Meet the team

Stella O’Malley

Executive Director & Founder

Ireland

Stella O’Malley is a psychotherapist and author. Her work focuses on parenting, family dynamics, and working with teenagers. Much of her work focuses on mental health and the importance of well-being, and she is a regular contributor to the media. 

Her first book, Cotton Wool Kids, was first published in 2015 while Bully-Proof Kids was published in 2017. Fragile came out in 2019 and What Your Teen is Trying to Tell You was published in 2023. In the same year, she co-authored When Kids Say They’re Trans with Sasha Ayad and Lisa Marchiano.

In November 2018, Stella was the writer and presenter of the documentary Trans Kids: It’s Time To Talk broadcast on Channel 4 and, in 2019, she contributed a chapter to the book, Inventing Transgender Children and Young People.

In December 2020, Sasha Ayad and Stella launched Gender: A Wider Lens, in a bid to explore the concept of gender from a psychological depth perspective.

Since then, Sasha and Stella have pursued separate professional projects. In February 2025, Stella launched her podcast, Beyond Gender, co-hosted with Dr. Bret Alderman and Mia Hughes.

In 2021, Stella co-founded the Gender Exploratory Therapy Association with Lisa Marchiano and Sasha Ayad, which was renamed Therapy First in 2023. 

Stella is the vice-president of the Gender Dysphoria Institute, she is the founder of Beyond Trans, and a founding member of Thoughtful Therapists. She was a founding member of the Clinical Advisory Network on Sex and Gender and the Society for Evidence-based Gender Medicine. 

Stella has co-authored several peer-reviewed publications including:

Stella holds a B.A. in Counselling and Psychotherapy and an M.A. in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and is currently a PhD candidate studying gender dysphoria in children and adolescents.

Nancy McDermott

Director, Genspect USA

United States

Nancy McDermott is a writer, speaker, and expert on American parenting culture. She is an affiliate of the Centre for Parenting Culture Studies (CPCS) at the University of Kent at Canterbury, and a former advisor to the Park Slope Parents online community where she earned the moniker “the voice of reason”.

She became concerned about the impact of therapeutic child-rearing while writing her history of American parenting culture since the 1970s, The Problem with Parenting: How Raising Children Is Changing Across America (Praeger 2020). “What began as a well-meaning attempt to free children to ‘be themselves’ has undermined our ability to transfer key cultural values and norms from one generation to the next, Gender distress is the most profound expression of this disorientation. As adults we need to take responsibility for helping our youngest citizens to find their way.”

Sara Morrison

Director, Genspect Ireland and Genspect UK

Sara Morrison is a communications professional with a background in audience development, inclusion, and advocacy. Throughout her career, she has specialized in creating cross-community events and engagement strategies that unite people across divides. Working in complex social and political landscapes, she has worked to foster open dialogue, challenge bias, and ensure that marginalized voices are heard.

With experience spanning the arts, politics, and nonprofit sectors, she has developed and led campaigns, managed digital content, and built strong relationships across a broad network. Skilled in messaging, crisis communications, and public engagement—whether through writing, speaking, or strategic media work—she believes in clear, honest communication that cuts through noise and gets to the heart of the issue.

However, in April 2023, she became the target of a coordinated smear campaign after speaking at a “Let Women Speak” event in Belfast. For simply defending women’s rights and advocating for safeguarding, she faced harassment, professional exile, and ultimately, constructive dismissal. Despite her track record in inclusive communications, she was silenced by those who claim to champion diversity.

Refusing to be erased, Sara has continued to use her voice through writing, speaking, and advocating for women’s rights, safeguarding, and freedom of speech. As part of Genspect, she is committed to ensuring open, evidence-based discussions that prioritize the safety and dignity of women and children. Her expertise in communications allows her to challenge misinformation, build strong narratives, and support others facing similar challenges.

She understands the power of words and remains dedicated to standing up for truth, fairness, and the right to speak without fear.

Erin Friday, Esq

Board of Directors Member, Genspect USA

United States

Erin Friday is a licensed California attorney specializing in parental rights and educational advocacy. Her commitment to these causes deepened after her daughter briefly identified as transgender, motivating her to actively challenge policies she believes undermine parental authority and child protection. Erin co-leads Our Duty USA, an international organization dedicated to shielding children from the influence of gender ideology, and previously led a local branch of Parents of Rapid-Onset Gender Dysphoric Kids, offering crucial support to families facing similar challenges. She remains heavily involved in legislative advocacy, frequently working in Sacramento to propose and oppose bills related to gender interventions for minors. Additionally, Erin assists parents and lawyers willing to sue to protect children from what she considers gender-related harms. Her work and perspectives have been featured in respected outlets such as The Daily Signal, The Epoch Times, Prager U, and Post Millennial, establishing Erin as a significant voice in national discussions on parental rights and child protection.

Jude Hunter

Australia Spokesperson

Australia

Jude Hunter holds a degree in Commerce and Business and is a mother and stepmother to five adult children. She is a founding member of Genspect Australia and has represented the organisation in parliamentary hearings, as well as on digital and social media platforms. Jude is also a contributor to Genspect’s Substack.

Jude’s advocacy journey began through her family’s own experiences navigating health services that, operating under the “gender affirmation model of care,” prioritised gender above all other health considerations. She is passionate about supporting other parents and helping them stay informed and empowered to support their children.

Jan Rivers

NZ Spokesperson

New Zealand

Jan Rivers is a former public servant whose roles were in information management, library services, and information policy. She is also a lesbian, an activist on public issues, and works part-time as a meditation teacher. Passionate about the quality of public services and democracy in New Zealand, she was involved with others working on issues of the public good such as open government, trade agreements, media policy, and the use of big data and algorithms in government. In 2018, she recognized gender ideology as a threat to the public sector, social cohesion, and women, children, and same-sex attracted people. She helped found some of New Zealand’s gender-critical organizations and is the author of articles on the impact of gender ideology on government and the dangers to children and young people of gender medicine.

Travis Brown

Content Producer

United States

Travis Brown is a filmmaker living in the Pacific Northwest. He is the president of The Signal Education Project, which is a non-profit that creates engaging content that shines a light on how dogma and tribalism distort the truth. Since leaving his religious faith behind, he has been interested in how religious and political ideology shape our view of reality, how ideology affects our conversations, and what it does to relationships and society as a whole. His previous work includes The Woke Reformation, which features Peter Boghossian, Douglas Murray, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Vivek Ramaswamy, and many other brave intellectuals. He is currently exploring the difficult topic of gender identity in his upcoming docuseries Uncomfortable Truths: The Reality of Gender Identity Ideology and is making a feature-length documentary called When in Doubt, based around Peter’s book How to Have Impossible Conversations, which features three pairs of subjects as they navigate difficult topics in an attempt to improve their understanding of each other’s beliefs and find better ways to communicate.

Soren Aldaco

United States

Soren Aldaco is a consultant, grad student, and former “trans kid” interested in digital impacts on human development.

After working on Genspect’s American College Survey in 2024 and speaking at The Bigger Picture Albuquerque conference in 2025, Soren now helps produce the Beyond Gender podcast. She also lends a hand on various other projects, including planning for Detrans Awareness Day.

Pamela Buffone

Canada

Pam Buffone became an accidental activist after trying to raise concerns about how gender ideology was being taught in her daughters’ Grade 1 class.

Her 6-year-old daughter had become distressed about the lessons because she was being told “there’s no such thing as girls and boys” and “girls are not real and boys are not real”. In one of the lessons, all of the children were asked to write their names on a gender spectrum at the front of the class. Her daughter had written her name at the “girl” label. No one at the school was open to understanding the family’s concerns, and the only option they were given was for her daughter to be removed from class for the lessons on gender. The family filed a discrimination case and will receive a full hearing at the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.

Pam is a software executive in the field of data analytics and firmly believes people make better decisions with data and evidence. She started looking into the research behind “gender affirmation” and soon discovered that this practice is not based on any objective evidence. After her family’s human rights case became public knowledge, she was contacted by many Canadian families who shared personal stories and concern for their children’s well-being. In all cases, parents expressed frustration at the healthcare and education systems that are intent on enabling, and even celebrating any child that transitions, without questioning whether this is in their long-term best interests. She founded Canadian Gender Report to analyze and document the impact of gender ideology in Canada.

Kathleen H. Dooley

United States

Kathleen is an attorney, having been in private practice with international law firms as a civil defense lawyer for several decades before taking on a general counsel role for a tech startup for one year.

She is currently on hiatus as she seeks to (1) serve the community of parents of ROGD kids where she can; (2) educate her local school board officials on the need for appropriate school board policies that include, inform, and involve parents; and (3) educate her community as a whole on the dangers of ideologies that seek to convince vulnerable children, tweens, teens, and adolescents that they were born in the wrong body – all with compassion, care, and respect.

Claire Graham

United Kingdom

Claire Graham is a qualified teacher with over 20 years’ experience, who now works in SEND education in the UK. She is also an “intersex”/DSD advocate.

She began writing about her experience of growing up with a DSD a few years ago after she grew frustrated with how people like her were often spoken about in debates about identity and gender. She created a blog and started tackling people’s misconceptions about what “intersex” is, or isn’t. She strongly believes in the importance of evidence-based healthcare and policy, along with good quality education and accessible information that enables people to make informed decisions. She also advocates for peer and mental health support for people born with DSDs and their families.

Her other interest is how current debates around sex and gender are having an impact on academic freedom and free speech in general. She spoke to the Scottish government, in opposition to their controversial hate crime legislation, and is interested in elevating the voices of others who often don’t feel heard.

Helena Kerschner

United States

Helena Kerschner is a detransitioned woman who identified as transgender during her teenage years and eventually was prescribed testosterone shortly after her 18th birthday.

After being on testosterone for a year and a half, she realized that transitioning was a misguided way of dealing with her social and emotional struggles. Now, years later, she is interested in exploring the cultural and psychological factors that contribute to the sharp rise in adolescents identifying as transgender and choosing to medically transition with hormones and surgeries.

Marit Rønstad

Norway

Marit Rønstad from Norway is an art teacher and has worked with children of all ages for over 20 years. The last 8 years her experience is mostly with teenagers in public school settings. She has a wide range of experience working with children in groups and learning communities.

As a result of working with children since the 1990s, she has experienced the changes brought to the new generations of kids who’ve grown up in the quickly changing online and social media eras.

One of her observations is children’s increased alienation from reality and ability to differentiate between roleplay and real life. Marit believes this plays an important part in the exponential rise in children and young people identifying out of their birth-sex.

Marit has met a large number of parents seeking answers to their children’s often rapid urge to change sex through the Scandinavian network GENID – genderchallenge.no. These parents are often more than willing to go all the way with their child, but find that the help being offered puts the parent-child relationship at risk. Marit is engaged in connecting practitioners and parents across Norway, Scandinavia, Europe, and other parts of the world.

Sinéad Watson

United Kingdom

Sinéad Watson is a detransitioned woman from Scotland who underwent medical transition between 2015-2019.

Her personal experience of having been evaluated, diagnosed, and treated at a gender clinic has given her some insights into the process that others may not have.

As a detransitioned woman who has spent many hours discussing and dissecting her transition with her mother and father, she is very aware that the parents of gender-questioning people may have questions and concerns that have been ignored or dismissed. For that reason, she is happy to advise anyone from a personal, rather than a professional, position.