Free Being Me

Imagine a world free from appearance-related anxiety. A world where people can define beauty for themselves - we are making this incredible vision A REALITY!

Girl Guides Australia is 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 partnered with Dove to create a program that reached 3.5 million girls across the world by 2016. By 2017, part 2 of the Free Being Me program will be in development.

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 supports our Guides to increase young people’s body confidence and self-esteem. 

Why Free Being Me? 

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.

What can we do? 

In the true tradition of our great movement – we have taken action!

Free Being Me is aimed at 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 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.

The Free Being Me program encourages our girls to understand the body myth, what it can cost us and how to take action. It also provides the opportunity for our Guides to communicate and advocate on this issue. More info can be found at: http://free-being-me.com/