IWD Giving member Girls from Oz receives almost AUD 11,200 in donations for International Women's Day

International Women's Day (IWD) is about celebration and advocacy. The day also provides an important opportunity for charitable giving.

IWD Giving member Girls from Oz received an impressive AUD 11,198.17 in donations for International Women's Day.

"You truly have made this one of our biggest Giving Days of the year! We are so grateful for this incredible support," thanked Girls from Oz in Australia. "Thank you to everyone who donated and for all of the businesses that supported us through their own IWD 2025 fundraising events and celebrations... Thank you to everyone who elevated the visibility of Girls from Oz during their IWD 2025 events over the weekend and to those who chose to donate to our important work. We are extremely grateful for all of the one-off donations that were gifted, and deeply appreciative of those of you who stepped up to Accelerate Action by becoming a regular Girls from Oz Monthly Donor." 

The funds are being used to contribute to Girls from Oz's Community Programs across remote Australia in Halls Creek and Bidyadanga in Western Australia, and Lockhart River and Kowanyama in Queensland.

Calls to accelerate the pace of progress

"This year’s IWD theme, Accelerate Action, calls for heightened urgency and transformative change to accelerate the pace of progress for women’s rights and empowerment... Please help us to continue our work and accelerate the much needed action required to close the gender gap," said Girls from Oz ahead of IWD.

“Dame Quentin Bryce AD CVO, our Patron and enthusiastic supporter, utilized her legal training early in her career to advance the status of women in a range of ways. Among other important work that she has done across her 60+ year career, this remains a primary focus. Those of us who have been feminists for many years sometimes lament the lack of social change and so this year’s International Women’s Day theme is especially appealing – Accelerate Action," said Chair of Girls from Oz Nicole Muir AM.

"...we celebrate the strides and strength of women worldwide while also pledging a renewed sense of urgency to accelerate the vital global action required for a gender-equal world. International Women's Day (IWD) has been around for over a hundred years, as have many of the issues still impacting women's advancement. Since 1911, IWD belongs to all who care about women's equality. Celebrate women's achievement. Raise awareness about discrimination. Take action to forge gender parity. All IWD activity is valid, that's what makes IWD so inclusive," said Girls from Oz.

Extending thanks to its generous supporters

The impressive donations received will help ensure the continued success of Girls from Oz's programming, enabling thew charity to continue providing high-quality, tailored and inclusive performing arts education to girls living in some of Australia's most remote locations and communities.

Girls from Oz thanked Hume Anglican Grammar who raised an impressive AUD 3,200 as part of their IWD 2025 school fundraiser where purple ribbons and purple cupcakes were sold. 

"We are so blown away by this incredible effort. We enjoyed meeting Luke Friend, Head of Campus, and attending the Freier Campus' morning School Assembly. Hallie, Girl from Oz Programs Assistant, had the opportunity to meet the students and share a bit more about Girls from Oz and the far-reaching impact that donations like these have on our small charity. Thank you once again, Hume Anglican Grammar, for choosing Girls from Oz as your IWD Giving recipient,” said the charity.

Girls from Oz also thanked its partners who provide the organization with long-term support and continued success, and acknowledged the impact of women from pervious generations. "We thank all of the generations of women who have created, shaped and supported our important work towards accelerating women's empowerment and closing the gender gap. We extend this gratitude to all of the strong, inspiring women leading the Australian School of Performing Arts, our principal partner; Australian Girls Choir, our sister organisation; and Raw Energy Dance Education, our industry partner. Without these women, Girls from Oz would not exist,” they said.

Enhancing education and employment pathways

Girls from Oz is a not-for-profit, women-led organization dedicated to enhancing education and employment pathways and the overall wellbeing of girls and young women in remote Australia. Girls from Oz exists to provide high-quality performing arts education and local and interstate opportunities for girls and young women living in some of Australia’s most remote and at-risk communities.

The organisation's programs use the reputable, evidence-based performing arts engagement model as developed by the Australian School of Performing Arts over the past 40 years to engage and re-engage individuals in their schooling, as well as enhance physical, social, and emotional well-being. 

Since 2009, Girls from Oz has dedicated itself to prioritising girls and young women in its programming. Each year Girls from Oz strives to reach as many Australian girls as it possibly can to provide them with additional Positive Childhood Experiences through consistent, reliable programs that encourage feelings of belonging and connection to peers, community and culture; inspire curiosity and creative thinking; promote positivity and joy; activate heightened engagement in arts and cultural activities, including Indigenous language learning; and motivate girls to challenge themselves and stand in their power. 

In remote communities where the engagement and personal development of boys are often prioritised for funding; for example, through sports initiatives, girls see less extra-curricular opportunities presented to them in their formative years, limiting their personal and professional growth and success in comparison to their male counterparts.

“We need our young girls to be our leaders, to share their stories, to have a voice, to challenge the things that are unfair, unequal…and that’s what Girls from Oz gives to them," explains Carolyn Polkinghorne, Jaru and Kija woman and former Girls from Oz Board Member.

Over the past 17 years, Girls from Oz has been unwavering in its contribution to addressing gender inequality and breaking the cycle of disadvantage experienced by youth in remote Australia. Girls from Oz believe that every child deserves the opportunity to flourish and thrive, and that every girl deserves to live in a safe, inclusive and gender-equal world.

A story of opportunity, education, and engagement

The Girls from Oz story is one of opportunity, education and engagement. It weaves together the stories of girls and women from across Australia to create a tapestry of connections that will last lifetimes.

In 2006, directors of the Australian School of Performing Arts invited some of their key senior team members to join them to discuss their shared dream of delivering high-quality performing arts education to girls who lacked access to these opportunities because of their location or socioeconomic status. Driven by a desire to find ways to improve educational and employment outcomes for girls in remote and regional Australia, they envisioned a not-for-profit organisation that would provide innovative, education-based opportunities through dynamic, interactive performing arts programs. 

Drawing on more than 40 years of experience through the Australian Girls Choir and the Australian School of Performing Arts, Girls from Oz  was founded on the basis of a tried and tested arts engagement model, and the knowledge that effective participation in the performing arts has a multitude of benefits for those who take part.

After delivering a number of successful programs between 2007 and 2009 in Australia and overseas, in the years following, Girls from Oz's focus has centred on Australia’s remote west and north.

Delivering high-quality arts programs

With a focus on the girls, Girls from Oz programs include week-long visits to each school four times per year. Experienced Girls from Oz instructors deliver high quality performing arts programs to both primary and high school aged students. Girls who have shown strong engagement in these programs and demonstrated regular school attendance may then be invited to participate in a Travel Program to a capital city of Australia, where they have many aspirational educational, social and performance opportunities.

Girls from Oz uses the performing arts as a hook of engagement, inspiring and motivating girls and young women to regularly attend school and to meaningfully and actively participate in their community. Girls from Oz's vision is to foster a sense of belonging and connected-ness between participants and their community; giving students the self-assurance to speak and perform in front of their peers and families and to feel proud of their achievements as empowered, resilient and confident young women.

"Girls from Oz believes early intervention is key to ensuring girls and young women remain engaged in their schooling and in their academic motivation. Studies indicate that women have a particular propensity to lead improvements in the health and well-being of their families and communities, and act as catalysts for social change. Girls and women, who are so often the keepers of culture in family and community settings, are empowered as a result of participating in capacity-building programs, and their propensity to engage as active members of their community is nurtured. Ultimately, Girls from Oz aims to raise the capacity of young women to set and achieve life goals and make meaningful choices – it is about contributing to the growth and nurturing of confident, independent, happy, educated and skilled girls and young women," said the charity.

Give the gift of performing arts education

Join Girls from Oz's growing community of regular givers who choose to commit to accelerating action every four weeks by gifting a donation.

Alternatively, you can donate a one-off gift in support of the charity's important work.

Girls from Oz values every donation, no matter how big or small, as it ensures the organization can continue to make an enduring, positive impact within the communities that it works.

Beyond monthly donations, support Girls from Oz to further accelerate the progress of women's empowerment by:

• Holding a fundraising event at your school, workplace or in your community in support of Girls from Oz.
• Signing up to become a Girls from Oz Giving Circles Coordinator for its annual fundraising campaign.
• JoiningGirls from Oz's Workplace Giving Program and setting up regular, fortnightly gifts to be donated to Girls from Oz through your company's payroll system.
• Adding to your legacy by leaving a gift to Girls from Oz in your will as part of Planned Giving.
• Enquiring about becoming a Girls from Oz corporate, community or philanthropic partner.

Working for a female-focused charity but not signed up as an IWD GIVING member yet? Participation is free!