ people in STEM, happening globally on November 18. For this work, Alfredo was recognised as one of the 101 global LGBTQ trailblazers by Attitude Magazine.




Andromeda.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Andromeda is an international drag artist and performer based in Tokyo, Japan. She was born in Mexico, raised in Canada and has been in Japan since 2015. Her art draws from performance art, Nihon Buyo, Hip-Hop, and Disco, merging the line between audience and performer. She is also one of the founders of IWAKAN magazine, Japan’s largest gender dedicated print magazine and its following iteration as a collective names Moto IWAKAN. She is a podcast host as well, hosting the shows Motto IWAKAN! and Tokyo Trans Story.



awo dufie föfie.

(she/they)

Community & Grassroots Activism


awo is an intersex and transgender woman indigenous to the Akan community in Ghana, West Africa. Her work explores the intersection of queerness and decolonization through the everyday. She explores the past, present and future of queerness and non-heteronormative people who live and love in Ghana and West Africa. Amidst a culture of equating queerness to abuse, pathology, and even a western import, what does the everyday life and experiences of actual queer people look like? awo's work explores and reimagines a decolonized queer future where gender and sexual minorities do not exist. She has worked as a decolonial resource mobiliser, political and queer activist, writer, and researcher in Ghana and around the world. Her writings and reflections have been published by AfricanFeminism, ReportOut, W’ahu, We Create Space, among others. Similarly, she has also consulted and worked with organisations on issues of decolonisation, resource mobilisation, and campaign designs. She is currently preparing to begin her PhD studies in sociocultural studies.



Barcelona Rainbow Singers | Jerry Salinas, Xavier Carol, Laura Morano & Mario Palomino

NGO

Community & Grassroots Activism


Barcelona Rainbow Singers are a choral group of singers of different ages, origins and sex-affective choices that form an independent and inclusive association. They are open to those who love music and want to sing in an atmosphere of joy, respect and companionship. Through music they seek to make diversity visible and help build a society where no one is belittled or discriminated against for being what they are.




Carlos Rubio

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Carlos is a psychotherapist and sexologist based in Barcelona, dedicated to supporting gay men in exploring their identities, desires, and emotional worlds. With a deeply human and body-centered approach, he creates spaces of safety, connection, and presence, where intimacy can be experienced without shame or judgment. His work focuses on sober sexuality, chemsex recovery, and the rebuilding of intimacy after trauma, stigma, or disconnection. Carlos offers both individual therapy and group experiences that invite participants to reconnect with their bodies and emotions, fostering a sense of belonging and empowerment within the queer community. Through his platform Espacio Faro, he shares reflections, resources, and workshops that center queer pleasure, tenderness, and vulnerability. He believes healing happens not in isolation, but in relationship — with ourselves, our desires, and one another.



Char Bailey.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Char is a qualified NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Practitioner) and Personal Performance Coach. Mental health and Autism advocacy play a huge role in what she does, facilitating workshops focusing on self-awareness, stress-management, confidence and resilience. She loves showing people how powerful they are. Char is also Education and Inclusion officer for the biggest global movement for queer people of colour UK Black Pride and Director of people and culture for Birmingham Pride. Her apple award winning podcast is called Qmmunity.




Chloe Cousins.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Chloe is a youth worker and community organiser based in Manchester. Chloe is the Strategic Lead for Rainbow Noir, a volunteer led social, peer support and community action group for LGBTQI people of colour. The group celebrates it's 12th year this year! Chloe is also a Co-founder and former Director at Colours Youth Network; a national organisation that supported QTIPOC youth and youth workers that ran from 2016-2024, bringing together young people and youth workers from across the UK to access affirming, creative and supportive spaces. Chloe has worked for over a decade in people work - working with young people in schools, colleges, youth groups and with communities across a range of settings including at Manchester Museum where she is now based in the role of Social Justice Manager, a role that ensures that practice, programmed and policy are all underpinned by justice, solidarity and care. Chloe is passionate about creating spaces for people to find connections, inner love and joy.




Chris Sheridan.

(they/them)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Chris is a psychotherapist, clinical supervisor, clinical sexologist, and DEI consultant. Originally from Dublin and now based in Glasgow, Chris is the Founder and Managing Director of The Queer Therapist, a UK-wide online therapy service specialising in gender, sexuality, and relationship diversity (GSRD) and neurodivergent-affirming care. They also serve as Lead Psychotherapist at Voda, the LGBTQIA+ mental wellbeing app, where they help make affirming mental health support more accessible across digital platforms. With a practice grounded in relational, decolonised, anti-pathologising approaches, Chris is passionate about challenging the historical stigma that queer and neurodivergent people have faced within psychology, talking therapies and sex therapy. Their work is driven by a commitment to creating therapeutic spaces, whether in the consulting room or through digital innovation, that honour complexity, dismantle binary thinking, and centre lived experience.




Colette Farrugia Bennett.

(she/they)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Colette is an activist for LGBTIQ rights and values diversity and social integration. She is the co-chair of the Malta LGBTIQ Rights Movement and is also part of the LGBTI Consultative Council which is an advisory committee to the government. She is the co-founder of MGRM’s Rainbow Support Service, which she is currently coordinating and providing support to the LGBTIQ persons in the process of self-identification, dealing with internalised homo-, bi-, trans- and inter-phobia, accessing services, and supporting gender and sexual diversity clients and their families in the process of coming out. Colette has a Masters Degree in Family Therapy and Systemic Practice, as well as a Masters Degree and Bachelor Degree in Social Work from the University of Malta. She has specialised in the therapeutic empowerment and affirmation of diverse gender and sexual identities within the context of individual, couple and family therapy.



Damiana Ventura.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Damiana is a Bachelor’s degree student of Mass Communications with over 7 years' experience in the Technology, Tourism and Cultural sectors. In November 2018, she created Rio Queer, a tourism agency in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to better welcome the LGBTQ+ community. With Rio Queer, she has achieved the Sustainable Enterprise seal offered by Shell plc, and the endorsement of the UK-Brazil Tech Hub. For 6 years she has been managing The L Culture, a virtual community with plus 8k members that brings together women and non-binary people from all over the world, where they can share their stories, experiences and a safe space. An advocate for the democratization of the Arts and Culture, she has also been a dance teacher in a social project at a public school in her hometown. Damiana believes that education and compassion are the keys to liberating all generations.




Dino Suhonic.

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Dino is a queer Muslim activist, scholar, and bridge-builder, working at the intersection of faith, identity, and justice. He is the founder and director of Maruf, a queer Muslim platform focused on community building, leadership, and healing through intersectional, feminist, and decolonial approaches. Originally from Bosnia, and he currently lives in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.




Ed Bell.

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Ed is a musician, writer and queer relationship coach. He works with gay and bi men to help them build more meaningful relationships, find community, and live more fulfilling lives. His speciality is helping queer men overcome the blocks and barriers that stop them connecting more deeply with others. Ed is the founder of Better Gay Dating and under the pen name Max Thomas, the author of the popular self-help guide Boys Who Like Boys. Before becoming a coach, Ed was a full-time musician where he worked on projects at Arizona Theater Company, the Soho Theatre, and with the BBC Singers. He also edited music for ITV’s gay sitcom Vicious and once got to accompany Ian McKellen at the piano while he sang ‘I Am What I Am’ at a pride party in New York.




Elin McCready.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Elin McCready is Research Professor at ICREA and UAB. Her academic interests are in linguistics, philosophy, environmental humanities, and experimental literature; her current research is on social meaning, including hate speech, political dogwhistles, and gendered language, and on other topics involving language such as conceptual literature, spellcasting, and embodiment. She is an organizer of the club event WAIFU and the book collective NEON (both Tokyo-based), and a member of the art collective MOM. She does activism around LGBT rights and family issues and is now in a lawsuit against the Japanese government about trans rights and same-sex marriage.




Helmut De Nardi.

(they/he)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Helmut is a proud Italian queer and trans human leading impactful action research and advocacy. They are a disabled immigrant living in the United Kingdom, but this is just the current stage of their activities. Over the last 15 years, as a grassroots academic, educator and mentor, they have reshaped the educational landscape across Europe, Australia and South Asia by prioritizing people-led narratives over institutional dominance. As an activist and community champion, they have designed and implemented ambitious but effective migrant and refugee empowerment projects seen through a spatial justice lens. They have dedicated their life to co-producing workable initiatives for a fairer society and more profound cultural inclusion for queer migrants and global majority trans people, and they will continue to do so as long as they live and breathe.




Jaron Soh.

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Jaron is co-founder and CEO of Voda, the award-winning mental health app designed by leading LGBTQIA+ psychologists. Voda offers blends clinical expertise with lived experience insights, offering discreet, evidence-based support for LGBTQIA+ challenges such as coming out, gender dysphoria, hate speech and stigma. Since its launch, Voda has supported over 36,000 users globally, was named “App of the Day” in 35+ countries, and was recognised as a “Rising Star” at the UK National Startup Awards in 2024.




Jude Guaitamacchi.

(they/them)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Jude is a trans and non-binary speaker, award-winning campaigner, and founder of the Trans+ Solidarity Alliance. They have made history through their projects and initiatives, including chairing the first all-trans expert panel in UK Parliament and leading the #TransYouthAreLoved campaign, the largest celebrity-endorsed trans solidarity movement—featuring stars such as Emma Bunton, David Tennant, Elliot Page, and Dannii Minogue. With over 12 years’ experience, Jude has delivered talks and workshops on mental health, LGBTQ+ inclusion, and gender diversity to leading brands, businesses, schools, and universities across 74 countries. They are dedicated to driving social change through activism, education, and visibility and are passionate about inspiring the next generation to find strength in vulnerability, empower themselves, and celebrate who they truly are.



Karla Revilla.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Karla is a queer Mexican entrepreneur, Chief Innovation Officer and co-creator of UNLOCK Summit, a pioneering platform uplifting women and LGBTQ+ voices across Latin America. Rooted in conscious leadership and digital innovation, her work bridges Web3, entrepreneurship, and social impact. Through UNLOCK, Karla creates transformative spaces that center female empowerment, equity, and connection—amplifying those traditionally excluded from tech and business ecosystems while shaping a more inclusive future for all.




Khourtney Otieno.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Khourtney began doing advocacy work in July 2016 as a Community Peer Educator. As a trans person living with HIV for the last 13 years, her work has concentrated on improving healthcare standards and services for transgender persons living in Western Kenya, shining light on the inequalities, stigma, discrimination and violence facing trans people and making them vulnerable to HIV. Khourtney creates supportive environment for Peer to Peer support groups, establishing community practices amongst trans persons living with HIV.




Kim Middleton.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Kim is the Co-Organiser and Social Director of International Lesbians Barcelona, a community group and NGO that facilitates social and cultural events for LBTQ+ individuals. Passionate about inclusion and connection, Kim creates a diverse array of welcoming spaces that unite her community across cultures, languages, and identities. Since 2023, her leadership has sparked a surge in participation and engagement, creating a supportive home-away-from-home for queer people in Barcelona. Drawing from her roots in queer student activism, Kim’s mission remains clear: to build joyful, accessible spaces where LBTQ+ folk can connect, thrive, and celebrate their uniqueness.




Les Girls Barcelona | Sofía Martínez López & Romana Russello.

NGO

Community & Grassroots Activism


LesGirls is an organisation dedicated to providing a safe and welcoming space for LBTQ+ (Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and more) women in Barcelona. Their goal is to promote community, diversity, and inclusion through a variety of cultural, festive, and sporting activities.





Leyla Helvaci.

(she/they)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Leyla is based in South Wales and works as Participation Lead at Consortium, an infrastructure organisation that supports LGBT+ groups across the UK. With a background in community engagement and project planning, Leyla supports grassroots and LGBT+ organisations to access funding, collaborate, and grow sustainably. She focuses on making sure funding decisions are shaped by the communities that the funded supports, and that wrap around assistance is offered before, during and after applications. Leyla is proud to work alongside brilliant facilitators and participants on Community Compass, a leadership pilot that looks at what leadership could be for intersectional LGBT+ people. The programme centres celebration, connection, and shared learning- shaped by everyone involved. Leyla doesn’t see leadership as something to do alone, but as something built together with the community around them.




Marta Musić.

(they/them)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Dr. Marta is a queer, decolonial, transfeminist activist-researcher from the former Yugoslavia, living in Barcelona since 2018. They're a transnational movement organizer, a feminist economist and a weaver of systemic alternatives. They work at AWID, a global feminist

movement support organization, as the Lead of the Building Feminist Economies team

dedicated to challenging corporate power and amplifying feminist economic alternatives. They are the co-founder and member of the Global Tapestry of Alternatives, a global process that seeks to identify, document and connect systemic alternatives around the world. They also sit on the advisory committee of Noor (a global feminist network dedicated to fighting fascisms and fundamentalisms). At a local/national level, they are engaged in anti-racist, transfeminist, queer, migrant organizing in various capacities. Finally, they also carry out research and regularly teach on decolonial feminisms and systemic alternatives.




Matthew C T Fuller.

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Matthew is a Change & Accountability Coach, queer community advocate, and award-winning grassroots activist based in London. He supports individuals navigating addiction, recovery, and personal transformation—especially within LGBTQIA+ communities—through coaching, keyworking, and storytelling. Matthew volunteers with Switchboard, Antidote, and Controlling Chemsex, where his compassion and lived experience shape everything from frontline care to community strategy. An ICF-accredited coach, facilitator, and speaker, he’s delivered sessions for major media companies, universities, and international coaching summits, always centering humanity, growth, and justice. His work bridges emotional wellbeing with equity, helping people lead themselves and others with integrity and care. Matthew has lived in several countries and speaks four languages, a passion that deepens his global perspective. He also uses fitness to reconnect with his body and stay grounded. He believes leadership is about consistency, courage, and care—and that making noise about progress isn’t boasting, it’s necessary.




Neil Hudson-Basing.

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Neil is an experienced & dynamic Events & Community Director, project manager and freelance emcee, moderator & public speaker. His style and approach boasts a diverse way of thinking, an inclusive mentality and warmth in abundance. With a touch of chaos & disruption when it's needed. Neil is super passionate about inclusion & belonging - embedding these into everything he does. Particularly when it comes to creating meaningful & valuable experiences and moments for people to feel celebrated & seen. He’s the Co-Founder of The House of Happiness, London’s Ultimate Sober Clubbing Extravaganza, and the host & producer of his own podcast ‘Pause. And Rewind…’ which deep dives into the origin stories of inclusion heroes. Blending his professional industry experience, his talent for storytelling & creating engaging content with his passion for amplifying the voices & stories of others, Neil shows up. He’s community focused, human centred & committed to making a difference, including being a massive advocate for volunteering which he feels has enriched his life. He can always be found running, at the gym or on a dance-floor.




Paula Harrowing.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Paula spent over 15 years working within the HIV sector, co-founding the support agency Body & Soul in 1994 for those who were unable to access appropriate healthcare, with a mission to raise awareness of those affected by HIV/AIDS. Partnering with big names like The Body Shop, MTV, Children In Need, and Comic Relief, she helped catapult HIV discussions into the mainstream. Paula's initiation into the HIV/AIDS crisis unfolded amidst the vibrant LGBTQ+ club scene of the early '90s. There, she watched many friends disappear from the Soho LGTBQ+ scene, creating an uneasy silence in Clubland. Her club nights drew diverse queer women, with inclusive flyers and advertising. They featured events like Sister Friction at Hanover Square, Cruella at WKD Bar, The Fruit Machine at Heaven, Queer Nation, Girl Bar and others at various venues such as YMCA and Covent Garden. As a club promoter, she built strong bonds within the queer community and worked amongst the unsung heroics of lesbians supporting their gay male friends. This crucial tale, she believes, is often side-lined in stories like TVs It's A Sin, highlighting a streak of misogyny in the LGBTQ+ world.




Polly Shute.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Polly Shute has been working and volunteering in the LGBTQ+ community for the last decade. After leaving the board in Pride in London, frustrated at the lack of focus queer and non-binary women get, she started to develop events for them. She now runs the largest festival in the UK for this audience, Out & Wild. She is now growing spin offs from Out & Wild's focus on wellbeing, including Pride Swims and a new venture in London, Pride in Wellness. Polly is also co-founder of OUTspoken, a CIC that platforms and supports the visibility of women and non-binary people. Outside her queer work, she is a charity leader and interims and consults for not profits.



Richard Mitchell (Lady Red Velvet).

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Lady Red Velvet, the alter ego of British-born educator Richard Mitchell, is a celebrated drag artist and community activist based in Barcelona. By day, Richard teaches art and drama; by night, he transforms into Lady Red Velvet, dazzling audiences with a vibrant mix of comedy, musical theatre, and audience interaction. Known for her "Off, off Broadway" flair, Lady Red Velvet is a fixture at beloved venues like La Federica and Candy Darling, and a cherished figure in Barcelona’s queer community. Beyond the spotlight, Lady Red Velvet is deeply committed to social justice. She has raised over €25,000 for more than 35 charities, championing causes from LGBTQ+ rights to healthcare and homelessness— always with the generous support of La Federica. Her podcast, Let Them Eat Cake, dives into the world of drag and queer culture with wit and wisdom. Lady Red Velvet embodies drag as both dazzling art and powerful activism.




Sandra Ljubinkovic.

(she/they)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Sandra is a somatic therapist, movement witch, feminist troublemaker, and lifelong learner of how we heal and resist. She works at the juicy intersection of healing systems change, embodied liberation, and political organizing. Think breath work meets decolonization, trauma healing meets dance floor, ancestral wisdom meets queer futurism. She works where systems crack and healing begins — in the messy, magical space between personal transformation and collective uprising. Her practice? A mix of somatics, trauma healing, breath-work, food as resistance, ancestral remembering, and a whole lot of unlearning.






Shawn Aaron.

(he/him)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Shawn is a Black queer trans man, nonprofit leader, and host of Dem Bois Podcast. He is the Founder + Executive Director of Dem Bois Inc., an organization dedicated to affirming and supporting trans men of color through access to gender-affirming care, health equity, and visibility. Drawing from his lived experience with homelessness, Shawn’s mission is rooted in community care and systemic change. Whether through storytelling or advocacy, his work amplifies the voices of those too often unheard. His signature belief: Visibility = Possibility™.




Spencer Cooper.

(they/them)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Spencer is a passionate advocate for LGBTQ+ voices and community building. As the founder of Love Queers, they have created a vital online space for connection and support. Spencer further extends their dedication through the Queer Talk podcast, offering insightful conversations on LGBTQ+ experiences, and the Outsiders Talk Podcast. Committed to amplifying marginalised voices globally, Spencer actively works to ensure diverse queer narratives are heard and celebrated. Their multifaceted work demonstrates a deep commitment to fostering understanding, acceptance, and empowerment within the LGBTQ+ community and beyond.




The Common Press.

Small Business

Community & Grassroots Activism


The Common Press is London’s queer, intersectional bookshop, café, and events space. It is a third space and sanctuary for storytelling, queer literature, and culture. This radical indie bookshop stocks over 7,000 carefully curated books, including an expansive fiction collection and featured titles on trans-inclusive feminism, anti-colonialism, anti-fascism, eco-politics, and self-care.



Toni-Ann Murphy.

(she/her)

Community & Grassroots Activism


Toni is a passionate community organiser, outdoor educator, and the founder of Touch Grass, a nature-focused initiative centring the wellbeing of queer people of colour. As a queer Black woman, Toni brings a deeply personal commitment to creating inclusive, healing spaces outside of nightlife culture. Her leadership blends lived experience with a clear, values-driven approach to environmental justice, mental health, and community empowerment. Professionally, she has supported countless individuals through retreats, workshops, and grassroots programming that reconnect marginalised communities with nature. Her work not only challenges who gets to belong in green spaces but also reimagines what queer leadership looks like: grounded, joyful, and radically inclusive.




While you're here...


Did you know we consult with Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke corporate solutions? Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce DEI insights and craft bespoke content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Find out more here.


We also organise FREE community events throughout the year! We offer a variety of ways to get involved - both online and in person. This is a great way to network and learn more about others' experiences, through in-depth discussion on an array of topics. You can find out what events we have coming up here. New ones are added all the time, so make sure you sign up to our newsletter so you can stay up to date!

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