Pam Bennett, who until 2002 was Bruce Dennis Bennett, is running in the 2007 City Council election in Aurora, Colo.

Lori Meeks is associate professor of religion and East Asian language and cultures at the University of Southern California. She is co-chair of the American Academy of Religion’s Buddhism section.

Paula Arai is an associate professor of Asian religions and a specialist in Buddhist studies at Louisiana State University.

Kristin Scheible is assistant professor of religion at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y., and serves on the steering committee of the American Academy of Religion’s Buddhism section. She can address questions about Theravāda Buddhism, South and Southeast Asian Buddhist history, Buddhist literature and Buddhism in the West.

Sharon Suh is a professor and chair of the department of theology and religious studies at Seattle University. She specializes in the study of Buddhism and was an advisor to the Pew Research Center on its study of Buddhism.

Michael D. Palm Center (formerly Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military) at University of California, Santa Barbara is a research institute that works to educate and provide resources concerning modern issues, such as gender and sexuality.

The Gender Identity Research and Education Society in England is an organization dedicated to the research and education on transgender peoples.

The Brooklyn-based Transgender Law and Policy Institute tracks legislation, court cases and hate crime laws involving transgender rights.

The American Civil Liberties Union’s Web site includes background material on transgender court cases.