It’s May, and everyone here at the Effing Foundation for Sex-Positivity is looking at pleasure, exciting news for the summer, and the first of our Grantee Spotlights!

May is Masturbation Month! 

As a part of our mission here at Effing, we work to reduce the shame and stigma around sex. Masturbation is unfortunately the source of a lot of sexual shame, despite being one of the most common sexual activities. A 2019 study indicated that 55% of Americans don’t talk about masturbation, yet 84% percent of Americans masturbate. A great deal of this misinformation comes from the myths that masturbation is unnatural, harmful, or somehow immoral. 

Masturbation is a natural part of human sexuality. It has a multitude of sexual, health, and physical benefits. It’s a way for people to (literally) get in touch with thier sexual needs and desires. Self pleasure is for every gender expression and every body type. It can be practiced in an accessible manner for many and can be enjoyed regardless of relationship status. We hope you’ll explore and enjoy Masturbation Month and the deeper subtext of what it means for sex-positivity.

Presenting Our Grant Recipients!

Finally, the wait is over and we can officially announce our 2021-2022 Grant Recipients! 

After several months and an exhaustive review process, the Effing Foundation Board of Directors chose ten projects to receive $5,000 grants to support their sex-positive artistic and educational work. The selection process was difficult because our overall pool of applicants represented some of the finest work in the sex-positive world at the moment. To everyone that applied: thank you for your time, energy, and labor. 

Now, presenting our newest grant recipients!

Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2022! As our attention and energy turns to the promises and possibilities of the new year, we’re excited to share some updates with everyone about the Effing Foundation and our community.

Looking back and forward

Despite its many challenges, 2021 has been an important year for the Effing Foundation. In 2021, we named a new executive director (me!); saw our founder, Dr. Kit Stubbs, transition into the role of Board President; and welcomed new Advisory Council and Board members. All of these changes have allowed Effing to build on our previous work while expanding and scaling the Foundation for the future. 

This year, Effing has grown as an organization and successfully resumed our grant cycle after a year-long hiatus due to the pandemic. We’ve extended our reach over social media, advocated for sex-positivity through virtual engagements, and seen our fiscally-sponsored partner, The HEAL Project, experience exponential growth. All things considered, all of us at Effing have a great deal to be grateful for.

Giving Season 

As pumpkin spice weather transitions to flannel and hot chocolate weather, we’re approaching Giving Tuesday and the Giving Season. Here at the Effing Foundation, the Giving Season is an opportunity to share with everyone a look into the work we do and why the support of our community is important. 

The (slightly) awkward truth is, donation appeals are a sales pitch, no matter how sincere they are. Even with the best of intentions, Giving Season appeals can feel heavy handed, especially at a time of year when people are often navigating families, finances, and the stress of the holiday season. If you’ve read this far into the newsletter, I thank you. 

I’m going to be upfront, I’m going to make the case for why you should consider supporting the Effing Foundation in whatever way is most comfortable for you. I hope to do that by articulating how your generous support makes a difference, not only for our work, but also to the communities we serve.

The Grant Cycle is Underway! 

Just as the weather begins to cool down, work on the 2021-2022 grant cycle is heating up here at the Effing Foundation! 

Submissions closed on October 1, and we’ve been amazed at the quality and creativity of the sex-positive art and educational projects that were submitted. It’s a testament to the communities we serve that despite the upheaval of the last year, so many people continue to create high-level work. 

The close of submissions signals the start of our hardest work here at Effing, evaluating and choosing projects. This thoughtful and deliberate process will occur over the next several months, culminating with the awarding of ten Effing Foundation grants on March 31, 2022. 

Much of this work is carried out by our Advisory Council, who collectively bring a wealth of life experiences and sex-positive knowledge to the table. The AC and Effing's staff work in tandem throughout the evaluation process before presenting the chosen finalists to Effing’s Board of Directors, who make the ultimate decision on this cycle’s grant recipients.

It’s Grant Season! 

It’s autumn and the Effing Foundation’s 2021-2022 grant application cycle is in full swing! After pausing our grant cycle in 2020 (due to the pandemic) we’re excited to welcome everyone back. 

For this grant cycle, Effing is offering $5,000 grants to support the work of sex-positive artists and educators. The funds are unrestricted, meaning they can be used by recipients in any way that’s directly related to supporting your work or project. Members of marginalized communities (LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, fat people, people with physical and emotional disabilities, neurodiverse people, sex workers, those living with chronic illness, currently or formerly incarcerated people) are all encouraged to apply.

Welcome to Effing! 

Here at The Effing Foundation, our year actually starts in the month of July. This is also the time when we’re excited to welcome new additions to Effing’s Board of Directors and Advisory Council. 

The work that we do at Effing, providing grants to sex-positive artists and educators, comes from the labor and passion from our Board of Directors and Advisory Council staff. These are the talented humans who evaluate projects, give feedback, and ultimately decide who will become the latest grant recipients. 

Perhaps the greatest strength of the Effing Foundation is the unique perspectives and knowledge of each Board and Advisory Council member, which deepen our organizational understanding and service to the sex-positive community. This is an invaluable gift. 

Without further ado, welcome to the newest members of the Effing Foundation!

Pride Month

Happy Pride Month! This June, the Effing Foundation celebrates the important contributions of the LGBTQIA+ community through the lens of the Pride movement. In many ways, Pride month is an ideal time to reflect on the cultural, social and political evolution of sex-positivity and how that movement has run concurrently with the themes of Pride.

It’s May, and for this month’s newsletter, the Effing Foundation and our collaborators are centered on innovating important conversations about sex-positivity. 

When speaking about sex-positivity, how we communicate is imperative to what we do. Communication is how we express our needs and desires. It’s also how we create an affirmative culture of consent for sex-positive communities, spaces and relationships. 

Playing with Eros 

Effing grantees Sharang Biswas and Lucian Kahn included a chapter on calibration, consent and safety in their anthology Honey and Hot Wax: An Anthology of Erotic Art Games. The chapter, which was written by Maury Brown outlines the rules for creating the correct space for erotic roleplaying which is centered in safety, well established boundaries and the agency of each player. This chapter makes the case that consent, communication, calibration and checking in are necessary when creating an erotic roleplay space. Read more about these important principles here.