Oliver Hall sits down with Jessielee Pearce, Advocacy & Activism Executive at LUSH Australia & New Zealand, to discuss a collaboration with Gender Minorities Aotearoa that champions a brighter future for trans whānau.
As Advocacy & Activism Executive for LUSH in Aotearoa and Australia, Jessielee Pearce (Ngāpuhi, Ngāruahine, Ngāti Hine) leads campaigns that uplift grassroots voices, resource local action, and help people take real steps for human rights, environmental justice and animal welfare. Recent mahi in Aotearoa includes using their platform to petition for Together for Te Tiriti, updating their booklet How to Be a Trans Ally: Allyship in Action, and closing LUSH stores across Aotearoa for a day in solidarity with the people of Palestine. Her brief is broad; her values are clear.
At the heart of the latest partnership is Gender Minorities Aotearoa (GMA), a trans-led rōpū providing support, information and advocacy for trans, non-binary, intersex, takatāpui, irawhiti and other gender minority peoples. Since its founding in 2014 and as a registered charity since 2019, GMA has built a directory of trans-friendly health providers, published accessible resources, and worked to shift public discourse.
The keystone of the campaign is Liberation, a limited-edition bath bomb in the colours of the trans flag, for which LUSH is donating 75% of the sales (minus GST) to GMA. Their goal is to raise $10,000 to support GMA’s nationwide work. Jessielee stresses the integrity behind this collaboration: “This campaign wasn’t created by cis, straight employees. It was championed by our transgender colleagues at LUSH and in partnership with community organisations. It’s by the community, for the community.”
For Jessielee, that integrity is part of what drew her to LUSH in the first place. “I walked into the Newmarket store, someone introduced me to an ethical giving product, and I immediately demanded a job. I wanted to work for a company that aligned with my values.” She’s quick to add that alignment is more than a slogan: “LUSH was founded in 1995 with activism at its core. We’ve always used our platform to amplify the work of communities and partners, and to fight tirelessly against animal testing.”
The partnership with GMA, she says, was a natural fit. Their mahi is grounded in community and te reo concepts of inclusiveness. GMA provide public education, demystifies scientific and medical reports, and maintains vital resources for trans whānau, including a directory of trans-competent health services.
Visually, the campaign refuses tokenism. Rather than using a single face, which can become a target for abuse, LUSH commissioned art by transgender organisation, My Generation. The imagery presents what Jessielee calls a “through-topian” future: one where trans healthcare, services, and wellbeing are accessible; where media narratives are not built on fear or scapegoating.
For Jessielee, the work is also deeply personal. “I was raised by a solo dad who taught me to be loud, opinionated, strong, and to look out for others,” she says. “His biggest lesson was that if things are better for everyone else, they’re better for you too.” That father-daughter kaupapa underpins her belief that activism isn’t charity, it’s solidarity, rooted in tikanga of shared responsibility and aroha.
Jessielee tells us Liberation isn’t just a pretty present, it’s an invitation to act. “Our trans and gender diverse whānau have always existed and always will. Supporting them is simply what good looks like.”
Liberation is available in LUSH stores and online across Aotearoa, while stocks last. Proceeds support Gender Minorities Aotearoa’s work in health, advocacy and peer support.
