Van Queer Climbers came together with the hope to increase visibility and inclusion of LGBTQIA2S+ people in climbing, reduce financial barriers that they are more likely to face, build queer community in a sport historically discriminatory against LBGTQIA2S+ people, and create positive change within local climbing facilities for LGBTQIA2S+ people.


Some of our projects include:

  • Monthly LGBTQIA2S+ climbing meetups at local gyms and crags in BC.
  • Discounted climbing gym access for our community to reduce financial barriers.
  • Winter and Summer climbing mentorship programs that provide LGBTQIA2S+ climbers of all levels access to LGBTQIA2S+ climbing mentors and helps them gain new climbing knowledge, build on their skills, and form queer community in BC. This also provides them with free access to local climbing gyms during their mentorship sessions.
  • Free gear rentals for outdoor climbing mentorship sessions.
  • Partnering with local climbing gyms to provide free day passes to LGBTQIA2S+ climbers who face financial barriers
  • Annual in-depth assessment of local climbing facilities, providing analysis of any existing or lack of:
    • Harassment/Discrimination Policy
    • LGBTQIA2S+ Course Offerings
    • LGBTQIA2S+ Ally Education
    • LGBTQIA2S+ Social Media Representation
    • Gender Inclusive/Neutral Bathrooms
    • LGBTQIA2S+ Employees, LGBTQIA2S+ Feature on Website
    • Gender Inclusive language on signage
    • Gender Inclusive language on website
    • Gender Inclusive language on social media
    • Responsive to Queer Groups Reaching Out
    • Open to LGBTQIA2S+ Meetups at Gym

Selena Neumark

Co-Founder (She/Her)

Selena has always been a vocal advocate for the inclusion of marginalized groups. Her background in social justice gave her the perfect foundation to be our unofficial 'editor-in-chief' at Van Queer Climbers. Selena is a full-time introvert but enjoys a close-knit group of friends and adores spending time in nature. When not climbing, she's usually playing chess, reading or snowboarding.

Part of her reason for forming VQC was seeing a gap in the representation of queer climbers and wanting to form more community in a sport she now spends a lot of her free time on. She also considers this a great opportunity to build connections in the queer community centred around adventure, mutual support and learning.

Selena is completely stoked about ropes and though she leans more towards sport climbs at Base5 you will definitely also catch her absolutely crushing at The Hive with friends and dancing badly while cheering others on.



Taylor MacVittie
Co-Founder (They/Them)

Tay is a big believer in making outdoor spaces more accessible – whether that’s for queer, POC, disabled, chronically ill, mentally ill, or neurodivergent folk. Their biggest joy in life comes from seeing other people accepted, thriving and joyful in the outdoors and in themselves. That is a big driving force behind why they wanted to form Van Queer Climbers. 

Tay's full-time job is running an equity program for a local bike share organization and helping marginalized people gain affordable and equitable access to bikes. Their hope is that they will bring more visibility, connection, and resources to chronically ill, queer, and non-binary people in the outdoor spaces that they love.

You can usually catch Tay flailing off of boulders at The Hive or up in Squamish and when they can’t find buds to climb with, you’ll likely catch them zipping around on their bike with tunes blasting in one ear.