MODERN GIRLS EMPOWERED LEADERS
MODERN-DAY Girl Guides have made a remarkable transition in line with today’s progressive times, from the sewing and cooking of generations past to the outdoor adventure activities and leadership skills of today.
With the recent launch of their Child Safe Child Friendly Framework, the Mercury spoke with the Clarence Girl Guides about what it means to be a girl today.
When leader Maya Rappl, 22, is running activities with her young Girl Guides aged 7-10 she is always mindful of instilling values within them of teamwork, good communication and leadership.
“I tell them that leadership can be seen in the quietest person in a room sharing their excellent ideas, they are just as relevant and important as the person speaking loudly at the front of the room,” she said.
Today’s adventurous Girl Guides are building gadgets, tying ropes and going on overnight camps, all of which has been enjoyed by 10-year-old Hilary McCrossen.
Following in her mother Jess’ footsteps, who was a “gumnut, then a brownie, then a leader”, Hilary has relished in her first year as a Girl Guide. “I like the camps, earning badges and making new friends,” she said.
Miss Rappl said she had never felt more empowered to be a young woman than today.
“I think we are so lucky and it is so much better than it used to be, you can do anything a man can do – I don’t feel any kind of inequality,” she said.
Girl Guide Australia’s new Child Safe Child Friendly Framework provides girls and young women with an environment where they are safe, protected, and respected, and where they can discover their potential as leaders of their world.