Hi! My name is Boka En.

I publish and teach in Gen­der & Sexuality Stu­dies, particularly on topics such as gender diversity, intimacies/​sexualities/​relationships, im-/possi­bilities of emanci­patory learning spa­ces, and LGBTIQ* move­ments. My PhD project is centred around inclusions and exclusions within and across LGBTQIA*-related activism and academia, particularly in relation to knowledge politics, legiti­macy and ethical expectations. Additionally, I work as a Coordinator at the Gender Research Office of the University of Vienna (currently on leave).

I have co-founded Qwir text + design, where I work on translations, other texts and design with Michael En. I am also a founding member of the Non-Mono­gamies and Contemporary Intimacies conference series, which seeks to bring together academics, activists, artists, thera­pists/coun­sellors and (other) practitioners, as well as the working group Inter*​Trans_​Nonbinary in the Austrian Gender Studies Association. Since October 2024, I serve as vice chair of the Austrian Gender Studies Association. Further, I have taught at, among others, the University of Vienna and the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna and have facilitated various workshops and seminars, particularly on topics around (gender) diversity, including for HOSI Wien, the Austrian Students’ Union, the University of Applied Sciences Campus Wien, and Astra Zeneca Austria.

On this page

Publications

• 2025. En, Boka. “It Helps if I Don’t Come Across as the Intersex Person but as the Regular Guy”. LGBTIQ* Movements, Credibility, and Mis-Fitting in Knowledge Spaces in Austria. Open Gender Journal, 9 (2025).
• 2025 (voraussichtlich). Baumgartinger, Persson Perry; En, Boka; Hornstein, René_ Rain; Hübscher, Evianne; Humer, Tobias. Trans*Inter*Nichtbinaritäts-Aktivismen in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz. In: Hornstein, René_ Rain & Balthes-Löhr, Christel (Eds.): trans*, inter* und nicht-binäre Geschlechtlichkeiten. Transcript.
• 2025. Grenz, Sabine; Guth, Doris; En, Boka; Uysal, Fatma (Ed.). Gender and Postsecularity in Visual Culture and Knowledge Production. Sternberg Press.
• 2023. En, Boka. Geschlechtervielfalt in der Lehre. In: Paris Lodron Universität Salzburg (Ed.): Sprachbox für inklusivere Kommunikation.
• 2022. En, Boka & En, Michael. (Un)doing relationships: Boundary-drawing and queer(ing) ways of relating. In: Rees, Emma (Ed.): The Routledge Companion to Gender, Sexuality and Culture. Routledge.
• 2022. En, Boka & En-Griffiths, David. Power as usual? Intersectionality, Performativity, and BDSM in the West. In: Biele Mefebue, Astrid; Bührmann, Andrea; Grenz, Sabine (Eds.) Handbuch Intersektionalitätsforschung. Springer.
• 2021. En, Boka. The My absent_present queer body in academia. Queer STS Forum, 6.
• 2021. Biele Mefebue, Astrid; En, Boka; Grenz, Sabine; Meshkova, Ksenia; Sifaki, Aggeliki (Eds.). Difference, Diversity, Diffraction: Confronting Hegemonies and Dispossessions. Proceedings of the 10th European Feminist Research Conference. Open Gender Journal / Fachgesellschaft Gender. 
• 2021. Gleichbehandlungsanwaltschaft Österreich (Ed.): Geschlechtersensible Sprache – Dialog auf Augenhöhe.
• 2020. En, Boka. Categorisation and Recognition: Musings on Misfitting and Misunderstanding. In: En, Michael (Ed.) Truths, Trust and Translation: A festschrift, love letter and thank you to Michèle Cooke, 85–100. Peter Lang. 
• 2020. En, Boka & En, Michael; mit En-Griffiths, David; Pilz, Felix; Pöll, Mer; Rosenthaler, Max. Beziehung(s)formen im queeren Alltag. In: Schadler, Cornelia & Raab, Michel (Eds.) Polyfantastisch? Nichtmonogamie als emanzipatorische Praxis, 45–63. Unrast-Verlag.  
• 2019. En, Michael & En, Boka. “Coming out” … as a translator? Expertise, identities and knowledge practices in an LGBTIQ* migrant community translation project. Translation Studies, 12(2), 213–230. 
• 2018. Cardoso, Daniel; En, Boka; En, David; Barker, Meg John; Muscarina, Sina; Pallotta-Chiarolli, Maria (Eds.). Non-Monogamies and Contemporary Intimacies. Special Issue des Graduate Journal of Social Science, 14(1).  
• 2017. En, Boka & Klaura, Andrea* Ida Malkah. Partizipation in universitärer Bildung – oder: Ermöglichen unmöglich? In: Isop, Utta (Ed.) Gewalt im beruflichen Alltag. Wie Hierarchien, Einschlüsse und Ausschlüsse wirken, 178–184. Neu-Ulm: AG Spak Verlag. 
• 2017. En, Boka; En, Michael; Pöll, Mercedes. A World Without Gender? The Struggle of Austria’s Far Right over What It Means to Be Human – An Analysis of Barbara Rosenkranz’ book MenschInnen. In: Köttig, Michaela; Bitzan, Renate; Petö, Andrea (Eds.) Gender and Far Right Politics in Europe, 235–252. Palgrave Macmillan. 
• 2016. En, Boka & Pöll, Mercedes. Are You (Self-)Tracking? Risks, Norms and Optimisation in Self-Quantifying Practices. Graduate Journal of Social Science, 12(2), S. 37–57.
• 2016. Altenhofer, Marlene; Bachinger, Leo Matteo; En, Boka; Engelhart, Jasmin; Neumann, Victoria; Pöchhacker, Nikolaus; Pöll, Mercedes; Prendl, Angela (Eds.). Ideologies, Ambitions and Utopias in Science and Technology. Special Issue des Graduate Journal of Social Science, 12(2).
• 2016. En, Boka & Klaura, Andrea* Ida Malkah. Living Trans*disciplinarity in academic teaching and learning – a conversation. Queer STS Forum, 1, 23–30. 
• 2013. En, Boka; En, Michael; Griffiths, David. (2013) Gay Stuff and Guy Stuff: The Construction of Sexual Identities in Sidebars on Reddit. Networking Knowledge: Journal of the MeCCSA-PGN, 6(1).  

Talks and Workshops

• 2025. ‘Together, we reflect and learn’: Injury, purity and the self-less self in progressive political spaces. Guest lecture at Central European University (Vienna, Austria)
• 2024. Film talk on ‘Desire Lines’. At „Queertactics – Queer_Feministisches Filmfestival“ (Vienna, Austria)
• 2024. Gender diversity and interacting with trans*intersex*nonbinary people [German: Geschlechtervielfalt und Umgang mit trans*inter*nichtbinären Personen]. Talk at Astra Zeneca Austria (Vienna, Austria)
• 2023. Gender diversity at universities [German: Geschlechtervielfalt an Hochschulen]. Workshop at the University of Applied Sciences Campus Wien (Vienna, Austria)
• 2022. Thinking Queerly about Failure. Guest lecture at the University of Warwick (UK)
• 2021. Academia/Activism [German: Wissenschaft/Aktivismus]. Guest lecture at the University of Vienna (Austria)
• 2020. Language and images [German: Sprache und Bilder]. Workshop at the annual conference of Universities Austria
• 2020. LGBTIQ activism and emancipatory learning spaces [German: LGBTIQ*-Aktivismus und emanzipatorische Lernräume]. Workshop for the youth group of the Homosexuelle Inititive (HOSI) Wien (Vienna, Austria)
• 2020. Making a difference: Drawing boundaries and enacting inclusions/exclusions in LGBTIQ* activism and academia. Guest lecture at the University of Vienna (Austria)
• 2019. Language and Third Gender [Deutsch: Sprache und Drittes Geschlecht]. talks/workshops for the Interministerial Working Group Gender Mainstreaming at the Austrian Federal Chancellery
• 2019. (The Making of) Being LGBTQ*. Workshop at Srinakharinwirot University (Bangkok, Thailand)
• 2018. Queer Identities, Theories and Practices [German: Queere Identitäten, Theorien und Praktiken]. Guest lecture at the University of Vienna (Austria)
• 2017/2018. Perversely normal – workshop on sex and sexualities [German: Pervers normal – Workshop zu Sex und Sexualitäten] (with Aramis Pöll). Several workshops in Vienan and Klagenfurt (Austria)

Translations

• 2023. Gölly, Karin, Barbara Jauk, Christina Riezler et al. (Trans. En, Michael & En, Boka). Statement by the Federal Association of Violence Protection Centres Austria on the Questionnaire for the evaluation of the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence by the Parties. Bundesverband der Gewaltschutzzentren Österreichs.
• 2023. Haritaworn, Jin. Queere Geographien, koloniale Geographien: Spuren von verschwundenen und ermordeten Frauen. (Trans. En, Boka & En, Michael) In: Carstensen-Egwuom, Inken & Bauriedl, Sybille (Eds.) Geographien der Kolonialität. transcript.
• 2023. McKittrick, Katherine. Plantagenzukünfte. (Trans. En, Boka & En, Michael) In: Carstensen-Egwuom, Inken & Bauriedl, Sybille (Eds.) Geographien der Kolonialität. transcript.
• 2022. Haschemi Yekani, Elahe, Magdalena Nowicka & Tiara Roxanne. Andere Sichtweisen auf Intersektionalität: Revisualising Intersectionality. (Postediting En, Boka & En, Michael) Springer VS.
• 2021. Dietze, Gabriel , Elahe Haschemi Yekani & Beatrice Michaelis. Seinsweisen oder Kategorien: Intersektionalität und ihre Methoden queeren (Trans. En, Boka & En, Michael). In: Astrid Mefebue Biele, Andrea Bührmann & Sabine Grenz (Eds.) Handbuch Intersektionalitätsforschung. Springer VS.
• 2019. Diverse. Keynotes der 10th European Feminist Research Conference (Trans. En, Michael & En, Boka)
• 2017. Verein Autonome Österreichische Frauenhäuser, AÖF & Wiener Interventionsstelle gegen Gewalt in der Familie, IST. Österreichischer NGO-Schattenbericht für GREVIO (Trans. En, Boka & En, Michael).
• 2015. Rothe, Verena; Kreutzner, Gabriele; Gronemeyer, Reimer (Trans. En, Boka; En, Michael; & En-Griffiths, David). Staying in Life: Paving the Way to Dementia-Friendly Communities. transcript.

Teaching_Learning

I believe that the aim of learning is not rote learning of pre-set answers to equally pre-set questions, but a cooperatively developing a knowledge process that is connected to participants’ lives (see e.g. the works of bell hooks and Paulo Freire). In these processes, I work to engage critically with societal and institutional power relations and coercive mechanisms as well as their effects on learning. My courses also often seek to draw on different forms of knowledge and relate them to each other – specifically academic, activist, artistic and participants’ experiential knowledges.

Ich have been teaching at the universities of Vienna, Klagenfurt and Salzburg as well as the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna since 2015. In 2016, Mer Pöll and I were awarded Teaching Award of the University of Salzburg. Below are some of the courses I have taught:

• Key Theories and Methods in Gender Studies (Klagenfurt)
• Key Topics and Questions Gender Studies (Vienna)
• Guided Reading: Non-/Performativity Trouble (Vienna)
• Inclusions and Exclusions in LGBTIQ* Movements (Vienna))
• Discipline and Punish? BDSM, Power and Society (Vienna/Klagenfurt/Salzburg)
• Ways of Relating (Klagenfurt/Salzburg)
• Guided Reading: Queer Sexualities? (Vienna)
• Theory_Practice Relations (Vienna)
• Hacking Gender, Hacking Technology (Klagenfurt/Academy of Fine Arts; with jackie klaura)

Contact

Feel free to drop me an email at boka.en@univie.ac.at if there’s anything you’d like to talk about. I use they/​them pronouns.

For enquiries regarding translations, copy-editing work and seminars/workshops, please email me at boka.en@qwir.at.