How DLSPH’s RISE Centre is advancing 2S/LGBTQ+ health research
June 1/2026
This growing hub for 2S/LGBTQ+ health research is creating community, solidarity and timely research with real-world impact.
By Ishani Nath and Mac Stewart
The RISE Centre for Queer and Trans Health Research, hosted at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health (DLSPH), is building community and advancing critical research at a time when Two Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other queer (2S/LGBTQ+) communities are facing increasing challenges.
“The RISE Centre exists to foster collaboration and push back,” says Professor Daniel Grace, Research Director of the RISE Centre. “It provides a growing community for students and researchers that is open, accepting, and supports their work in progressing 2S/LGBTQ+ health research into action.”
To kick off Pride Month, DLSPH is showcasing how the RISE Centre is training and resourcing the next generation of health systems leaders and scholars — and opportunities to get involved.
Dr. Daniel Grace at the RISE Centre (Photo: Obadiah George)
How the RISE Centre facilitates 2S/LGBTQ+ health research
Since opening in 2022, the RISE Centre has grown into a vibrant research and training environment, with a bright and beautiful workspace used by more than 40 students, staff and researchers, as well as visiting scholars from across Canada. The vision and purpose of the Centre was developed in consultation with students, staff and faculty at DLSPH. The result is a centre that fosters collaboration and community for 2S/LGBTQ+ researchers at all levels of their career.
“RISE stands for Research, Innovation, Solidarity and Equity,” says Dr. Grace. “We aim to be a welcoming hub dedicated to advancing health equity through interdisciplinary, intersectional, and multi-sectoral research. Collectivity, we are committed to rising to the challenge of advocating for the health equity of diverse 2S/LGBTQ+ communities through research, community partnership, and knowledge mobilization.”
Many of the projects facilitated by the RISE Centre use community-based participatory research methods, ensuring that the communities being studied are equal participants in the research. The RISE Centre supports a diverse range of research projects ranging from quantitative studies to research-informed zines, documentaries, and community initiatives.
Through the RISE Centre, students, researchers and DLSPH faculty including Drs. Grace, Lori Ross and Dionne Gesink, have generated timely research. Projects include postdoctoral student Michelle Tam’s zine about reproductive care for sexual and gender diverse people, visiting scholar Julia Clara de Pontes’s PhD work surrounding Brazilian primary care for transgender youth and their families, and Jad Sinno’s work surrounding stigma interventions for queer people across the lifecourse, among many others. Research facilitated by the RISE Centre has informed real-world health supports for 2S/LGBTQ+ parents, mpox outbreaks, and more broadly, social, sexual, physical and mental health access across diverse 2S/LGBTQ+ communities.
Drs. Daniel Grace and Hanako Smith, and Mac Stewart (Photo: Obadiah George)
Creating opportunities for public health students and future leaders
For students, the Centre offers more than just a place to work; it provides a sense of belonging and connection. Through shared space, events and collaboration, students can build networks, develop their research and find community.
One student shared that the RISE Centre is a place where “we can be totally comfortable being queer.”
“These spaces are so rare, and it is so joyful when a couple people come in at the same time and you’re just like, “wait, why does this feel so good?” and then you realize it is that we are in a relatively public space that was created for us to feel this way,” said the student.
In addition to providing a space for students, the RISE Centre is also home to the 2S/LGBTQ+ Health Hub, a $2.5 million CIHR-funded cross-Canada fellowship program that offers a variety of opportunities and training for trainees. Over the past four years, the Health Hub has supported 83 trainees from across Canada, expanding their networks, capability and understanding of 2S/LGBTQ+ research.
Mac Stewart, Drs. Daniel Grace and Hanako Smith (Photo: Obadiah George)
Pride 2026 events hosted by the RISE Centre
The RISE Centre regularly hosts social gatherings, workshops and seminars to move 2S/LGBTQ+ education forward. This June, the RISE Centre is marking Pride Month with a series of events that highlight the creativity, resilience and future of queer and trans health research.
“We provide programming for 2S/LGBTQ+ health research and education year-round,” says Dr. Grace. “This Pride, we are focused on looking forward and asking, ‘what does joy and innovation look like in queer and trans health research? Starting with A.J Lowik’s lecture “Modernizing Sex and Gender Survey Measurements” to Zena Sharman’s lunch and learn “Our Promiscuity Will Save Us,” we are demonstrating the hopeful, joyful resilience that 2S/LGBTQ+ research embodies.”
Beyond Pride Month, the RISE Centre will continue to expand its programming, partnerships and research initiatives and encourages those interested in 2S/LGBTQ+ health research or working in the RISE Centre space to reach out and become part of its growing community.
Dr. Grace emphasizes that the RISE Centre is continuously evolving to address emerging challenges and opportunities in 2S/LGBTQ+ health. “We are committed to rising to the challenge of advocating for the health of 2S/LGBTQ+ communities through research, community partnership and knowledge mobilization.”