Championing Gender Equity in Sport | International Women's Day

By: Jumpstart Staff

March 8, 2022

Today is International Women’s Day — a global celebration of the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. It is also a day for activism, highlighting gender inequalities and the struggles women uniquely face.

At Jumpstart, we are committed to championing gender equity in sport. We are working to remove barriers to participation in sport and recreation — both physical and financial — and are supporting industry research to help better understand the needs of girls and young women in sport. Through several initiatives, we are enhancing our focus on gender equity in 2022.

How We're Helping:

Partnering with Canadian Women & Sport to Break Gender Barriers

We have worked to raise awareness of the challenges facing girls by supporting two studies with Canadian Women & Sport (CW&S): COVID ALERT and The Rally Report. The Rally Report took an in-depth look at the sport landscape for women and girls, providing recommendations for systemic change to keep more girls in sport. COVID ALERT highlighted the disproportionate effect the pandemic has had on girls and their participation in sport. 

Over the next three years, we’re excited to continue our work with CW&S breaking down barriers for girls in sport and recreation. By building capacity and leading innovative thought leadership, we will help sport organizations better serve their communities and create more opportunities for girls from diverse backgrounds.

Empowering Young Women with She's4Sports

She’s4Sports and Jumpstart have launched the educational video series How WE Play to reach and inspire girls entering their adolescence. The series highlights the experiences and achievements of athletes and sport leaders who identify as women, LGBTQ2S+, and non-binary. Brigette Lacquette, Erin Ashley Simon, Erica Wiebe, and Kayla Alexander are among those who will be featured in season one of How WE Play. Stay tuned to our social channels to see the videos as they are released — you can check out the three episodes we have released so far on our YouTube channel.

Investing in Programming

As part of our Community Development Grant program, we support programs designed specifically to engage, sustain, and encourage girls and young women to participate in sport. 

Learn More:

To learn more about how we are championing gender equity in sport, visit the Girls in Sport page.