Advocacy Case Studies

Puerto Rico

I just returned from a important conference in Puerto Rico called "Face to Face: Gender Equity in Sport" organized by the Department of Recreation and Sport of Puerto Rico. The new governor of Pueto Rico, the honorable Sila M. Calderon, is a woman and she has given a mandate for the "Initiative of the Third Millenium for the Development of Sport for Puerto Rican Women". This conference helped to set out some of the strategies and activities for this initiative that will continue over the next 3 years. The governor has earmarked considerable resources to develop recreation, community, school and high level sport and physical education for the girls and women of the island. Outlined below are the recommendations, strategies and conclusions in Spanish then in English.
Chris Shelton, Associate Professor, Exercise and Sport Studies Dept.
Co-Director, Project on Women and Social Change
Smith College, Northampton, MA 01063

Girls and Women in Sports in Puerto Rico
Cara a Cara

Deportes en Igualdad de Condiciones
Recomendaciones

Strategies

1. Formal Procedures
2. General Strategies
3. Specific Strategies

Experiences
The case has been made clearly and completely that inequities exist for girls and women in Sports in Puerto Rico in:

• Power and status
• Access
• Opportunity (in general)
• Participation Opportunity
• Treatment/Consideration
• Resources
• Recognition/Recompense

Roles and Responsibilities of Individuals

• we are all responsible for the society we live in …
  … we get the organizations we deserve!
• Encourage and support girls to participate and to aspire
• Be a role model
• Help! You got something out of sport? Put it back in!
• Determination - fight for change; bring issues to the table
• Persistence - not to be content with partial success

Roles and Responsibilitiesof Organisations

• … be aware of gender issues, and be sensitive
• establish rules/protocols/understandings at the formal level
• also monitor for compliance (actual outcomes)
• include (former) athletes in all roles and at all levels
• value (and provide for) training, re-instruction and continued participation
• plan for recruitment and re-recruitment
• devise policy and organize developmental programs

Estrategias para Puerto Rico / Strategies for Puerto Rico

1/ Incrementar el numero de mujeres en:

• posiciones de liderazgo
• posiciones de maestras
• posiciones de investigadoras

1/ Increase the number of women in:

• Leadership positions
• Teaching positions
• Research positions

2/ Establecer un puesto de Director Nacional para la Educación Física
2/ Establish a position of National Director for Physical Education

3/ Reformar el Curriculum Nacional a las necesidades y prioridades del programa de Educación Física
3/ Reform the National Curriculum to the needs and priorities of Physical Education

4/ Ajustar la Educación Continua de los profesores de Educación Física y entrenadores deportivos al nuevo Curriculum Nacional
4/ Adjust the Ongoing Training of P.E. Teachers and Sport trainers to the National Curriculum

5/ Desarollar programas de entrenamiento deportivo individualizados para mujeres
5/ Develop Individualized Sport Training Programs for women

6/ Promover mas incentivos para mujeres, para que los recursos fiscales y humanos sean distribuidos de manera justa
6/ Promote more incentives for women, so that financial and human resources are distributed fairly

7/ Proveer oportunidades de crecimiento y desarollo deportiva para mujeres y hombres en las regiones cardinales de Puerto Rico
7/ Provide opportunities for Sport growth and development for women and men in the four regions of Puerto Rico

8/ Mostrar mayor transparencia en la equidad de genero dentro de la estructura organizacional y la parte fiscal de las instituciones y entidades deportivas
8/ Present a greater transparency on equity issues within the organizational structure and audit of Sport institutions

9/ Creacion de un Grupo de Trabajo de las Mujeres y el Deporte en Puerto Rico
9/ Creation of a working group on Women and Sport in Puerto Rico

Compuesto por / Composed by:
Departamento Recreacion y Deportes / Sport and Recreation Department
Departamento de Educacion / Education Department
Universidades / Universities
Comite Olimpico de Puerto Rico / Olympic Committee of Puerto Rico
Empresas privadas / Private companies
Organisaciones Non-Gubernamentales / Non Government Organizations

Tareas a realizar / Tasks to perform

1/ Crear alianzas y apoyo
1/ Build alliances and support

2/ Creacion de clinicas y talleres de capacitacion en areas de liderazgo para mujeres
2/ Creation of developmental clinics and seminars in the area of leadership for women

3/ Celebrar Olimpiadas Nacionales de la Mujer
3/ Celebrate National Women's Games

4/ Proclamar el Dia Nacional de la Mujer Deportista
4/ Proclaim a National Day for Sportswomen

5/ Celebrar una Conferencia Nacional de la Mujer y el Deporte
5/ Hold a National Conference on Women and Sport

6/ Organizar seminarios para la mujer antes, durante y despues del embarazo sobre el deporte
6/ Organize seminars on Sport for women before , during and after pregnancy

7/ Establecer una vision y mision del grupo de trabajo
7/Establish a vision and mission for the working group

8/ Establecer una politica publica nacional sobre la equidad de generos en el deporte
8/ Establish a national public policy on Gender equity in Sport

Agradecemos su atencion y esperamos que continuen mejorando la equidad de generos en el deporte en Puerto Rico
Thank you for your attention and we hope you will continue to improve gender equity in sports in Puerto Rico

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