The third edition of the State of Trans Organizing survey was launched in October 2023 and received participation from 449 respondents worldwide. The results provide illuminating insight into trans organizations’ priorities, activities, needs, and experiences. The survey results also document their funding sources, budget sizes, and other elements related to movement sustainability, as well as their capacity to serve trans people. The reports include the findings of global surveys, comparison with Global Resources Report funding data, case studies, recommendations, and more.
Executive Summaries are available in Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.
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Top findings
The survey received participation from 449 trans organizations around the world, with 80% based in the Global South and East.
Compared to the 2016 survey, there were many more respondents from Latin America and the Caribbean and from Sub-Saharan Africa, and fewer survey respondents from Asia and the Pacific and from Northern America, with the same level of responses from Europe. Organizations from the Middle East and North Africa participated for the first time.
While the global trans movement has been growing steadily, larger numbers of new organizations were founded starting in 2015 – more than half of the respondents (51%) were founded since the previous survey.
Trans organizations were asked to choose which of their top activities most urgently needed additional resources. The most common response, from more than a quarter of respondents (27%), was the general category of advocacy for the human rights of trans people. Three more specific priorities were selected by approximately one in five organizations: access to health care; access to employment, welfare benefits, or livelihoods; and movement building.
72%
Trans organizations are working at all levels, local to international. More than seven in ten (72%) reported work at the national level.
19
Trans organizations are working across issues and strategies to meet their communities’ needs, reporting a median of 19 sub-activities, across advocacy, direct service, education/training, safety/security, and arts/culture.
90%
Nearly all trans organizations globally (90%) reported high levels of violence and harassment in person, to their communities, leadership, and gathering spaces.
$20,000
Worldwide, over half (51%) of trans organizations had budgets below US$20,000.
30%
Nearly one-third (30%) of trans organizations received no external support (government or foundation funding).
21%
Of those with external funding, one in five (21%) organizations had only one funder.
63%
The 2021–2022 Global Resources Report found that 63% of global funding for trans populations was focused on the United States.
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