- Published:
- Wednesday 2 December 2020
The Andrews Labor Government is levelling the playing field for women and girls to play, lead and succeed across all levels of the sport and recreation sector.
Minister for Community Sport Ros Spence today announced several game changing initiatives that will provide a much-needed injection to the sector and support women and girls looking to take on leadership roles.
The inaugural Change Our Game Making the Call program is now underway, with 21 participants taking part in a program that is the first of its kind, which aims to address the lack of gender diversity in sports broadcasting and create pathways for women’s voices in sport to be heard.
Led by a team of media experts including international cricket commentator Mel Jones, sports media executive Dave Barham, and sports journalist and broadcasters Kelli Underwood and Andy Maher, the program provides women with the education and support to develop a career behind the microphone.
It comes as another 23 up-and-coming female leaders in sport scored a Change Our Game Scholarship, taking the total number of recipients to 190 Victorian women to benefit from professional development opportunities and training courses through the more than $1 million program.
The Labor Government also announced an almost $25,000 Change Our Game Research Grant for an RMIT research project to help Muslim girls overcome barriers towards physical activity.
All the initiatives announced today are part of the broader $7.2 million Change Our Game initiative aimed at levelling the playing field for women and girls in sport and recreation.
For more information about the Change Our Game programs visit changeourgame.vic.gov.au.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Community Sport Ros Spence
“These programs continue to break down the barriers women and girls face in sport – helping them take on visible leadership roles and drive positive change for all Victorians.”
“It’s clear we need more leading women on our airwaves, the diversity of sport relies on women getting the opportunity to take on these roles.”
Quotes attributable to Change Our Game Ambassador and international cricket commentator Mel Jones
“As a Change Our Game Ambassador I’m delighted to be involved in a program which provides opportunities for women and girls to participate, lead and succeed at every level.”
“We want to see more women on our fields, in our boardrooms and across our airways and these programs are going a long way to address this.”