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IWG Women and Sport and TAFISA (The Association for International Sport for All) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to formalise their commitment to closer collaboration. The MoU follows a productive meeting held at TAFISA’s headquarters in Frankfurt last year, where a robust discussion around re-starting the collaboration between the two organisations was held. The agreement will see a stronger alliance between IWG and TAFISA, helping to create a stronger voice

Women In Football (WIF) has become the latest signatory of IWG’s Brighton plus Helsinki declaration, in what WIF describe as a ‘landmark moment’. The signing took place on 26 March at their annual ‘Be Inspired Conference’ at Wembley Stadium, with WIF CEO Yvonne Harrison reminding the 500 delegates in the room that ‘while football should belong to everyone, unfortunately for too long this has not been the case.’ Following her introduction, Yvonne welcomed Lisa O’Keefe, IWG

IWG has today published the Year Two Annual Report, which details the work of the IWG Secretariat during its second year in the UK. Key highlights from the report Connections During the 2023-2024 period, we maintained and built upon our strong relationships with key stakeholders from around the world to enhance IWG’s global reach. As part of IWG’s 30th Anniversary celebrations, we launched the monthly IWG Newsletter and IWG Webinar Series while we continued to grow our

Last month, Secretary General Lisa O’Keefe MBE and Chair Annamarie Phelps CBE OLY embarked on a significant visit to the Middle East, strengthening ties and learning from initiatives aimed at advancing opportunities for women and girls in sport. Their journey took them across Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, where they engaged with key stakeholders, shared best practices, and explored opportunities to expand IWG’s ‘network of networks.’ Reflecting

World Curling has officially signed the Brighton Plus Helsinki Declaration, reinforcing their dedication to promoting gender equality within the sport – both on and off the ice. Established by the IWG in 1994, this global treaty is now supported by more than 600 organisations, including International Federations, National Governing Bodies, and other sporting organisations, all working together to create a more inclusive sporting landscape. World Curling has taken continuous

World Wheelchair Rugby (WWR) has taken a landmark step toward gender equity in wheelchair rugby, officially signing the IWG’s Brighton Plus Helsinki 2014 Declaration on March 4. This milestone is further strengthened by the launch of the Wheelchair Rugby Gender Equity Playbook, a transformative strategy aimed at increasing female participation and leadership at every level of the sport. The Brighton Plus Helsinki 2014 Declaration is a globally recognized commitment to equity,

Sport Ireland has signed the IWG Brighton plus Helsinki Declaration, signifying their commitment to equity for women and girls in sport and physical activity. The signing took place during Women in Sport Week, which runs from Monday, March 3 to Sunday, March 9, and this year celebrates its fifth anniversary. Sport Ireland CEO Dr Úna May said: “At Sport Ireland we’re committed to supporting women and girls’ participation in sport. There’s no more fitting time to sign the decl

Professor Elizabeth Pike PhD, a leading expert in sport and gender from t he University of Hertfordshire (Great Britain), is the Global Winner of the 2024 International Olympic Committee (IOC) Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (GEDI) Champions Award. On the eve of International Women’s Day, the IOC is celebrating Pike, alongside five continental winners who are all breaking barriers in #SportForAllWomenAndGirls. A Professor in Sport, Health and Exercise, Pike has de

Japan Rowing Association (JARA) has signed the IWG’s Brighton plus Helsinki Declaration, becoming the latest World Rowing Member Federation to do so. The Declaration is an international treaty that has become a road map to support the ongoing development of a more fair and equitable system of sport and physical activity, fully inclusive of women and girls. By signing the Declaration, JARA is demonstrating its commitment to improving gender equality within the sport of rowing

Luxembourg played host to two high-profile events focussed on advancing gender equality in sport across Europe last week, with the European Summit on Gender Equality and Diversity in Sport taking place on 12 February, ahead of the closing event of the ‘All In Plus’ EU-CoE joint project on 13 February. Organised by the European Sports NGO Equality Within Sport (ENGSO EWS) Committee, the second edition of the European Summit on Gender Equality and Diversity once again brought

Dr Anita White, founder of the IWG, has today been recognised in the 2025 New Year Honours List.Anita will be honoured with a CBE in recognition of her services to women and to sport throughout her career, which has spanned over 40 years. Beginning her career as an athlete, Anita won 42 caps representing England at hockey, leading the team to world cup victory in 1975. A lack of recognition for the women’s team’s achievements encouraged Anita to be amongst a group of women wh

London Marathon Events (LME) has signed the International Working Group (IWG) on Women in Sport’s Brighton plus Helsinki Declaration, becoming the latest major organisation to signify their commitment to gender equity and equality. The announcement coincides with the celebrations of the 30 th anniversary of the creation of the Declaration and sees LME join more than 600 federations and organisations across the globe that have signed the treaty. The Brighton Plus Helsinki Decl

Photo Credit: Kate Green for Getty Images The International Working Group (IWG) on Women and Sport last night commemorated its Pearl Anniversary with a celebration at the Guildhall in London, UK, generously hosted by the City of London Corporation. Themed on ‘Visibility and Portrayal of Women and Girls in Sport’, Jacqueline Bourke, Senior Director of Creative from Getty Images, a preeminent global visual content creator and marketplace, delivered the keynote Photo Credit: Kat

Sunday 3 November saw the IWG Secretariat and Global Executive meet at the prestigious Juntendo University in Tokyo, Japan, for the Annual General Meeting 2024 and Strategic Planning Session. Generously hosted by Dr Etsuko Ogasawara , IWG’s regional representative for Asia, the AGM was an opportunity for the IWG Secretariat to give a review of the 2023-24 period to the General Executive, while also hearing back from them about the activities from their regions or networks o

USRowing , the national governing body for rowing in the United States, has become the latest signatory of the IWG’s Brighton plus Helsinki Declaration , bolstering their commitment to improving gender equality as part of their comprehensive DEI plan. USRowing’s United We Row initiative focuses on supporting rowing programs, coaches, athletes, and anyone interested in advancing the sport of rowing to diversify and grow their programs. This past year, United We Row awarded se

Annamarie Phelps CBE OLY, Chair of the IWG UK Secretariat, this week attended the 18th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers Responsible for Sport in Porto, Portugal, delivering the keynote presentation for the focus session on leadership through gender equality in sport: effective strategies and future direction. The conference, organised by the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) in co-operation with the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and the Portuguese Inst

Following a period of review and improvements, IWG is delighted to relaunch the IWG Insight Hub which is designed to empower and advance gender equity and equality for women and girls in sport and physical activity worldwide. The IWG Insight Hub is home to a world-leading collection of research, case studies and toolkits which the IWG’s network has contributed to, providing global insights across the key themes of: Data and Research Methodologies Safeguarding Resources and

The IWG is recruiting for members to join their Summit Organising Committee to help plan and deliver the IWG Global Summit which is taking place in Birmingham, UK, from 9-11 July 2026. The Organising Committee members will be working with the small IWG Secretariat, including an Event Producer, and will lead the design and delivery of specific elements of the scope to support the IWG Team. Chaired by Clare Barrell, Director International Relations and Member Services at Worl

In September 2024 the UIAA (the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation) became a signatory of the Brighton Plus Helsinki Declaration , an “international treaty that has become a road map to support the ongoing development of a more fair and equitable system of sport and physical activity, fully inclusive of women and girls”, developed by the International Working Group (IWG) on Women and Sport. “I am excited and privileged to sign the Brighton plus Helsinki 201

IWG is pleased to welcome Esther Britten MBE to the UK Steering Committee , which serves to support the implementation of the IWG Strategic Plan 2022-2026 while the Secretariat operates from the UK. In her position as the Head of Major Events at UK Sport, Esther has played a key role in the bidding and staging of major international sporting events hosted in the UK over the past decade and, combined with her experience as a former hockey player and umpire, she has also been i