Member for Western Victoria, Gayle Tierney MP has encouraged community-based organisations, working with local young people in the Shires of Corangamite and Colac Otway to apply for new funding to help promote positive body image.
Ms. Tierney said the Victorian Government was taking the lead on promoting healthy body image and working to reduce the effect unrealistic and unhealthy images in the media can have on young people.
“The Positive Body Image grants of $5,000 will be offered directly to community organisations to undertake and promote positive body image activities to young people, with a particular focus on those aged 12-16 years,” Ms. Tierney said.
Minister for Youth Affairs James Merlino said Victoria had held the first ever Parliamentary Inquiry into Body Image in Australia and was responding with a range of initiatives to tackle these issues, which can have devastating effects on young people’s lives.
“Young people have told us how important body image is to them and their peers and the Victorian Government responded by developing the $2.1 million Teenagers ‘Go for your life’ – Positive Body Image Strategy,” Mr Merlino said.
“A key part of the strategy is the Media Code of Conduct on Body Image which will be developed by a working group made up of high-level representatives of the media, fashion and advertising industries.”
Coinciding with the L’Oréal Melbourne Fashion Festival, Mr Merlino this week appointed Ms Liberty Sanger as chairperson of the Bracks Government’s working group developing a new Media Code of Conduct on Body Image.
Mr Merlino said it was clear that the community, the media and the fashion industry were extremely interested in this issue, as demonstrated by the recent coverage in the lead to Melbourne’s week of high fashion.
“It’s time for some clear-headed action that assists young people to understand the complex images they see on the catwalk, on TV and in magazines,” Mr Merlino said.
