YOUTH VOICES COUNT

is a regional network of young lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex individuals in Asia-Pacific working on SRHR, SOGIESC, Youth Empowerment, and Human Rights issues. Established in 2010, YVC engages in community mobilization, national, regional and global advocacy related to young people belonging to diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and sex characteristics.

WHAT IS SOGIESC? Learn about sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and sex characteristics from Hayden Royalty. Hayden is a Gender-Queer Korean-American YouTuber from Seoul, South Korea. YVC met Hayden during UNESCO’s #TurnedOn in Bangkok, Thailand and #SwitchedOn in Istanbul, Turkey.  

YVC BOARD

DOAN THANH TUNG​

Board Chairperson - Vietnam

Tung is the director of the Lighthouse Social Enterprise, one of the first and largest LGBTIQ community-led organization in Viet Nam. Tung has 9-year experiences working as a young advocate and researcher in the fields of stigma and discrimination, rights, SRHR and HIV/AIDS in Vietnam. His work ranges from designing, managing and implementing various interventions, preventions programs and innovations based on the LGBTIQ community context and needs, conducting researches to evidence-based intervention and advocacy, capacity building and empowering community towards a strong and sustainable LGBTIQ community.

Doan Thanh Tung
DOAN THANH TUNG​

Board Chairperson - Vietnam

Tung is the director of the Lighthouse Social Enterprise, one of the first and largest LGBTIQ community-led organization in Viet Nam. Tung has 9-year experiences working as a young advocate and researcher in the fields of stigma and discrimination, rights, SRHR and HIV/AIDS in Vietnam. His work ranges from designing, managing and implementing various interventions, preventions programs and innovations based on the LGBTIQ community context and needs, conducting researches to evidence-based intervention and advocacy, capacity building and empowering community towards a strong and sustainable LGBTIQ community.

Vietnam
Chairperson

Abhi Muchtar​

Board Member - Indonesia

​Abhi Muchtar was born in Jakarta, Indonesia from Javanese-Muslim family. He hold Bachelor Degreefrom Faculty of Economic and Business, Universitas Gadjah Mada. As a person who assigned femaleat birth, Abhi face challenges when identified himself as man. These challenges made him initiate acollaboration with other transmen and start the movement in Indonesia. In 2015, TransmenIndonesia Network was born. Abhi is one of the co-founder and volunteering to provide supportsystem for transmen community in Indonesia. To expand the collaboration, he joined Youth VoicesCount since 2015 becoming a mentee on IGNITE! Mentorship Program. He is also part of GlobalVillage and Youth Working Group at International AIDS Conference 2016 in Durban, South Africa.

Abhi curently working as Financial Advisor and listed as Registered Financial Planner (RFP). Hismission is to make insurance industry more inclusive to all people with diverse SOGIESC identity andeducate LGBTIQ community on financial literacy. Alongside his professional work, he uses hiscapacity in contribution to transgender community and movement in Indonesia.

Abhi Muchtar
Abhi Muchtar​

Board Member - Indonesia

​Abhi Muchtar was born in Jakarta, Indonesia from Javanese-Muslim family. He hold Bachelor Degreefrom Faculty of Economic and Business, Universitas Gadjah Mada. As a person who assigned femaleat birth, Abhi face challenges when identified himself as man. These challenges made him initiate acollaboration with other transmen and start the movement in Indonesia. In 2015, TransmenIndonesia Network was born. Abhi is one of the co-founder and volunteering to provide supportsystem for transmen community in Indonesia. To expand the collaboration, he joined Youth VoicesCount since 2015 becoming a mentee on IGNITE! Mentorship Program. He is also part of GlobalVillage and Youth Working Group at International AIDS Conference 2016 in Durban, South Africa.

Abhi curently working as Financial Advisor and listed as Registered Financial Planner (RFP). Hismission is to make insurance industry more inclusive to all people with diverse SOGIESC identity andeducate LGBTIQ community on financial literacy. Alongside his professional work, he uses hiscapacity in contribution to transgender community and movement in Indonesia.

Indonesia
Member

Brian Kevin Par

Board Member - Philippines

Brian has been a core working group member of Youth Voices for a number of years now.  He is a professional educator and an LGBTQIA+ Rights advocate  from the Philippines. He is also an active member of various organizations helping community members of LGBTQIA+ and people living with HIV in the Philippines. His passion in educating people about Equal Rights, SRHR and HIV brings him to various platforms both in national and regional level. He believes that education helps people to be enlightened about basic human rights that everyone must enjoy.

Brian Kevin Par​
Brian Kevin Par

Board Member - Philippines

Brian has been a core working group member of Youth Voices for a number of years now.  He is a professional educator and an LGBTQIA+ Rights advocate  from the Philippines. He is also an active member of various organizations helping community members of LGBTQIA+ and people living with HIV in the Philippines. His passion in educating people about Equal Rights, SRHR and HIV brings him to various platforms both in national and regional level. He believes that education helps people to be enlightened about basic human rights that everyone must enjoy.

Philippines
Member

Reyanne Joy Librado

Board Member - Philippines

Reyanne is a socialist feminist, poet and social movement activist on various issues. She is currently a graduate student of the Master Of Arts in Women and Development program of the Department of Women and Development Studies(DWDS), University of the Philippines Diliman. She has worked with the Philippine Legislator’s Committee for Population and Development (PLCPD) & the Akbayan Citizen’s Action Party. She began her advocacy work with the Student Council Alliance of the Philippines, Akbayan Youth, Generation Peace Youth Network and Bukluran ng Progresibong Iskolar (BUKLURAN) UP SYSTEM.

Reyanne Joy Librado
Reyanne Joy Librado

Board Member - Philippines

Reyanne is a socialist feminist, poet and social movement activist on various issues. She is currently a graduate student of the Master Of Arts in Women and Development program of the Department of Women and Development Studies(DWDS), University of the Philippines Diliman. She has worked with the Philippine Legislator’s Committee for Population and Development (PLCPD) & the Akbayan Citizen’s Action Party. She began her advocacy work with the Student Council Alliance of the Philippines, Akbayan Youth, Generation Peace Youth Network and Bukluran ng Progresibong Iskolar (BUKLURAN) UP SYSTEM.

Philippines
Member

Anthony De Vicente Lopez​

Board Member - Philippines

Anthony Lopez is passionate about pushing forward the LGBTQIA+ agenda in the academe. He studies Secondary Education majoring in English from Capiz State University. He also studied Global Health, Human Rights & Humanitarianism from various universities in the United States. He founded “Y-Cap for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR)” and is responsible for the overall programming of the organization. He has managed projects with Women Deliver for young people on issues such as teen pregnancy & HIV. He also founded a university-based LGBTQIA+ organization in his university.

Anthony De Vicente Lopez
Anthony De Vicente Lopez​

Board Member - Philippines

Anthony Lopez is passionate about pushing forward the LGBTQIA+ agenda in the academe. He studies Secondary Education majoring in English from Capiz State University. He also studied Global Health, Human Rights & Humanitarianism from various universities in the United States. He founded “Y-Cap for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR)” and is responsible for the overall programming of the organization. He has managed projects with Women Deliver for young people on issues such as teen pregnancy & HIV. He also founded a university-based LGBTQIA+ organization in his university.

Philippines
Member

Jan Gabriel Castañeda

Board Member - Philippines

Jan is passionate about seeing through the potential contributions of psychological sciences and human rights advocacy in LGBT people's lives. He is currently Program Associate of ASEAN SOGIE Caucus and is a member of the LGBT Psychology Special Interest Group of the Psychological Association of the Philippines. He has written for various platforms and publications on a diverse range of topics from gender and sexuality to human rights experiences in different contexts. Jan's desire is to engage in productive and meaningful work that bridges scholarship with practice rooted in people's real experiences.

Jan Gabriel Castañeda
Jan Gabriel Castañeda

Board Member - Philippines

Jan is passionate about seeing through the potential contributions of psychological sciences and human rights advocacy in LGBT people's lives. He is currently Program Associate of ASEAN SOGIE Caucus and is a member of the LGBT Psychology Special Interest Group of the Psychological Association of the Philippines. He has written for various platforms and publications on a diverse range of topics from gender and sexuality to human rights experiences in different contexts. Jan's desire is to engage in productive and meaningful work that bridges scholarship with practice rooted in people's real experiences.

Philippines
Member

Rochelle de Leon

Board Member - Philippines

Rochelle has a degree in Accounting and has more than 9 years of experience in sales, marketing and operations management working for an International Programs company based in the United States. She is currently the operations manager for SURF Capital, an impact investment firm which invests in global real estate projects that have positive social and environmental impacts.

She is passionate about mindful living as a means to help conserve the environment, climate justice, equality, sustainability, and working with groups in the grassroots level. In 2004, she’s helped start a non-profit organization in Eastern Visayas, Philippines, an organization which focuses on street kids, education, health and local livelihood projects. She is the co-founder and current program director of The Helping Hands Philippines, a Filipino-Canadian NGO which helps educate and train survivors of Typhoon Haiyan in the fields of primary and preventive healthcare. She is also the operations director for a Tacloban City based environmental conservation NGO, Waste 360 and actively advocates for the rights of the LGBTIQ by providing a safe space via a local restaurant she co-owns and organizing talks and events for the community. Now a part of Youth Voices Count’s BOT she hopes to bring her diverse experience and use it to help the organization grow.

Rochelle P. de Leon
Rochelle de Leon

Board Member - Philippines

Rochelle has a degree in Accounting and has more than 9 years of experience in sales, marketing and operations management working for an International Programs company based in the United States. She is currently the operations manager for SURF Capital, an impact investment firm which invests in global real estate projects that have positive social and environmental impacts.

She is passionate about mindful living as a means to help conserve the environment, climate justice, equality, sustainability, and working with groups in the grassroots level. In 2004, she’s helped start a non-profit organization in Eastern Visayas, Philippines, an organization which focuses on street kids, education, health and local livelihood projects. She is the co-founder and current program director of The Helping Hands Philippines, a Filipino-Canadian NGO which helps educate and train survivors of Typhoon Haiyan in the fields of primary and preventive healthcare. She is also the operations director for a Tacloban City based environmental conservation NGO, Waste 360 and actively advocates for the rights of the LGBTIQ by providing a safe space via a local restaurant she co-owns and organizing talks and events for the community. Now a part of Youth Voices Count’s BOT she hopes to bring her diverse experience and use it to help the organization grow.

Philippines
Member

CORE WORKING GROUP

Mandy Chng

Core Working Group - Singapore

Mandy is a queer feminist from Singapore. She is currently the Programs and Events
Coordinator for Sayoni, an organization based in Singapore that works to empower queer
women, including lesbian, bisexual and transgender women. Mandy also engages in local
LGBTIQ youth activism by volunteering for Young Out Here, a queer youth community
group. She holds a Master of Arts in Gender, Media and Culture obtained from Goldsmiths’
College, University of London.

Mandy is committed to working on diverse and intersectional issues, including gender-
based violence, children’s rights, mental health, sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Mandy Chng
Mandy Chng

Core Working Group - Singapore

Mandy is a queer feminist from Singapore. She is currently the Programs and Events
Coordinator for Sayoni, an organization based in Singapore that works to empower queer
women, including lesbian, bisexual and transgender women. Mandy also engages in local
LGBTIQ youth activism by volunteering for Young Out Here, a queer youth community
group. She holds a Master of Arts in Gender, Media and Culture obtained from Goldsmiths’
College, University of London.

Mandy is committed to working on diverse and intersectional issues, including gender-
based violence, children’s rights, mental health, sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Singapore

Kim-Lee Hee Yoon

Core Working Group - South Korea

Kim-Lee is the Chief of Staff of QUV; Solidarity of University & Youth Queer Societies in Korea. They have also been involved with the Seoul Queer Culture Festival as part of the Department of Operations and Support Translation Team since January 2020. They are an organizing committee member of 2nd TDoR MARCH in 2019 and president of Yonsei University Queer Association ComeTogether. Their other engagements include being an executive of Yonsei University's 29th, 30th General Female Students Council, and an organizing member of Yonsei University 3rd Human Rights Festival. They are an active campaigner for the abolishing of the Anti-Sodomy Law (Article 92-6) on Military Law. 

Kim-Lee Hee Yoon
Kim-Lee Hee Yoon

Core Working Group - South Korea

Kim-Lee is the Chief of Staff of QUV; Solidarity of University & Youth Queer Societies in Korea. They have also been involved with the Seoul Queer Culture Festival as part of the Department of Operations and Support Translation Team since January 2020. They are an organizing committee member of 2nd TDoR MARCH in 2019 and president of Yonsei University Queer Association ComeTogether. Their other engagements include being an executive of Yonsei University's 29th, 30th General Female Students Council, and an organizing member of Yonsei University 3rd Human Rights Festival. They are an active campaigner for the abolishing of the Anti-Sodomy Law (Article 92-6) on Military Law. 

South Korea

Amasai Jeke

Core Working Group - Fiji

Amasai is a transgender activist from the Pacific Region. She is currently the project officer of Rainbow Pride Foundation (RPF). She has spoken in high level political forums on LBT, youth and climate action issues. She advocates for the sexual and reproductive health and rights of Transwomen from the Pacific Islands. She has been a panelist in international gatherings discussing youth issues. She is very pasisonate about human rights and gender equality in all work that she does. She believes that her knowledge and experience is powerless if it is not shared to others.

Amasai Jeke
Amasai Jeke

Core Working Group - Fiji

Amasai is a transgender activist from the Pacific Region. She is currently the project officer of Rainbow Pride Foundation (RPF). She has spoken in high level political forums on LBT, youth and climate action issues. She advocates for the sexual and reproductive health and rights of Transwomen from the Pacific Islands. She has been a panelist in international gatherings discussing youth issues. She is very pasisonate about human rights and gender equality in all work that she does. She believes that her knowledge and experience is powerless if it is not shared to others.

Fiji

Tashi Tsheten

Core Working Group - Bhutan

Tashi hails from Thimphu, Bhutan. He volunteers as country officer of the South Asian Human Rights Association (SAHRA) Bhutan and the current Director of Rainbow Bhutan: “Celebrating Diversity”, a network of LGBT+ community members in Bhutan formed in 2015. By profession, Tashi work for the National Referral Hospital located in Thimphu, Bhutan. Tashi has been engage in human rights mechanism advocacy work and is passionateabout advocating for the recognition, protection and promotion of sexual and gender minorities.

Tashi Tsheten
Tashi Tsheten

Core Working Group - Bhutan

Tashi hails from Thimphu, Bhutan. He volunteers as country officer of the South Asian Human Rights Association (SAHRA) Bhutan and the current Director of Rainbow Bhutan: “Celebrating Diversity”, a network of LGBT+ community members in Bhutan formed in 2015. By profession, Tashi work for the National Referral Hospital located in Thimphu, Bhutan. Tashi has been engage in human rights mechanism advocacy work and is passionateabout advocating for the recognition, protection and promotion of sexual and gender minorities.

Bhutan

Sarker Tringsharaj Rishi

Core Working Group - Bangladesh

Rishi is a transgender activist living in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is working as the project officer of the “Legal Gender Recognition” initiative of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh. He is the coordinator of Resilient, an organization of transgender men in Bangladesh. He is also a member of Bandhu Social Welfare Society. Rishi's goal is to work for the members of his community so that they will be aware of their rights. Rishi is very passionate about the rights of transgender individuals in the regional.

Sarker Tringsharaj Rishi
Sarker Tringsharaj Rishi

Core Working Group - Bangladesh

Rishi is a transgender activist living in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is working as the project officer of the “Legal Gender Recognition” initiative of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh. He is the coordinator of Resilient, an organization of transgender men in Bangladesh. He is also a member of Bandhu Social Welfare Society. Rishi's goal is to work for the members of his community so that they will be aware of their rights. Rishi is very passionate about the rights of transgender individuals in the regional.

Bangladesh

Rukshana Kapali

Core Working Group - Nepal

Rukshana is a staunch transgender activist and blogger from Nepal. She is a Community Field Supervisor of Blue Diamond Society and the Focal Point Person of Youth LEAD in Nepal. Apart from her years of activism for LGBTI rights and HIV awareness, she has been involved in a number of activism initiatives for indigenous people's rights in the Nepa Valley, Nepal. She is TEDx speaker who has had years of experiences working for the rights and welfare of young transgender individuals. She has been a panelist during international gatherings talking about transgender rights.

Rukshana Kapali
Rukshana Kapali

Core Working Group - Nepal

Rukshana is a staunch transgender activist and blogger from Nepal. She is a Community Field Supervisor of Blue Diamond Society and the Focal Point Person of Youth LEAD in Nepal. Apart from her years of activism for LGBTI rights and HIV awareness, she has been involved in a number of activism initiatives for indigenous people's rights in the Nepa Valley, Nepal. She is TEDx speaker who has had years of experiences working for the rights and welfare of young transgender individuals. She has been a panelist during international gatherings talking about transgender rights.

Nepal

REGIONAL TEAM

Justin Francis Bionat

Regional Coordinator - Philippines

At present Justin works as the Executive Director of Youth Voices Count, the only regional network for young LGBTIQ+ persons in the Asia-Pacific Regional working on human rights and sexual health. In 2018, he was awarded the Young Achiever HERO Award by APCOM Foundation during the HERO Awards reception at the Royal British Embassy in Thailand, for outstanding work on equality and human rights. He is one of the Youth Council members of the Global Fund, an international financing and partnership organization that aims to "attract, leverage and invest additional resources to end the epidemics of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

Justin Francis Castro Bionat finished his M.A. in Human Rights and Democratisation from the Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies of Mahidol University, Thailand. He also holds a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science degree from West Visayas State University, Iloilo City, Philippines. He is currently pursuing a Juris Doctor (JD) degree (Law Degree) from the College of Law, University of San Agustin.

Justin Francis Bionat
Justin Francis Bionat

Regional Coordinator - Philippines

At present Justin works as the Executive Director of Youth Voices Count, the only regional network for young LGBTIQ+ persons in the Asia-Pacific Regional working on human rights and sexual health. In 2018, he was awarded the Young Achiever HERO Award by APCOM Foundation during the HERO Awards reception at the Royal British Embassy in Thailand, for outstanding work on equality and human rights. He is one of the Youth Council members of the Global Fund, an international financing and partnership organization that aims to "attract, leverage and invest additional resources to end the epidemics of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

Justin Francis Castro Bionat finished his M.A. in Human Rights and Democratisation from the Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies of Mahidol University, Thailand. He also holds a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science degree from West Visayas State University, Iloilo City, Philippines. He is currently pursuing a Juris Doctor (JD) degree (Law Degree) from the College of Law, University of San Agustin.

Philippines
Executive Director

Abigail Amon

Communications Manager - Philippines

Abigail Amon has been involved in the HIV and AIDS advocacy since her undergraduate years, co-founding Team Dugong Bughaw, a youth organization on HIV awareness based in Iloilo, Philippines. She has been involved in youth public health networks, being part of the Communications and Strategic Department of Positive Youth Development Network and as Director of Communications & Partnerships of Dungán Western Visayas circa 2019. Having been awarded as an International Scholarship Awardee, Abigail was able to attend and hold a booth on youth HIV awareness at  the International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam, Netherlands in 2018. Most recently, she was selected as a delegate for the JENESYS Youth Exchange in Media Industry (YEMI) held in Tokyo and Nagoya, Japan.

Abigail is a graduate of Communication and Media Studies from the University of the Philippines. She finds meaningful work in brainstorming messages and creating programs and digital content for development especially in HIV, public health, and gender. Abigail makes art during her free time.

Abigail Amon
Abigail Amon

Communications Manager - Philippines

Abigail Amon has been involved in the HIV and AIDS advocacy since her undergraduate years, co-founding Team Dugong Bughaw, a youth organization on HIV awareness based in Iloilo, Philippines. She has been involved in youth public health networks, being part of the Communications and Strategic Department of Positive Youth Development Network and as Director of Communications & Partnerships of Dungán Western Visayas circa 2019. Having been awarded as an International Scholarship Awardee, Abigail was able to attend and hold a booth on youth HIV awareness at  the International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam, Netherlands in 2018. Most recently, she was selected as a delegate for the JENESYS Youth Exchange in Media Industry (YEMI) held in Tokyo and Nagoya, Japan.

Abigail is a graduate of Communication and Media Studies from the University of the Philippines. She finds meaningful work in brainstorming messages and creating programs and digital content for development especially in HIV, public health, and gender. Abigail makes art during her free time.

Philippines
Admin Officer (Full Time)

Johnmel Estimar

Finance Manager - Philippines

Johnmel M. Estimar is the founder and senior adviser of La Villa Pride, a grassroots-level organization for LGBTQI in Villa, Iloilo. He is also a member of the Iloilo Pride team alongside Justin. Miles, as he likes to be called, graduated BS Business Administration at John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University-Molo, Inc. He has ample experience in clerk and accounting work for nine years on his previous employer, he is currently employed with Youth Voices Count as Finance Manager for 21 months.

Johnmel Estimar
Johnmel Estimar

Finance Manager - Philippines

Johnmel M. Estimar is the founder and senior adviser of La Villa Pride, a grassroots-level organization for LGBTQI in Villa, Iloilo. He is also a member of the Iloilo Pride team alongside Justin. Miles, as he likes to be called, graduated BS Business Administration at John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University-Molo, Inc. He has ample experience in clerk and accounting work for nine years on his previous employer, he is currently employed with Youth Voices Count as Finance Manager for 21 months.

Philippines
Finance Officer (Full Time)

Tharindi Devasurendra

Project Officer - Sri Lanka

Tharindi is currently a feminist activist and researcher based in Sri Lanka. They have worked with the Youth Advocacy Network Sri Lanka (YANSL) and Young Out Here Sri Lanka (YOH). They are a trainer on advocating for comprehensive sexuality education and providing knowledge on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). Tharindi is also involved in advocating for safe abortion and bodily autonomy for women.

Tharindi has been awarded “Queer of the Year”in 2018 in Sri Lanka by Chathra, along with Community Welfare

and Development Fund(CWDF) and the Education Renaissance Programme(ERP). She has worked around storytelling as a form of advocacy in various projects while creating a positive dialogue around freedom of expression and self-love and has also been involved in documenting the historical trajectory of political movements toward legalizing safe abortion in Sri Lanka. One of Tharindi’s brainchild initiatives is an Instagram page which mainly focuses on the process of reaching out to queer women in Sri Lanka, a platform that helps in providing them visibility and strategy direction on programming through social media and other means.

They have completed their Bachelors(BA Honors) in English and Linguistics at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka . Tharindi joined our Regional Secretariat as Project Officer in August 2020.

Tharindi Devasurendra
Tharindi Devasurendra

Project Officer - Sri Lanka

Tharindi is currently a feminist activist and researcher based in Sri Lanka. They have worked with the Youth Advocacy Network Sri Lanka (YANSL) and Young Out Here Sri Lanka (YOH). They are a trainer on advocating for comprehensive sexuality education and providing knowledge on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). Tharindi is also involved in advocating for safe abortion and bodily autonomy for women.

Tharindi has been awarded “Queer of the Year”in 2018 in Sri Lanka by Chathra, along with Community Welfare

and Development Fund(CWDF) and the Education Renaissance Programme(ERP). She has worked around storytelling as a form of advocacy in various projects while creating a positive dialogue around freedom of expression and self-love and has also been involved in documenting the historical trajectory of political movements toward legalizing safe abortion in Sri Lanka. One of Tharindi’s brainchild initiatives is an Instagram page which mainly focuses on the process of reaching out to queer women in Sri Lanka, a platform that helps in providing them visibility and strategy direction on programming through social media and other means.

They have completed their Bachelors(BA Honors) in English and Linguistics at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka . Tharindi joined our Regional Secretariat as Project Officer in August 2020.

Sri Lanka
Project Officer (Full Time)

Palis Pisuttisarun

Programme Associate - Thailand

Fresh—an 18-year-old activist, entrepreneur, and engineer—is joining the Youth Voices Count team as a Harvard public service fellow to develop projects utilizing technology for the LGBTIQ+ community. As a computer science student, Fresh is interested in developing innovative solutions, particularly through artificial intelligence technologies, that can make online support systems more readily accessible and responsive to the needs of LGBTIQ+ youth. He has co-founded Prism Chat (prismchat.com): a platform partnering with Youth Voices Count, which is an innovative online support network with over 25,000 users worldwide. He is recognized for his work in developing homophobia recognition software implemented in online platforms around the world. During his time working with Youth Voices Count, he hopes to integrate his passion for innovation and social enterprises with the nonprofit sector to conduct creative initiatives from apps and websites to surveys and videos. Ultimately, he wishes to create more welcoming digital spaces that are secure, accessible, and equitable; and through this, make a change to LGBTIQ+ lives everywhere.

Palis Pisuttisarun
Palis Pisuttisarun

Programme Associate - Thailand

Fresh—an 18-year-old activist, entrepreneur, and engineer—is joining the Youth Voices Count team as a Harvard public service fellow to develop projects utilizing technology for the LGBTIQ+ community. As a computer science student, Fresh is interested in developing innovative solutions, particularly through artificial intelligence technologies, that can make online support systems more readily accessible and responsive to the needs of LGBTIQ+ youth. He has co-founded Prism Chat (prismchat.com): a platform partnering with Youth Voices Count, which is an innovative online support network with over 25,000 users worldwide. He is recognized for his work in developing homophobia recognition software implemented in online platforms around the world. During his time working with Youth Voices Count, he hopes to integrate his passion for innovation and social enterprises with the nonprofit sector to conduct creative initiatives from apps and websites to surveys and videos. Ultimately, he wishes to create more welcoming digital spaces that are secure, accessible, and equitable; and through this, make a change to LGBTIQ+ lives everywhere.

Thailand
Programme Associate

Kalisito Biaukula

Technical Support Staff - Fiji

Kalisito Biaukula identifies as a Vakasalewalewa* (they / she). They are a media broadcaster for “Rainbow connection” on Femtalk 89 FM and a former Advisory Group Member of CIVICUS Diversity and Inclusion Group for Networking and Action (DIGNA). They are also a member of the Commonwealth Youth Human Rights Democracy Network.

They have contributed to publications such as the “Civil Society Action for Inclusion” in September 2019 in collaboration with The Broker & The Spindle launched during the Innovation Week in The Hague, Netherlands and a review article, “A Collaborative Path to Comprehensive Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in our Time” in collaboration with World Health Organization launched on November 2019 in Nairobi, Kenya during the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD25+). They are one of young women leaders who Co-created feminist research methodology with World YWCA.

*Vakasalewalewa is an indigenous identity referring to persons who identify as third gender.

Kalisito Biaukula
Kalisito Biaukula

Technical Support Staff - Fiji

Kalisito Biaukula identifies as a Vakasalewalewa* (they / she). They are a media broadcaster for “Rainbow connection” on Femtalk 89 FM and a former Advisory Group Member of CIVICUS Diversity and Inclusion Group for Networking and Action (DIGNA). They are also a member of the Commonwealth Youth Human Rights Democracy Network.

They have contributed to publications such as the “Civil Society Action for Inclusion” in September 2019 in collaboration with The Broker & The Spindle launched during the Innovation Week in The Hague, Netherlands and a review article, “A Collaborative Path to Comprehensive Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in our Time” in collaboration with World Health Organization launched on November 2019 in Nairobi, Kenya during the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD25+). They are one of young women leaders who Co-created feminist research methodology with World YWCA.

*Vakasalewalewa is an indigenous identity referring to persons who identify as third gender.

Fiji
Advocacy engagement Officer (Full Time)

To Greater Heights

In celebration of a decade of advocacy work, this strategic plan, “To Greater Heights”, is a continuation of Youth Voices Count’s focus to realize equality, equity, and justice for young LGBTIQ people across the Asia-Pacific. This plan of action will be implemented from 2021 to 2025.

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