An Introduction to AUREA
Written by the AUREA Team
Word count: 1651
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
The Aromantic Community
If you want to know more about aromanticism this is the place to be. Simply put, aromanticism is a romantic orientation that most commonly describes people who experience little to no romantic attraction. This seems to be a straightforward definition at first glance, but like any identity, the deeper you dive, the murkier the waters become. With so much being discussed about the diversity in our emerging community, we are building ourselves a beautiful foundation. And while there are countless perspectives arising, we hope that AUREA can be common ground for aromantic recognition, education, and advocacy. Whether you’re an aromantic veteran, questioning, an ally, undergoing research, or are just plain curious we’ve got something for you.
Aromantics can be difficult to find in the wild. Our conversation is often regulated to the chaos of the internet, but that is something we can work with. We wish to be at the front line of our activism, to have aromantic voices become present and resounding. AUREA’s goal is to assist in the growth of our community. To do so we boast an extensive glossary of aromantic language, with history and variation listed. We will provide an array of printable resources and an ever-growing listing of in-person aromantic groups. For media outlets and researchers, we will exist as an aromantic community contact point. To have our community recognized - particularly through first hand accounts and research - will justify our issues and boost our existence to the world. And if all that isn’t enough to keep you coming back, our community feed will update twice monthly to keep you informed of current aromantic events, surveys, news articles, and vocab.
Our story
Like any good origin story, AUREA began with a burst of proactivity. Many aromantics have personal blogs, but the lack of response and traction our thoughts receive have made us feel as though we exist in vacuum. It was a thought provoking post from one such personal blog that launched this organization. I see a need, we read. We could do this, we thought.
And we are:
Zuzanna Rycombel (Tost) became actively involved in the aromantic community first to research the experiences of aromantics with a desire to understand them better, then as a blogger interested in finding various perspectives on aromanticism. Notably that includes perspectives ranging from personal experiences, to the community’s place in the society, and intersections with culture to the intersection of other identities. Tost was the person who gave spark to this initiative with a bright dedication to building a better community for aromantic people and an aim to make the world more welcoming for us. Tost is responsible for the shape of the content that ends up on the website and is attuned to keeping the allosexual perspectives clearly present. As a Polish resident they also intend to make AUREA a multilingual resource.
Magni dedicates a notable amount of time discussing etymology, direction, and intra-community relations with aros across the Internet. In the last couple of years ze has begun to focus on the aro aspects of zer aroace identity; zer commitment to engagement and intersection makes zem a valuable activist. As Vice President ze heads organization with a strong understanding of prioritization and relevance. Ze has taken zer experience from coordinating a queer college organization and implemented that knowledge to improve AUREA’s competency. Magni works to provide quality information on aros such as surveys, history, and vocabulary. Zer belief in AUREA lies in zer dedication to visibility and inclusion. When someone asks “what does the A stand for?” the answer is Magni: aromantic, asexual, and agender.
Neir made eir first foray into official aromantic discussion via research initiatives. As a trained researcher in social and cognitive sciences, ey has sought and still seeks to include arospec experiences in discussions regarding respect, inclusion, diversity, and the human condition more broadly. Neir’s strengths lie in critical analysis and organization, which is why ey is AUREA’s Treasurer. Eir responsibilities include keeping track of the financials - the numerical details behind this initiative. Amusingly, eir fondness of precision stops at those numbers. A genderqueer arospec aroflux grey-asexual, Neir’s entire identity sits in nebulous liquid, and eir experience of fluidity is something ey brings to the team. First generation Canadian, multilingual, and curious by nature, Neir brings hope for AUREA to become a common ground for conversations in many languages and cultural contexts about what makes the aromantic community tick and bustle. **Neir’s bio was updated 3/13/2020 to reflect recent changes.
Ramen joined the aromantic community roughly a year ago in need of support after figuring out their aro identity. In finding that sense of community they wished to do something in return. With great ambition they have started an aro and ace group at their university, begun an aro-centric comic, and most applicably: signed onto the AUREA initiative. As Secretary Ramen monitors the website’s progress, sees the team is equipped to complete their projects, and is responsible for the ever important task of administration. Ramen is a nonbinary aro ace with autism and ADHD who is studying linguistics. Their hope is to make AUREA a reliable resource for information that boosts the visibility of aromanticism so questioning aros have it a little easier when it comes to figuring out their identities.
Sea first entered the aromantic community after realizing that their experiences of love and romance simply didn’t mesh with the wider worlds’. Now, after spending several years growing and learning to understand themself better within the aromantic community, they hope to help in creating more resources so that other aromantics can find the community more easily than they did. Sea has a background in graphic design and several years of experience helping to provide educational resources at their place of worship. This combination of skills led them to the role of AUREA Resource Director. As an enbian oriented aroace living in the American Pacific NorthWest Sea enjoys participating in the ace & aro organizations in their region and hopes to see more in person a-spec groups in the future. Sea hopes that AUREA will create an easily accessible starting point for questioning aros, while providing an information hub for aromantics already involved in the community.
Scoop dove headfirst into the aromantic community when she realized she couldn’t relate to the world. In retrospect, to have identified as aro for years but to never have explored the identity was a lonely experience. It is her wish that AUREA can educate and connect aros to themselves and to others beyond. Scoop will ensure this occurs by exercising her love of writing as Editor-in-Chief. With experience in both creative and journalistic writing she hopes to make this both an enjoyable and informative experience. Take this sentence for example: as a queer aro she delights in casting aside specifics, transparency, and the split attraction model. An Australian temporarily trapped in a deeply right-wing town, Scoop has a burning desire to see AUREA flourish in tandem with our real world community. Fingers crossed the future holds interviews with aromantics across the world.
Loki has been a part of the a-spec community since 2015, and is grateful for every minute. After re-exploring her identity, she is proudly demiromantic and bi. While there have been resources that have come and go in the aro community, she has been involved in several blogs and organizations to make the community better. With a mixture of skills learned through coursework and experimentation, she is AUREA’s one-woman tech support team (aka the Web Developer). She hopes to build a collaborative relationship between researchers and the aromantic community alike, and to make information more readily available to everyone. **Loki’s bio was updated 3/11/2020 to reflect recent changes.
This team is one of trust. Within the aromantic community each of us have a history of initiating discussion, but more importantly we are willing to facilitate discussion. AUREA’s intentions are to collect and share information. We hope to establish contact with and between members of the community, then further still. We are an international organisation created for an international community of diverse people. How many cultures can you fit within a globe? That’s where those of you who are aromantic come in.
our goals
We are a volunteer-run initiative. Our aim to be in contact with the media means we will be representatives for the aromantic community. This website is a means for people who aren’t or may be aromantic to get insight into aromanticism from aromantics. What we want from aros is equal engagement. We invite you to contribute, volunteer, and represent the organization as you wish. We don’t want to be the only and entire representation for the aromantic community; we want to build a greater collaboration. AUREA’s team is here to do research, administration, and organization for our collective union of resources. What would you like to do?
In saying that, one of our priorities is obviously representation. It would be impossible to have a team that represents everyone, but it is entirely possible for us to make a point of consulting with community members where need be. We welcome feedback and suggestions to ensure accuracy and accessibility. We can’t possibly be a representative for aromanticism without working for and caring about inclusion.
AUREA stands for the Aromantic-spectrum Union for Recognition, Education, and Advocacy. We also stand for the aromantic community itself. Compared to the better known orientations we have little to show for ourselves, but that’s changing. We hope you support this organization but, more than that, aromantic or otherwise, we hope you keep this conversation going. Keep creating and keep up your activism. This organization was prompted into existence by a response to an aromantic writing event. This is an aro initiative inspired by an aro initiative. How far do you think this line of dominoes can stretch? AUREA will be here to report on that.