But it’s not just about a growing number of countries that criminalise same-sex relations. It’s also about what many see as a broadening persecution of LGBTQ+ people through laws and policies that criminalise. From Russia to Uganda and Senegal, more and more laws that ban the “propaganda” or “promotion” of queer rights or identities are being enacted. From U.S. states like Florida and Idaho to countries like Bulgaria and Georgia, the discussion of LGBTQ+ topics in the classroom is increasingly being restricted. In Indonesia, President Prabowo Subianto signed a regulation classifying the spread of LGBTQ+ culture as a “non-military threat.” Meanwhile, Turkey’s government has proposed legal amendments that would punish “attitudes and behaviours contrary to biological sex and public morality,” as well as doctors performing sex-reassignment surgeries to those under 25, with prison sentences.

In his first media interview since being appointed the United Kingdom’s new LGBTQ+ rights envoy, Collins is remarkably upbeat.

“We are facing huge challenges, but I’m extremely optimistic for the future,” he told us.

A patchy global picture

Collins served as General Secretary of the British Labour Party before joining the House of Lords in 2011, and in the past few years he has held roles including government spokesperson for Equalities and special representative on preventing Violence in Conflicts.

He isn’t the first person to act as the UK’s LGBTQ+ rights envoy. Nick Herbert came before him – the first to hold the role – from 2021 to 2025. But Collins’ appointment in June 2026, together with the British government’s recent announcement of £21 million in funding “to advance LGBT+ rights internationally,” signals intent in a global arena which has seen other big players backtracking from their previous LGBTQ-friendly positions.

In the past decade, several countries have created roles aimed at using their diplomatic and economic muscle to promote LGBTQ+ equality around the world – but not all have kept them. In 2015, the U.S. named diplomat Randy Berry as its first-ever Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBT Persons, a position that was left vacant under Donald Trump’s first presidency, and then held by Jessica Stern during Joe Biden’s administration. The role was left empty again as Trump took office again as U.S. president in January last year. Italy and Argentina have also left similar roles vacant in recent years.

Countries including France and Spain have also appointed LGBTQ+ rights ambassadors, while others have created figures focused only on promoting LGBTQ+ rights domestically, like Germany’s “commissioner for the acceptance of sexual and gender diversity.”

“I’d like to see other countries either restore or introduce envoys,” Collins said. “We are working in a climate where resources are tight, there are limits to what we can do. But if we join together, we know that we can have a greater impact.”

Britain's complex LGBTQ+ legacy

A decade ago, the UK led ILGA-Europe's ranking of LGBTQ+ rights in the continent. But today it ranks 22^nd. LGBTQ+ activists have criticised recent rollbacks in the rights of trans and non-binary people in Britain – particularly since the 2025 Supreme Court ruling that defined “sex” as biological sex, which led to a new Code of Practice that allows public and private services to lawfully exclude trans individuals from single-sex spaces like toilets, changing rooms and hospital wards based on biological sex. Access to gender-affirming care for trans people has also been restricted, particularly through a ban on prescribing puberty blockers to minors, while many state-run clinics offering gender-affirming care have waiting times of several years – with some extending well over a decade.

Meanwhile, many of the 66 countries that criminalise same-sex relations around the world do so under laws that stem directly from British colonial legislation. Yet in nations from Ghana to Uganda to Indonesia, the narrative is inverted, with opponents increasingly framing the push for LGBTQ+ rights as a Western import and a new form of colonialism.

Collins said this narrative fails to recognise the colonial roots of many of these anti-LGBTQ+ laws, and pointed to South Africa as a key counter-example: “South Africa breaking free from colonial and apartheid rule adopted a very inclusive constitution, a constitution that recognises the rights of all.”

South Africa’s 1996 Constitution was the first in the world to explicitly prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and the country became the first in Africa – and fifth in the world – to legalise same-sex marriage in 2006. So far, no other African country has passed laws to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry or establish another form of legally recognised union. In Collins’ view, South Africa’s pioneering role in recognising queer rights shows there’s nothing un-African about them. “And I think that’s the key to break down this narrative. But, as I say, context is all important,” he told us.

So what does Collins’ diplomatic approach look like?

Simply demanding that countries decriminalise same-sex relations or enact legal protections for queer people will not work, he explained. “If I just try and raise issue up front, people just turn away and don’t listen,” said Collins, adding that his role will not only involve engaging with foreign governments, but also working with civil society organisations in those countries.

His tenure as a Minister for Africa at the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), during which he visited 19 African countries, has influenced his vision for promoting LGBTQ+ rights abroad on behalf of the UK.

Research from the World Bank indicates societies pay a significant price for excluding queer people, due to issues like young talent leaving the country, loss of productivity as a result of the mental health struggles LGBTQ+ people face, and reduced years of productive work due to poorer health outcomes.

A 2025 study by Open for Business, a coalition of companies advocating for LGBTQ+ inclusion, calculated that anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination costs four East African countries – Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania – up to $5 billion every year.

“So, I haven’t gone in there preaching,” said Collins. “I’ve gone in there saying there is a better way. It doesn’t always change hearts, but it certainly does open minds.”

Share

Thanks for reading Openly’s new newsletter, don’t forget to subscribe to keep receiving our LGBTQ+ journalism directly in your inbox. Our next issue will bring you a story on what’s probably the biggest LGBTQ+ rights conversation taking place in my adopted home right now.

Subscribe now

Talk soon,

Enrique Anarte

Multimedia editor, Openly

Openly is a non-profit LGBTQ+ news platform powered by the Thomson Reuters Foundation. You can follow our video reporting on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. If you want to support our journalism on queer issues around the world, get in touch: openly@thomsonreuters.com

So far this year, Senegal and Nigeria have enacted laws criminalising same-sex relations or toughening existing laws, adding to the growing list of countries that have criminalised same-sex relations over the past few years. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan saw in 2026 by joining the list of nations banning the “propaganda” of LGBTQ+ rights. In the United States, surveys show support for same-sex marriage is sinking, as conservative activists seek to reverse the historic ruling that legalised gay and lesbian weddings nationwide in 2015.

The backlash, however, is far from the whole picture. Even as LGBTQ+ rights are being rolled back in some places, many countries are taking steps to advance queer rights.

So, where are LGBTQ+ rights moving forward?

The Netherlands bans conversion therapy

The first country in the world to legalise same-sex marriage is making history again: in February, it swore in Rob Jetten as its first openly gay prime minister. But the story goes far beyond TikTok’s beloved Jetten. As Amsterdam prepares to host WorldPride in a few weeks, 2026 is shaping up to be a landmark year for LGBTQ+ rights in the Netherlands.

Last month, the upper house of the Dutch parliament passed a bill banning so-called “conversion therapies” - aimed at falsely changing a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. They are often performed by religious entities, mental health institutions and rehabilitation centres. Documented conversion therapy practices around the world range from psychological manipulation and exorcisms to waterboarding and “corrective” rape.

The draft legislation is now awaiting formal royal assent. Once it becomes law, the Netherlands will become the 18^th country in the world to ban conversion therapy directly, according to ILGA-World. Countries that have enacted similar bans include Brazil, France, Vietnam and New Zealand, while others like Argentina and Nauru have indirect restrictions in place.

LGBTQ+ activists have welcomed the ban but also criticised it for not going far enough. Why? Because it only covers minors and vulnerable adults. In fact, the question of how to most effectively crack down on conversion therapy practices is one that goes beyond the Netherlands.

Queer activists in Germany have long been calling for the country’s existing ban to be extended to protect all LGBTQ+ adults, not just minors and vulnerable people. After years of controversy, the British government has published a long-delayed bill to ban conversion therapy that includes prison penalties and also covers attempts to change chosen gender identity, despite many gender-critical voices calling for trans people to be excluded from such protection. And Spain is debating introducing tougher penalties – including jail time –for those practicing conversion therapy, only three years after first enacting a ban. Some Spanish lawmakers have gone further and called for measures beyond criminalisation, including providing alternative housing for minors who remain financially dependent on families that have put them through conversion therapy.

Conversion therapy bans are spreading around the world, but for some, they alone are no longer enough. The conversation is moving beyond whether the practice should be banned, and into the nuances of the consequences for both perpetrators and victims.

Trans Kenyans win (limited) legal gender recognition in court

Same-sex relations are still illegal in Kenya under a British colonial-era law, and LGBTQ+ Kenyans often face discrimination, blackmail and violence. But despite limited legal progress and growing concerns around anti-LGBTQ+ voices gaining ground in the East African country, a historic ruling by Kenya’s High Court has given queer advocates renewed hope.

In May, the court ruled that existing legislation does not ban trans people from applying to have the gender marker on their identity documents changed. Refusing to consider such applications altogether, the court said, violates their constitutional rights. Therefore, officials cannot automatically reject them and must assess applications on a case-by-case basis.

The court also instructed Kenya’s government and parliament to establish a clear process for trans people to change their legal gender - although it seems highly unlikely that legislation of this kind will be passed before Kenya’s general election next year.

However, LGBTQ+ Kenyans have welcomed the ruling as “an important step forward for the rights, dignity, equality, privacy, and recognition of transgender persons in Kenya.”

Legal gender recognition – trans people being able to change their IDs to match their gender identity – is extremely limited in Africa. According to ILGA-World, South Africa is the only country in the continent with a clear, functioning legal framework for trans people to change their gender markers. And this lack of legal recognition has real impacts on trans people’s lives: almost one in three trans Kenyans are denied healthcare because of their identity, according to local groups.

Australia allows gay men to donate blood

Australia has lifted a decades-long ban on gay and bisexual men donating blood. These restrictions, once common around the world, date back to the HIV/AIDS crisis in the 1980s, when HIV prevalence was higher among groups like queer men and people who inject drugs, and blood-testing techniques were far slower than today.

Now, screening technology makes it possible to detect HIV in a blood sample within weeks of an infection. That’s why many scientists say restrictions on men who have sex with men donating blood are outdated. On top of that, LGBTQ+ activists argue that these bans contribute to stigmatising gay relations and queer men more generally.

That’s why many countries from the U.S. to Austria and Germany have revoked or eased so-called “gay blood bans” in recent years, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic created huge blood shortages around the world. For these reasons, queer advocates say it’s not only an LGBTQ+ rights issue, but also a public health one: in Australia alone, the pool of potential blood donors expanded by an estimated 625,000 people following the lift of its ban last year.

And yet, many of these bans are still in place. Just last year, Greece’s top administrative court reinstated a lifetime ban on gay and bisexual men donating blood, which had been removed by the country’s health ministry in 2022, arguing that authorities did not provide sufficient scientific reasoning for the decision. In India, the government decided earlier this year to keep the country’s restrictions preventing queer men and trans people from donating – despite the country facing severe blood shortages.

Japan to roll out its first LGBTQ+ education programme

And finally, while Japan remains the only G-7 country that hasn’t legalised same-sex marriage, LGBTQ+ advocates in the country have celebrated the government’s decision to roll out a first-of-its-kind education programme to raise awareness around sexual and gender diversity.

The scheme, which recognises that a lack of public understanding contributes to queer people’s suffering, will be rolled out in schools, universities and workplaces.

The Japanese plan will include pupils being taught about LGBTQ+ people at school, as well as ensuring queer students have support from social workers and counsellors. Universities are also expected to revise the curricula of their programmes in order to train healthcare and education professionals to be sensitive to LGBTQ+ issues.

And while the scheme has been hailed as a huge queer rights milestone in Japan – it becomes even more relevant when looking at the global context. LGBTQ+ education is increasingly under fire, from the laws censoring LGBTQ+ topics in the classroom in 19 U.S. states to the Kremlin-inspired “family values” law banning the discussion of queer topics in Georgian schools.

Japan may not be ready yet to legalise same-sex marriage, but it seems to be on the way to make the classroom a safer space for LGBTQ+ kids.

Share

Thanks a lot for reading Openly’s brand-new newsletter – and let us know in the comments about other positive queer news from around the world. If you’re not a subscriber yet, sign up to get original global LGBTQ+ stories delivered straight to your inbox. In the next few months, we’re going to be focusing on topics like AI and LGBTQ+ rights, what sports mean for trans people, and much more.

Subscribe now

Talk soon,

Enrique Anarte

Multimedia editor, Openly

Openly is a non-profit LGBTQ+ news platform powered by the Thomson Reuters Foundation. You can follow our video reporting on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. If you want to support our journalism on queer issues around the world, get in touch: openly@thomsonreuters.com

Spoiler: it paid off. Today, Openly has not only won many journalistic awards and widespread recognition, but most importantly, it has become a globally recognised video-first platform for LGBTQ+ news and stories for queer people and allies. From Bogotá and Nairobi to Berlin and Bangkok, we’ve met LGBTQ+ people inspired by our coverage. Despite a micro team and limited resources, our journalism has done much more than grow a follower base of almost 350,000 people across platforms: we have built an online global community that finds value in impartial journalism on LGBTQ+ issues.

But the world is changing, and so is the way people access news and information, including keeping up with fast-changing developments around the rights of sexual and gender minorities. Don’t worry, we’re not going anywhere. On the contrary: we’re trying something new.

We know our short-form videos have helped our global audience understand the political debates around trans self-ID laws around Europe, the hurdles LGBTQ+ asylum seekers face in East Africa and the devastating impact of America’s HIV cuts on queer people around the world, among many other pressing issues.

But we’ve also noticed that relying on opaque, ever-changing algorithms and platforms can threaten our sustainability as a small, non-profit news brand, and can get in the way of a direct relationship with you, our readers and viewers. We want to be able to reach our audience, our global community, without being at the mercy of algorithmic changes or national restrictions on the platforms where we publish our journalism.

At the same time, we have realised that some of you are eager to not only watch short videos on LGBTQ+ issues, but also to dig deeper into the stories that we have been covering for years and that continue to unfold. At a time when many queer news outlets are struggling to stay afloat and media houses are cutting down on their original reporting on LGBTQ+ rights, we think our journalism is more important than ever.

That’s why we have decided to launch an Openly newsletter that helps us build a direct relationship with you, our community. Not instead of our social video coverage, but alongside it. We know many of you also want to read our LGBTQ+ journalism, and being able to come to you directly in your inbox will only make it easier for you to find us without having to navigate feeds, websites or search engines.

On TikTok and Instagram, our global community has always been the strongest ally of our LGBTQ+ journalism. We just want to give you more of this. And Substack feels like the right next step.

If you subscribe to our newsletter, every few weeks we’ll send our original reporting, analysis and human stories on some of the most crucial LGBTQ+ issues of our time directly to you.

As a journalist, I have covered queer stories from more than 20 countries and reported for years on the rights of LGBTQ+ people in many others. I’ve met queer refugees fleeing violence, interviewed same-sex couples battling in court for the rights of their children, and profiled extraordinary individuals writing LGBTQ+ history with their work. I've also trained dozens of reporters on five continents on how to better cover queer stories and produce journalism for today's audiences. I’ll be the one taking you on this journey, one newsletter issue at a time. We respect your inbox, and will only arrive there with something worth your time - that’s more important to us than rigidly adhering to a schedule, and means you’ll know that if we’ve sent you something, it’s worth reading.

Subscribe now

If you’re already part of our global community, thank you for supporting us. If you’re new, don’t forget to check our work on TikTok and Instagram. And remember: Openly is a non-profit news brand supported by donors. We are grateful for the generosity of the People’s Postcode Lottery and the Wellspring Philanthropic Fund.

We’re looking to expand the reach and impact of our work at a critical time for queer people. So, if you’re a corporate, philanthropic or institutional donor interested in funding impartial, independent journalism on LGBTQ+ issues, be it in the form of impactful short-form videos, in-depth documentaries or a global LGBTQ+ newsletter (or perhaps something entirely new!), please reach out to:

openly@thomsonreuters.com.

Talk soon,

Enrique Anarte

Multimedia Editor, Openly

Share