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Rikki Swin (1947 -) is an American businesswoman and activist. From 1970-1999, she co-owned Tec-Air Incorporated with her father^[1]. She later founded the Rikki Swin Institute, the archives of which formed an important part of the establishment of the Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria^[1].

Rikki Swin was born in 1947 in Chicago, Illinois^[1]. In 1965 her father, Richard E. Swin Sr., founded Tec-Air Incorporated, a manufacturing business specializing in plastic injection moulding ^[2][3]. From 1970-1999, Rikki worked at and co-owned Tec-Air with her father^[1][4], a time in which she said she learned valuable skills that later influenced her During her time, the business grew to annual revenues of $20 million USD^[1]. In 1999, she sold the business and transitioned^[5].

After 2002, Swin moved to Victoria, British Columbia, Canada ^[6]. She currently resides in San Juan Island, Washington, USA^[1].

Swin founded the Rikki Swin Institute: Gender Education, Research, Library and Archives — the world’s first institute dedicated to transgender research and education. It opened to the public on March 22, 2001, to coincide with the 15th Annual Conference of the International Foundation for Gender Education5: ^[7].

The Institute had four objectives: the housing of a library and archives; conference co-sponsorship; digital video education; and research^[7]. During its operation, it undertook a number of projects aimed at researching and bettering the lives of transgender people. including surveys, archival work, and education^[1].

The Institute organized conferences, symposiums, and speaking engagements for gender care professionals at local conferences^[1]. This was done to disseminate information on gender affirming care to transgender populations, and provide networking opportunities among gender professionals for the betterment of the patient^[7]. Such events included its 2001 Symposium which hosted a number of notable speakers, including Stephen Whittle, Toby Meltzer, and Virginia Prince5: ^[7].

The Institute’s archival collections were purchased from Ari Kane, Betty Ann Lind, the International Foundation for Gender Education, and Virginia Prince^[1].

The Rikki Swin Institute received some criticism during its operation. Critics characterized some of its spending as frivolous, arguing that money needed by smaller organizations was being spent on unnecessary luxuries^[8]. They also noted a lack of transparency, and a lack of public availability with its archival materials ^[6][8]. This was particularly focussed after the closure of the Institute, as there was a lack of communication from Swin, especially about the location of materials ^[6][8]. The material resurfaced when it was donated to the Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria by Swin ^[6]. This decision was praised by critics for returning the materials to a publicly-accessible institution, especially since Swin had acquired them at great personal cost^[6].