Organised by InsideOUT Otago schools co-ordinator Trish Lastovicka, the event aimed to reveal insights on what being part of Dunedin’s rainbow community was like for young people.
She enjoyed being an advocate for others in the rainbow community.
Every school should be striving to protect people and answer the question "how can we make our school safer".
Information from the Youth19 survey of more than 7000 secondary school-aged pupils showed transgender and diverse gender students still faced stigma and stress, and nearly a quarter said they had been bullied at school, weekly or more often, in the past year.
Pupils asked questions and heard insights from rainbow community members Meredith Harrison, Charlie McLaren and Percy Hall.
Before the talk started, former St Hilda's pupil Percy Hall admitted to being a "a little bit nervous".
"Especially because I came out as trans, so I am definitely not an ‘Old Girl’ anymore, so it is a bit weird for me."
Since leaving the school Percy now used he/him pronouns and for about the past two years had been medically transitioning from female to male.
He hoped the panel discussion would remind pupils there were queer people among them, even if they did not know it yet.
"We exist, we are here."
Having travelled and lived in other cities, Percy said Dunedin was a little more conservative, and he thought the city had more work to do.
Being queer "diversifies your entire life," he said.
The more he understood gender and sexuality, the more it had helped open other doors to understanding.
Toilets could pose a particular challenge for the rainbow community.
Percy described times when he felt unable to use any bathrooms because neither the boys or girls bathrooms felt right at school.
"And I’ve got a beard."
Even at university this was a challenge, as there were some gender neutral bathrooms but not in all buildings, he said.
