A group of activists in Russia is looking to raise €12,000 (£10,600) to finance an annual conference aimed at supporting the LGBT+ community and same-sex families in particular. The LGBTQIA Family Conference, now in its fifth year, is due to take place in Moscow for three days starting November 9. Last year, the event gathered around 400 participants and 35 speakers, including psychologists, therapists, educators and health professionals who would not otherwise have the possibility to receive information as to how to best support the LGBT+ community. This year, the conference’s main theme is “The value of family and partnership. Ethics and politics,” focusing on those “traditional family values” that the Russian government and the influential Orthodox Church normally claim to be the realm of heterosexual couples.