https://www.ovaobscura.com/home daily 1.0 2021-10-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633444609874-V95JS1BKKGAZCNVN5SQ2/13.png home https://www.ovaobscura.com/contact-us daily 0.75 2021-10-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445381984-MT11FSA5TVOIF4E6AGAB/Screen+Shot+2021-09-30+at+12.37.58+PM.png contact us - contact us Email us any time with questions about this study by contacting Principal Investigator Alana Cattapan at alana.cattapan@uwaterloo.ca or by filling out the form below. https://www.ovaobscura.com/updates daily 0.75 2025-11-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/acd066eb-4b02-4e4d-99d3-8fb9ff9156f9/m+%28updates%2C+publications+and+presentations%29.png presentations, publications, and updates - updates Progress on the study In August 2023 we finished our interviews with 53 participants. By April 2024, we finished all of our transcriptions and contacted participants with copies of narrative summaries to make sure we got their stories right. Throughout the spring and summer of 2024, we coded and analyzed the interviews and began to analyze the findings. We also started to present some of the preliminary results at conferences and workshops across Canada (see the list of publications and presentations below). As of November 2025, we are writing up the findings and developing tools for clinics, counsellors, lawyers, and most importantly, egg donors to improve their experiences. (Scroll down to see some of the ways we’ve been sharing the results as they emerge.) Other updates! We have also developed a few other outputs that might be of interest to you! One is from sociology students at York University who created a video story called “My Eggsperience” about what it is like to donate your eggs. We also developed an interactive story/game that you can play about donating your eggs that draws from some of the stories we heard in the interviews. It is still a work in progress, but you can play it here. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/de502985-b242-48e4-a4c8-d2e00577c452/k+%28error%29.jpg presentations, publications, and updates - publications and presentations Alana Cattapan, Samantha Beneteau, and Anya Johnson Poon. “What 53 Egg Donors Said They Wish They Knew…”. We Are Egg Donors (Blog). 18 November 2025. Alana Cattapan (Panellist). Fertility and Assisted Reproductive Care in Canada: Who’s In and Who’s Out. Fertility Justice Project. Toronto Metropolitan University. 22 October 2025. Anya Johnson Poon, Sarah Seabrook, Samantha Beneteau, and Alana Cattapan. “ova obscura: medical experiences of egg donors in canada.” Poster for the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society Annual Conference. 19 September 2025. (including advice documents for clinics, lawyers, and agencies). Alana Cattapan. "The Receipts: Reimbursing Egg Donors in Canada." Governing Reproduction: Exploring Law and Policy. Centre for Health Law, Policy and Ethics, University of Ottawa. Ottawa, ON. 22 November 2024 Alana Cattapan (w/ Anya Johson Poon). "Reconfiguring Kin: Egg Donation and Reproductive Autonomy." Assisted Reproduction in Canada: Research Notes from the Field. Lincoln Alexander School of Law, Toronto Metropolitan University. 10 October, 2024. Alana Cattapan. "Reconfiguring Kin: Egg Donation as Family Making." Atlantic Provinces Political Studies Association Annual Conference 2024. Mount Allison University. Sackville, NB. 28 September, 2024. Alana Cattapan (w/ Kathleen Hammond and Vanessa Gruben). Exploring Canadians' Experiences of Assisted Reproduction: A Snapshot of Current Empirical Research Studies. Centre for Feminist Legal Studies, University of British Columbia. Vancouver, BC. 15 May 2024. (virtual) Alana Cattapan. Considérations juridiques pour les donneuses d’ovules. Aux marges de la procréation médicalement assistée : nouvelles populations, techniques et normes. Acfas, Ottawa, ON. 14 Mai 2024. Alana Cattapan (w/ Kathleen Hammond and Vanessa Gruben). “Ova Obscura: Egg Donors in Canada” (initial analysis on legal agreements). Feminist Law and the Family. Osgoode Law School, Toronto, ON, Canada. 10 May 2024. Alana Cattapan. “Lab-Made Gametes in the Clinic: Who Would Benefit? Who Should Decide?” Biopolitical Times. 19 June 2023. Alana Cattapan. “Ova Obscura: Egg Donors in Canada.” Conception and Its Discontents. Motherhood and Technology Group, Columbia Centre for the Study of Social Difference, Columbia University, New York, New York, US. 8 May 2023. Alana Cattapan (panellist). In Vitro Derived Human Gametes as a Reproductive Technology. National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine, Washington DC, US. 20 April 2023. Vanessa Gruben, Kathleen Hammond, and Alana Cattapan. “Empirical Research on Assisted Reproduction in Canada.” Politics of Reproduction Speakers’ Series, University of Waterloo, ON, Canada.13 January 2023. https://www.ovaobscura.com/research-team daily 0.75 2024-10-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445078536-3Q3HJ144ZXE4HSLVK74R/15.png research team - research assistants Anya Johnson Poon is the lead research assistant on the Ova Obscura project. She recently graduated from the Balsillie School of International Affairs and the University of Waterloo with an MA in Global Governance. Her interest in medical and reproductive travel has brought her to focus on the politics of reproduction, and in particular on queer reproduction through assisted reproductive technologies. Sarah Seabrook is a recent University of Waterloo graduate with an MA in Political Science with a specialization in Canadian Politics and Health Policy. Her research examines the systemic barriers to care for patients with endometriosis across Canada. She serves as a research assistant to the Politics of Reproduction Research group and her research interests lie in reproductive policymaking and assisted reproduction and reproductive technologies broadly. Samantha Beneteau is an undergraduate student majoring in Psychology and minoring in Gender and Social Justice Studies with a specialization in Research at the University of Waterloo. Her studies and research interests focus on clinical psychology, gender studies, and social justice. alumni Alanna Benson is a Masters of Political Science Student at the University of Waterloo. Her work examines how climate change policy can and should be informed by Indigenous approaches to clean energy. Sierra Van Tent is a recent University of Waterloo graduate with a BA in Political Science, with minors in Legal Studies and Peace and Conflict Studies. She specializes in studying reproductive politics and legislation, exploring the intersection of politics, law, and social justice. Swarnima Pandey is an undergraduate student majoring in Political Science with a minor in English at the University of Waterloo. Her studies and areas of interest revolve around international political economy, global governance, social justice, and application of the law. Josh Eisenmenger is an undergraduate student majoring in Political Science at the University of Waterloo. His studies and his research interests focus on international politics, governance, and social justice. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445047485-V431QQ5AHFXLU7FLF775/2.png research team - advisory team Jennifer (Jenny) Dyck Brian is a Senior Lecturer and Associate Chair at Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University, who studies bioethics, the commercialization of emerging technologies, and reproductive politics. Claire Burns is a Toronto based actor, director, producer and theatre creator, and a co-founder of We Are Egg Donors, the world’s first self-advocacy group for egg donors, run by egg donors. Angela Cameron is an Associate Professor of law at the University of Ottawa. Her research uses a critical feminist approach to study the regulation of reproductive technologies, LGBTQ+ experiences, and family law. Marie-Claude Léveillé is an Assistant Professor in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Ottawa, Scientific Director of the Ottawa Fertility Centre. and former President of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society. Erin Nelson is a Professor of Law at the University of Alberta who has written extensively on the governance of reproductive technologies in Canada focusing on reproductive autonomy. Vardit Ravitsky is Full Professor at the Bioethics Program, School of Public Health, University of Montreal and Senior Lecturer on Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School. She is President of the International Association of Bioethics and Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. Meredith Vanstone is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at McMaster University. She is a a qualitative researcher studying patient experiences of healthcare to improve policy and medical education. Lorna Weir is a Professor in the Department of Sociology and the Graduate Programme in Science and Technology Studies at York University. Her research occurs at the intersections between reproductive health, critical social theory, and governance. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633444986859-4SZLLVWYTSJFSFZCUDE2/10.png research team - investigators Alana Cattapan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Waterloo and the Canada Research Chair in the Politics of Reproduction. Her research focuses on reproductive autonomy, the commercialization of the body, and the governance of assisted reproduction in Canada. Kathleen (Katie) Hammond is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Law at Ryerson University, and a leading expert on egg donation in Canada. Her broader work brings together sociological and legal approaches—both theoretical and empirical—to examine how the rapid evolution of assisted reproductive and genetic technologies are changing socio-legal realities. Vanessa Gruben is an Associate Professor and a member of the Centre for Health Law, Policy and Ethics in the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa. She has written on the regulation of egg donation and surrogacy, the collection, use and disclosure of information to assisted reproduction registries, and the laws governing parentage of children born through assisted reproduction in Canada. https://www.ovaobscura.com/about daily 0.75 2024-05-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633444948450-HJC2O41HAX8XKS8N58MD/5.png about - about More people are conceiving children using donated eggs than ever before, but very little is known about the women who provide those eggs, and how their experience of donation affects their bodies and lives. What we do know is that egg donation is a complex experience in which donors want to help people build their families, but are often not informed about risks, and may be treated as a means to the reproductive ends of others. This project is the first large-scale study of egg donation in Canada. Our goal is to work with egg donors to chronicle their stories, and to improve relevant law and public policy. In 2022 and 2023, we interviewed 53 people who donated eggs in Canadian clinics. We are analyzing the data and will make results available as soon as possible. —— Ova Obscura is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Council of Canada’s Insight Program. Additional funding is provided by the Canada Research Chair in the Politics of Reproduction, with support from the University of Waterloo. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1631724877548-0LAPA0BQFU3LJLL585P1/14.png about - about the images All of the images on the website, and used in relevant presentations, were created by Lydia Li, a Toronto-based designer and illustrator. (She is updating her website and portfolio, but we will provide the new ones as soon as we can!) https://www.ovaobscura.com/error-page daily 0.75 2021-10-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445433963-JI89XX7FSVW5LR7KQGVI/11.png Error page - page not found/404 error This isn’t the page you were looking for. This is either because: 1) There is an error in the URL entered into your browser or, 2) The page you are looking for has been moved or deleted. You can return to our homepage by clicking here. https://www.ovaobscura.com/selected-references daily 0.75 2021-11-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445249249-MUD77UF5IS7EC9KSL8K1/9.png selected references - selected references Almeling, R. (2017). The business of egg and sperm donation. Contexts. 16(4), 68-70. Brian, J.D. (as Randal, A. E.) (2004). The personal, interpersonal, and political issues of egg donation. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada, 26(12), 1087–1090. (.pdf) Brody, J.E.. (July 10, 2017) Do egg donors face long term risks? New York Times. Burns, C. (July 11, 2013). We Are Egg Donors. Impact Ethics. Burns, C. (November 16, 2016). Reflections on egg donation in Canada. Impact Ethics. Cattapan, A. (2016). The Curious Case of Informed Consent for Egg Donation. Journal of Medical Ethics Blog. Cattapan, A. (2016). Precarious labour: On egg donation as work. Studies in Political Economy, 97(3), 234–252. (.pdf) Gruben, V. (2013). Women as patients, not spare parts: Examining the relationship between the physician and women egg providers. Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, 25(2), 249–283. Hammond, K. (2016). What Money Can Buy: Tracing Egg Transactions in Canada [Dissertation]. University of Cambridge. (.pdf) Hudson, N., et. al. (2020). Reframing egg donation in Europe: New regulatory challenges for a shifting landscape. Health Policy and Technology. (click view/open on the left side to read) Motluk, A. (2012). Is egg donation dangerous? Maisonneuve, 46, 26–33. Motluk, A. (2020). What egg donors want intended parents to know. Hey Reprotech! Tober, D. et. al. (2020) “Alignment between expectations and experiences of egg donors: What does it mean to be informed?” Reproductive Biomedicine & Society Online. https://www.ovaobscura.com/resources daily 0.75 2022-12-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445204627-30HFVDYL52MC3EC0B3N8/5.png resources - resources If you participated in an interview as part of this study, and would like additional support, we’ve compiled a list of free resources that might be helpful to you. Crisis Line — 24/7 support for people experiencing any kind of mental health crisis. Phone: 1-866-966-0991 Distress Centres of Greater Toronto — Provides 24-hour/7 day a week support to people who are in crisis, who want or need emotional support, and/or those seeking suicide prevention/intervention/postvention. Phone: 416-408-4357 Distress Lines and Crisis Centres in Ontario — List from the Canadian Hearing Society of distress lines and crisis centres in Ontario divided by region and function (i.e., helpline, text, children/youth). Hope for Wellness — Offers a helpline and online chat function for immediate mental health counselling and crisis intervention to all Indigenous peoples across Canada. Phone: 1-855-242-3310‍ Chat: https://www.hopeforwellness.ca/ LGBT Youthline — Provides support for youth by youth (people 29 and under) via phone, chat, or text. Phone: 1-800-268-9688 Text: 647-694-4275 Multilingual Distress Lines — Provides distress lines available in English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Portuguese, Spanish, Hindi, Punjabi, and Urdu. These lines are available M-F, 10am to10pm Eastern time. Phone: 905-459-7777 or 1-877-298-5444 TTY: 905 278-4890 Talk Suicide Canada — Offers 24/7 support to anyone concerned about suicide or needing support. Phone: 1-833-456-4566 (24/7) Text: 45645 (4pm to midnight) ‍ We Are Egg Donors — a volunteer-run support and advocacy community for egg donors, by egg donors. They have a Facebook group only for egg donors. (Note that members of We Are Egg Donors are involved in this project). https://www.ovaobscura.com/videomyeggsperience daily 0.75 2023-03-06 https://www.ovaobscura.com/twinery-game daily 0.75 2024-08-01 https://www.ovaobscura.com/atelier daily 0.75 2024-06-13 https://www.ovaobscura.com/advice-from-donors daily 0.75 2025-11-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/8ea84e8f-30e0-41b0-b0d8-7d018ee28296/g.png advice from donors - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445381984-MT11FSA5TVOIF4E6AGAB/3.png advice from donors - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633444948450-HJC2O41HAX8XKS8N58MD/8.png advice from donors - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/1633445047485-V431QQ5AHFXLU7FLF775/2.png advice from donors - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.ovaobscura.com/advice-to-fertility-clinics daily 0.75 2025-11-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/a2853f90-6790-450e-9b07-9a2d3deafe74/1.png advice to fertility clinics - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/507fe06d-1613-42a9-a69a-b62f2188d04d/2.png advice to fertility clinics - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.ovaobscura.com/advice-to-lawyers daily 0.75 2025-11-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/630dc114-b4d8-49ac-951a-cb55db993ce5/5.png advice to lawyers - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/ec7c9b55-d328-4bc9-a007-1fe489208b8b/6.png advice to lawyers - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.ovaobscura.com/advice-to-agencies daily 0.75 2025-11-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/9cfc69ce-66de-4aff-adc8-db354badaf6b/3.png advice to agencies - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6141f647d955fe2ba7a7574e/7474bb8e-bd85-45ef-99fa-62d2fbdab727/4.png advice to agencies - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.