Speaker Program

Charlie leads us through a presentation introducing Connect LIVE and the work of MRKH Connect. Joined by Ally, they present the Global MRKH film, a powerful snapshot of our global community and the courage and strength that helps enact change and introduce Ally’s book where Ally shares an extract from her Preface before we head into the rest of the program.

Amy co-founded @beautifulyoumrkh 10 years ago and more recently @globalmrkh a consortium of MRKH community leaders and advocates. She earned a PhD in Human Genetics, channeling this expertise to transform health and well-being for the MRKH Community through partnering with clinicians and scientists to drive research and improve care. Beautiful You, similar to MRKH Connect, strives to improve health and empower the MRKH Community through core values like inclusivity. Their Diversity and Inclusion program is working with advisers to do more for all – in our differences, we find our greatest strengths.

Susan is a psychologist with a passion for integrating her personal and professional experiences to enhance knowledge and improve care for people affected by MRKH around the world. Susan is from Ireland but has lived in London for 9 years completing her MSc and PhD in health psychology and has since completed her Clinical Psychology training.  She has been driven to advocate for, and support people with, MRKH through speaking at patient and family days, facilitating workshops and support groups, doing research on MRKH, and presenting at medical and academic conferences. She values the opportunities she has had to learn from and connect with other people who have MRKH and specialists who work with people with MRKH.

Charlie is the Director of MRKH Connect.  She has been part of the MRKH Connect family since 2017 and took over as Director in 2019. She was diagnosed with MRKH at 17. She is a geoscientist with an analytical brain and works as a project manager interpreting satellite imagery.  Her passion has been to help support the community which has helped her, by helping others. She advocates for MRKH, supporting and improving research and care and started to write a public blog in 2014 which launched her advocacy journey, more by chance and she hopes her writing, which helped her, has become a useful resource for the public and community also.

Ellamae is a true powerhouse in the MRKH community she is an artist, host, advocate, project manager, community leader and creative. She is the founder of the global MRKH Podcast, events and awareness platform @mindovermrkh. The owner and sole curator of body normalising community brand @vavawomb_ and cocreator of The Vagina Festival @vaginafest. By day she pursues her career in building safety but by night she is passionate about pleasure, self exploration and packs a punch in stigma shaking. She continually aims to be the voice for the voiceless and most importantly she is the woman she needed when she was a girl.

Hasna was in her late thirties before she learned of MRKH as a condition and she received a formal diagnosis for MRKH in 2015. Hasna is a British Bangladeshi Muslim woman and a passionate voice for those who come from cultures where women born with MRKH are too often shamed into silence as she once was.  Badia is there for all and always with a smile. She is part of the @beautifulyoumrkh Diversity and Inclusion, Board Member has led and spoken at MRKH events for Beautiful You, Boston Children’s hopsital and @mrkhcanada, this is her first time speaking at a Connect event and we are so excited she can join us virtually. Hasna and Badia join forces to present on their experiences as women of colour with MRKH and how their culture has had an impact on their journey to acceptance and finding peace with MRKH.

Nikol is a certified sensate focus therapist and clinical sexologist in training. She has worked in the field of sexology for 2 years and runs her own coaching practice called ‘Sensual Radiance. She has also been working with Connect for over a year now on out MRKH and Intimacy initiative.  Nikol’s passion lies in the unveiling of pleasure potential, passion, and realized confidence. She wholeheartedly supports those who have experienced intimacy related trauma because she experienced this herself on her MRKH journey and it inspired her to learn more about it on the path to self acceptance and exploration.