a Third Place

Founded in 2022, Exhale.group is a non-profit organisation which aims to create safe space to dream, explore and connect for QTIPOC+ (Queer, Trans and Intersex People of Colour) living in Glasgow and Scotland.At Exhale we recognise the unique tensions that our community faces between our culture, identity and belonging. We believe in the concept of the unit of resilience - which requires communities. We hope that by bringing people together, who have had similar experiences, in an environment designed to support flourishing, we can begin to mend these tensions and facilitate self-acceptance and positive self-expression. Our spaces are safe, nurturing, and encouraging - the hallmarks for an honest exploration of culture and identity.All projects at Exhale are created, run and facilitated by people who identify as QTIPOC+ which gives us a unique insight into supporting our communities. Life is best navigated in community and as such we are intentional about collaboration, seeking opportunities to engage with local QTIPOC+ creatives and practitioners to support our work.Our activities will be guided by 3 main principles:Education as advocacy – We consider the unheard histories of QTIPOC+ communities across cultures, offering a diversity of narratives that we can see ourselves and imagine others in creating spaces to engage with wonder.Creativity as flourishing – we create in order to express and explore our identities. We share our cultural legacies through dance, food, music, literature and so on, always in conversation with each other, our legacies and futures.Peer support – we facilitate space for the development of community practice with others to explore the experiences of those who identify as QTIPOC+.