The inclusion of sexual pleasure and sexual wellbeing is relatively new in the SRHR world. Several initiatives have been developed recently to get a better understanding of the concept of sexual pleasure and sexual well-being and how to define it. However, less attention has been paid to how the concepts can be ‘translated ’into practice within SRH programming. The CoP realizes that the interpretation and implementation of the concept of sexual pleasure /sexual well-being doesn’t stand alone but needs to be adapted and contextualized in the various streams of SRH programming. The CoP is aware that, currently not all programmes in SRH see the relevance or the added value of integrating and addressing sexual pleasure in their activities as there remains a strong emphasis within some SRH programmes to continue to focus on risks and unwanted consequences of sexual activity especially in relation to young people. Therefore the CoP wants to showcase how sexual pleasure and sexual well-being can be put into practice and add value to wider SRH programming by sharing knowledge and resources on sexual pleasure with the other CoPs, Share-net members and the SRH community in general.
Finally the CoP realizes that current research on the impact of including sexual pleasure in SRH programming is limited and inconclusive. Therefore, the CoP wants to develop research questions and promote and advocate for including the concept of sexual pleasure and sexual wellbeing as an important part of SRH research.
Objectives:
The CoP will kick-start the year with an introduction session for Share-Net members presenting the sexual pleasure checklist that has been developed in 2020. This will be followed by an official launch event of the checklist for the wider SRHR community in an interactive workshop as well as further disseminating the tool at upcoming conferences.
The CoP additionally aims to collect data about user experiences with the checklist, based on which they will develop a supportive toolkit.
To contact us directly please write to Nicole Moran at n.moran@kit.nl.
CoP members can access their online working space on Mighty networks via this link (Share-Net Netherlands members only).
To see our new and exciting resource on how to good pleasure-focused imagery, check out our guide Beyond Bananas here
To use our Sexual Pleasure checklist, see here
Click here for resources on Sexual Pleasure.
If you would like to submit resources on Sexual Pleasure yourself, you can do so via this submission form. Please make sure to include the original source of the resource in the content box.