Meet The Board

Ainsley is a creative storyteller, empowerment photographer and health advocate working at the intersection of art, creativity and education around chronic illness. As someone navigating living with endometriosis herself, she is deeply committed to improving the experiences and outcomes of people seeking gynecological and endometriosis care in Aotearoa. She brings lived experience, community insight, and a strong background in advocacy to Endo Warriors Aotearoa. Outside of this mahi, Ainsley loves gardening, studying Egyptology, and creating spaces where people feel seen and supported.

Kia ora koutou. Noo Kanara au. Ko Opasquiak Cree nation te wheuna tipuna. Kei Waikato au e noho ana. Ko Carmen Fortin toko ingoa. 

I am thilled to have been invited to take part in such a brilliant organisation which delivers such needed education and support for those with endometriosis. I am originally from Canada and have lived in four different countries, but am now settled close to Kirikiriroa - Hamilton. I have completed a double major in Social Policy and Sociology at Massey University and continue to study reo Maaori. I attempt to use this study in social policy to make a positive difference in the lives of those in Aotearoa. 

I am neurodivergent, with lived experience with endometriosis and care in three of the four countries I have lived in. I started my journey with endometriosis very early, somewhere shortly after I began my period. As with many, it was brushed off as being ‘just ordinary period pain’ and I was offered oral birth control before I had a chocolate endometrotic cyst burst (which felt way worse than it sounds).

I aim to help provide education and self-advocacy for those suffering with endometriosis, and advocate to fix a system which is broken and difficult to navigate. 

​Vanessa is the Service Manager, Community Health at DISC Trust in Ōtautahi, championing harm reduction and community health initiatives. She lives with endometriosis, diagnosed in her early 20s, and this lived experience underpins her compassion and commitment to advocating for others. Vanessa brings over five years of public health experience, strong operational leadership, and community development to Endo Warriors Aotearoa. Originally from North Dakota, USA and now happily settled in Aotearoa since 2015, she loves exploring the motu, hiking and photography.

Kia ora, I'm Kitty.
I have a background in nutrition with a particular interest in endometriosis, PCOS, gut health and disordered eating.
In my spare time I like to get crafty or curl up with a good movie/show.
From personal experience I know how hard it can be to get support with conditions like endometriosis and I am very excited to be involved with EWA!

I am incredibly passionate about performance and visual art which I use as an outlet to express my pain, joy and use as a way to connect with other people like me. I also very much cherish connecting with my polyamorous partners to learn how to love myself and have time where my body isn't being treated soley as 'female' or medical.

I am a gender fluid, neurodivergent, disabled, DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) system that has struggled with chronic pain and fatigue from undiagnosed endometriosis since I first started getting periods. 

My experiences with trying to access support from the medical system has been incredibly painful and traumatising due to my transness and neurodivergence not being at all understood or accepted within our current medical system. This has led to a downward spiral of mental illness and severe chronic illness exacerbations from medical neglect and abuse. I am self-driven by spite from my own experiences to use all the energy I have to advocate for myself and other people like me.