The Australian Sport Commission (ASC) has a strong focus on gender equity and continues to strive for women in all their diversity to be actively engaged and equally contributing within the sporting sector. The Women Leaders in Sport (WLIS) programs have supported thousands of women advance their careers, however making systemic changes to achieve gender equity is now a major priority of the ASC.

Program Objectives:
– Support sport organisations to develop and/or enhance policies, practices, systems and behaviours that lead to a sector that is more equitable and inclusive, particularly in the promotion and advancement of women leaders.
– Provide education and training opportunities for eligible organisations to advance their progress towards their gender equity goals and commitments. These opportunities should be grounded in an understanding of how people’s intersecting identities shape their experiences, including how power and privilege influences those experiences.
– Provide education and training opportunities that help eligible organisations progress their gender equity goals. All education and training should be grounded in intersectional principles, recognising how different identities affect women’s experiences and access to opportunities.
– Address systemic and cultural barriers to inclusion within the sport sector.

Organisations are required to detail how the funding will be allocated to support one of the following priority areas.
– Addressing gendered violence in sport
– Supporting women and girls from marginalised or under-represented groups by improving through co-design and centring voices
– Promoting, supporting, and encouraging male allyship
– Elevating the voice and visibility of women

Example Initiatives:
– Prevention strategies and education
– Strengthened safeguarding and reporting mechanisms
– Trauma-informed policy reform
– Cultural change initiatives addressing harassment and abuse
– Development of psychological and cultural safety strategies
– Co-designed initiatives to reduce barriers, or strengthen community partnerships for change
– Inclusive programs using an intersectional approach in design
– Adaption of programs to improve accessibility and cultural safety for under-represented groups
– Programs that engage men and boys as partners in fostering respectful, safe and inclusive sporting environments.
– Leadership development that equips men to confidently model positive behaviours and champion gender equality
– Shared accountability approaches that enable all team members, including men, to practise visible, supported and sustained allyship across teams
– Media training and communications strategies
– Staff engagement to inform policy, program, and culture improvement
– Storytelling and awareness campaigns
– Increased representation in decision-making spaces.

To be eligible to apply, an applicant must satisfy all the following criteria:
– Be a national sporting organisation, a national sporting organisation for people with a disability, be a state/territory sporting organisation of a national body that is recognised by the ASC, the Australian Olympic Committee or Commonwealth Games Association
– Have the commitment of, and a letter of support from, the Chair or CEO.

Click here to view full funding guidelines on the provider’s website.