Girl Guides Australia are proud to be a part of an international partnership with our friends across the globe to support girls and young women to be all that they can be! Together with the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, Girl Guides Australia will be partnering with Dove to create a programme that will reach 3.5 million girls across the world by 2016.

The partnership is a joint commitment to empower girls to reach their full potential in life through initiatives that strengthen body confidence and self-esteem so the way they think they look never holds them back.

Called Free Being Me the program will support our guides to increase young people’s body confidence and self-esteem.

So I am SO EXCITED! How do I find more?

Right now, Girl Guide Organisations across Australia are working out the best way to deliver this exciting program throughout Australia. We have established teams in nearly every state and territory who will lead the delivery of this program.

You can reach out to them to find out more via the following contacts:

The National Team for Free Being Me can be reached via freebeingme@girlguides.org.au or call 02 9311 8000.

Why all the fuss? Read the facts

Did you know that right now?

• More than 60% of girls stop doing something they love because they feel bad about how they look.19% won’t try out for a team or a club.
• 23% won’t go to the beach or swimming pool.
• 13% won’t give an opinion.
• 15% won’t go to school.
• Children as young as five, and women as old as 80 say they are worried about their appearance.
• 1 in 2 girls don’t feel comfortable leaving the house without makeup on.

The Real Truth About Beauty – Revisited”, Dove Global Study 2010

And…

• Looking at magazines for just 60 minutes lowers the self-esteem of over 80% of girls – Source: Dr. Raj Persuad, psychiatrist at the Maudsley Hospital London.
• Six out of 10 teenage girls think they would be happier if they were thinner – Source: UK Teen Body Image Survey, Jan 2004, Bliss.
• 63% of girls would rather be a men’s magazine model than a doctor, teacher or nurse – Source: TheLab, 1000 girls 15-19 years old.
• Young Australians have ranked Body Image among their top three concerns for the last six years – Source Dove 2010.

Oh No! What can we do?

In the true tradition of our great movement – take action!

Free Being Me is aimed at our Australian Girls and helps them understand how self-esteem and body image is effected by today’s society. This is a girl led program based on a really strong research base about how we can build resilience and understanding in girls and young women so that they are empowered to reach their potential!

And we know that it works! Research shows that going through a high quality program like Free Being Me does have lasting impact.

The Body Project – Study:

• 60 Percent of girls have improved body confidence
• 78 per cent of girls feel more confidence and capable at school
• 71 percent of girls have better relationship with their peers
• 53 percent of girls get on better with their families.

This program will encourage our girls to understand the body myth, what it can cost us and how to take action. It will also provide the opportunity for our Guides to communicate and advocate on this issue.

Great what happens now?

Call the Team!

You can call the nearest member of your national Free Being Me team to find out more!!! Just pick up the phone or email the team – details above.

Have a try!

With your unit you could try out a great “teaser” game developed by the global Free Being Me team at WAGGGS! This flyer is an introductory game that leaders and volunteers can use now to start to explore some of the core ideas of the complete program.  This game will provide our Guides the opportunity to begin to see that there is no single form of beauty everyone should be aiming for.

Free Being Me Preview
Free Being Me Preview Instructions

Let us know what you think!

Check out the Australian Resources

The national team have worked with the wonderful folk at WAGGGS to produce a set of curriculum for Free Being Me that is just for us!! If you want to have a look download the materials below. ALSO – the curriclum will be available to purchase in your local Guide store in October! These beautiful publications will all be ready in full colour for your unit to work through, learn from and bust that beauty myth!

Activity Guides

Activity Guide - Leaders and Volunteers
Activity Guide - Girls: 7 - 10
Activity Guide - Girls 11- 14

Journey Tick Sheets

Journey Tick Sheet - Girls: 7 - 10
Journey Tick Sheets - Girls: 11 - 14

Update: New Resource

We have been asked by some members to provide some additional images for the “Airbrush” activity! Great. Please find them here: Airbrushed Photo Activity. We hope you enjoy!

Promotional Posters!

To assist units and Leaders promote the program to their Guides and parents, GGA has prepared the following two posters!  These A4 posters can be printed out in black and white or, in colour – either way, they shouldn’t drain the ink too much!

Before you print them out make sure that you:

1. Select which one you like – you may like to print both out too!
2. Insert your local state Free Being Me coordinator details in the lower part of the poster, as indicated. For contact details please use the names, email and phone numbers for your state provided earlier in this webpage
3. Print out how many you think you will need!

Free Being Me – Unit and Leader Promotional Posters

GGA Free Being Me A4 Poster One
GGA Free Being Me A4 Poster Two

Frequently Asked Questions

A resource for leaders has been developed to assist Leaders across Australia implement the Free Being Me Program.

Based on feedback from our National Free Being Me team, it has been developed with the assistance of our friends at The Butterfly Foundation and provides further background information which will support our Leaders and members of Australian Girl Guides with the Free Being Me program

And provides information on some of the background issues surrounding eating disorders, body image, what friends and families can do and where further information can be found. The FAQ puts our Leaders who are rolling out the program in touch with some key contacts and links that they can access if they have any queries on issues that arise in their units that relate to body image.

This bank of FAQ will be added to over time.

National ED HOPE Support Line

Leaders and members who are rolling out the Free Being Me program should note that Girl Guides Australia and the Butterfly Foundation have formed a partnership that aims to support the implementation of Free Being Me in Australian Guiding.

A key part of this partnership is to highlight the range of resources, information and support materials that are available to our members to support the implementation of Free Beiing Me.

Members should know that they are able to access the Butterfly Foundations National ED HOPE support line by calling 1800 33 4673. The  ED HOPE Service is open Monday to Friday 8am to 9pm AEST (except public holidays) and provides confidential support on body image, eating disorder issues for parents, carers and suffers.

“We would like to sincerely thank all our friends at the Butterfly Foundation for all their support in helping us roll out Free Being Me,” says Chief Commissioner Robinette Emonson.  “We are so grateful for their support, advice and the access that they are providing us to their ED HOPE line.”