Kimberly Zieselman, JD (she/her) is an intersex woman and Senior Advisor for Global Intersex Rights at Outright International, where she focuses on advancing the human rights of intersex people using various advocacy tools, including legal policy and awareness raising. Kimberly also served as Senior Advisor to the Special Envoy to Advance the Human Rights of LGBTQI+ Persons in the U.S. State Department. She was Executive Director of interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth and served on the board of InterConnect, a support group for intersex people and their families. In 2015, Kimberly was the sole American intersex participant in the historic Expert Intersex Convening by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and is an official signatory to the Yogyakarta Principles +10, a milestone international human rights guidance document for LGBTQIA+. Previously, she was Director of Government Relations for Boston Children’s Hospital and earned the National Association of Children’s Hospitals Legislative Advocacy Award after leading the hospital’s first strategy-driven government relations campaign, raising over $200 million in new Medicaid funding.
Kimberly is passionate about using authentic storytelling to change hearts and minds and create change. In 2020, Kimberly published XOXY, an award-winning memoir about her personal and professional intersex journey, and recently executive produced the award-winning short intersex film Common As Red Hair. Kimberly regularly consults on intersex policies and intersex representation in the media. She has been quoted and/or published in outlets including USA Today, New York Times, Washington Post, Washington Blade, BBC, CNN, and The Advocate. Kimberly has a JD from Suffolk University Law School and a BA in Communications and Political Science from the University of Vermont.
