ATR Extra: ISF celebrates International Day of the Girl Child in the lead up to the 2nd edition of ISF She Runs – Active Girls’ Lead 2022 in Brussels

On December 19, 2011, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 66/170, declaring October 11 as the International Day of the Girl Child, to recognise girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world.

This specific day focuses on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights. The ISF is proud to join this celebration of the 2021 Day of the Girl Child, in the framework of its event ‘She Runs - Active Girls’ Lead’ aligned with the message of this important day. The event is the largest international event empowering schoolgirls through sport.

ISF She Runs - Active Girls’ Lead is an international event for young women aged between 12 to 18 years old which aims to promote girl’s health, empowerment and leadership through sport and school. Following the first edition in Paris, France, back in 2019, the next edition will be organised by the ISF in Brussels from the 7th to 12 March 2022, in the framework of the international women’s day on 8 March 2022.

The event will gather 3000 girls coming from over 35 countries in the ISF network to participate in sport, educational, cultural, entrepreneurial, and institutional activities contributing to their skill and leadership development. Through this event participants will engage in physical activity, acquire knowledge and new skills, voice their experience, and act in their local communities.

An event in 5 dimensions:

· Sport: 500 international girls and 2500 local schoolgirls will run together to celebrate intercultural friendship and the benefits of sport for health in Brussels.

· Culture: The participants will discover Brussels mixing elements perspectives from the history of the city, of sport, and symbolic women.

· The Talk: 4 women speakers will share their story with the participants and provide them with tools that enabled them to sustainably make a difference in and through sport and empower themselves.

· Design Sprint: Experts will conduct workshops for 40 international participants who will be supported to design and shape tangible local and European projects related to the sustainable development issues through sport, aiming to make girls become more physically active in their local community and schools.

· The Conference: This conference will gather 200 stakeholders from city decision makers, EU institutions, companies, international sport stakeholders, educational organisation and private organisations working toward the role of sport as a tool to raise awareness among the young generation of the importance of sustainability of sport events.

Agenda:

8 March - Cultural Day

9 March - 4km Run Sport Village in Place de Broukère

10 March - The Talk, Design Sprint, Cultural Evening

11 March - Design Sprint

12 March - The Conference

For the 2022 edition of She Runs, the ISF has established a strong partnership with the City of Brussels who will support the operational implementation of the event.

Through this event, the City of Brussels saw the chance to promote their sport policy through this flagship event and highlight the importance of providing sport and educational opportunities for young people and particularly girls. This partnership will also contribute to the involvement of local schools and networks within the Brussels city and region.

1st Alderman in Charge of Climate and Sport in the City of Brussels, Benoit Hellings: “This event is first and foremost a symbol with the visibility of thousands of young women practicing sport. Holding this event in Brussels is a strong message of our desire to promote the practice of sport among women. But what interests us even more are the many conferences and spaces for debate that will nourish our reflection to lead an even more effective policy for the emancipation of women through sport.”

Since its creation, the event has been supported by the Erasmus plus Sport programme of the European Commission. This backing actively contributes to the promotion of European values regarding the empowerment and rights of girls and women and will assist in providing many young women with the opportunity to participate in the 2022 event in Brussels, engaging them in a social, cultural, educational, and sport experience, in an international setting.

European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Mariya Gabriel: “The ISF She Runs – Active Girls’ Lead event not only aims to promote physical activity among young women, but it also uses sport as a tool for empowering girls. This is exactly what we are trying to do at European level, and it is encouraging to see that this project translates our policy into a concrete and fun event.”

Also joining ISF for the second time on this event is the company VinylPlus, with whom ISF started their collaboration to promote and educate young people and especially girls on global issues such as sustainable development and the importance of having a circular economy. At the inaugural event, ISF and VinylPlus developed an Environmental Action through the ‘She Runs’ event to promote the importance of sustainable sporting events. This cooperation highlighted 6 commitments, from sourcing PVC in line with the VinylPlus sustainability programme to ensuring the re-use and recycling of PVC products after the event.

As part of their long-term cooperation the ISF and Kinder Joy of moving aim to emphasise the importance of engaging youth in physical activity under the philosophy ‘Joy of moving’. At the heart of this message is the strong belief that a positive attitude towards movement will make today’s children, better adults tomorrow. With that, Kinder Joy of moving has joined the 2022 She Runs - Active Girls’ Lead edition in order to especially contribute to the importance of girls’ participation in sport and physical activity for wellbeing and empowerment purposes.

ISF President Laurent Petrynka: “This event is a demonstration of the importance of collaboration between civil society organisations, cities, international institutions and the private sector which together are mobilising for the health and empowerment of girls and women through sport and is essential work for gender equality. I salute the dynamism and determination of the City of Brussels, which is joining us for this second edition, and which will help inspire thousands of young girls in Belgium and around the world. We call on cities and governments around the world to accelerate change through sport and schools.”

She Runs Vision and Objectives:

• Becoming the biggest international event for schoolgirls promoting leadership and sustainability in and through sport

• Promote the participation of young women in sport for health and well-being purpose

• Advocate for gender equality and sustainability in and through sport

• Support the development of young women’s skills in leadership and management in sport

• Promote the use of school sport, through active participation and voluntary activities, as a tool for gender equality and sustainability

• Create and develop a network of young women leaders in school sport

• Inspire cities and institutional decision makers to further develop opportunities and policies for women and sport

For more information visit the event website:

Social media #:

#SheRuns

2019 She Runs Recap Video:

Presented by International School Sport Federation