The State Sport Association Participation Program evaluation highlighted the effectiveness of community-based approaches to increasing participating in sport and active recreation by Aboriginal people. This means collaborating with organisations that work with or are led by Aboriginal communities. Within these organisations, leaders are delivering positive outcomes to many diverse communities across Victoria. As a sport organisation you can connect with potential Aboriginal leaders by forming partnerships with co-operatives, community health organisations, local governments, community services and even other local sporting organisations. You may also find leaders within your organisation or membership who can be helpful to you.
One way to encourage greater participation in sport and active recreation is to ensure people have role models to inspire them by providing a relatable personal story. This is true for people of all ages, beliefs and backgrounds, and it is true for Aboriginal people.
While it might be easy to identify Aboriginal people who are visible in elite Australian sport, role models are just as important at the local level.
Sport organisations involved in the State Sport Association Participation Program found that Aboriginal people are more likely to take part in sporting activities in which other Aboriginal people already participate.
Some things to consider when using role models to encourage participation include:
- Aim to promote a diverse range of Aboriginal people as role models, including all genders, people with a disability, older adults and people from LGBTIQ communities.
- Find Aboriginal people within your sport or club and understand the positive influence they can have on recruitment of new participants.
- Encourage Aboriginal people to take on leadership roles within your sport – as committee members, coaches, officials and event organisers – as this provides visible inspiration for potential participants and shows your sport to be a culturally safe and welcoming place to participate.
- Be careful not to over burden people. Providing appropriate supports, remuneration and/or recognition is important.
Your sport organisation needs to take an active role to identify and support leaders who have the passion, skills and experience to make your sport more inclusive of Aboriginal people. This includes leaders at all levels of the sport: administrators, volunteers, coaches and committee members. They may be Aboriginal people or not – most importantly, you need the right leaders in place, along with a strategy to retain them.
Vicsport has consulted with Victorian sport organisations who are already working with Aboriginal people and developed the following list of suggestions:
- Consult with local Aboriginal community groups, including their leaders or Elders, to identify potential leaders from within the community
- Recruit Aboriginal people to key roles
- Prioritise the recruitment of people who have experience working with Aboriginal communities
- Talk to your members – face to face – to identify Aboriginal people who are interested in leadership roles
- Consider the current profile of your leadership positions, and how the voice of Aboriginal people can add significant value to your organisation
- Conduct cultural awareness training to ensure you provide an environment of acceptance and respect to encourage the retention of leaders
- Aim to support multiple leaders in your organisation to ensure continuity if a key individual is no longer involved in your organisation
Canoeing Victoria was involved in the State Sport Association Participation Program. They hired an ‘Indigenous Client Relationship Manager’ to work closely with local communities and drive canoeing programs. In the program evaluation, the organisation reported that “the relationships and networks that were established with Indigenous organisations in the community were viewed as the most important component of the work they had undertaken.”
Once you have identified Aboriginal people as leaders in your sport, you can provide additional training or support as required.
The State Sport Association Participation Program evaluation highlighted some useful actions to take:
- Run training or coaching programs with Aboriginal people so that local communities can take the lead on delivery of your sport activities.
- Canoeing Victoria reported they trained Aboriginal people, resulting in locally based qualified trainers for to deliver canoeing. This provided benefits including increasing participation and reducing the number of hours required by Canoeing Victoria staff to deliver programs.
- Further consultation by VicHealth highlights the need to employ more Aboriginal people. Interviewees suggested it may be in an organisation’s interest to hire more Aboriginal people, and that if they were serious about being active in this space, having an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander officer would be an important, visible commitment.
A great example of an organisation providing education and training to help Aboriginal people entering in to the workforce is AFL Sportsready. Click here read more about their training and education programs.