Change in Action Week 2024 Winners

Change in Action Week is designed to encourage the sport and physical activity community to share examples of actions driving positive change for women and girls. 

Here are our 2024 Change in Action Week Winners for each of our six categories. 

POWA is a free community of like-minded women who want to enjoy the outdoors and is for women run by women, fostering an inclusive, supportive environment. They run a Facebook group that any wāhine can join where they launch their Women's-only events including kayaking, tramping and abseiling among others. And also encourage others to share activities, articles of interest and link together to undertake their own outdoor adventures. Since starting POWA in May in 2022 they have taken 355 women and girls on 14 adventures!

Quane has created a fundraising website to support the Hawkes Bay girls selected for an invitational football tournament in Melbourne, raising nearly $30k. As a coach, his passion for the girl's game is matched by his commitment to making training fun, which has been the key to the girls' success. Ben's approach has rekindled enthusiasm for the game locally. His never-ending energy and infectious positivity has truly revitalised the sport for both the players and their families.

Carmel runs a Sports Council led by 35 students, planning and running lunchtime activities for girls to get involved in sport without cost or other barriers to stop them. This encourages girls to participate in sport socially and gain confidence in playing sport outside of traditional channels, making it a safe space for those who may not have participated before. It allows the rangatahi to take charge of their own physical recreation and develops leadership skills for those running the council who plan and execute the activities and budget.

Kiriau is a basketball coach for girls aged 10-14. Her 'why' is because she knows Basketball can be a powerful tool for change. She has created an Instagram page to share tips, tools and inspiration for other coaches of young girls. Shanee says that being a female coach in the game has a significant impact at this age to empower young girls.

Womenzsports is all about amplifying the voices of wāhine in sport and celebrating our female athletes across Aotearoa. From events, to podcasts, to merch, they're building a vibrant community of women's sports fans. Driven by Mel and Dani, they have revolutionised how we celebrate wāhine in sport using digital platforms to promote the voices of female athletes across Aotearoa.

Kan is the main organiser of the Women's Football Centre in Wellington. It is a free, safe and encouraging football skill centre for all women to learn the basics of football or get back into the game. The concept of the football skills centre was to provide a platform for fellow women discovering a love of sport as an adult and to develop and hone some of the core skills that are 'expected' in a more formal team sport setting. The organisers put together a toolkit of information about where/how to sign up for various football clubs and offerings around the Wellington region, to make it easier for participants to navigate the footballing world as a newbie and continue to explore their new hobby.