The sports sector in Australia delivers over $10 billion into our economy each year. Nearly a quarter of a million people work in the sports sector and an amazing three million people volunteer in the sector. We want to help what is already a large sector grow further, be stronger and be more inclusive and more professional where it needs to be.
We are addressing issues such as low participation for women and girls in sports, where we can really do a lot in supporting policy makers and practitioners to make a positive difference. We've also looked at the economic side of sport where we can advise policymakers how to invest money into sporting facilities or sporting products more efficiently. And then from a sporting society perspective, we’re really looking at using sport for public good. So looking at how to use sport in disadvantaged settings to make a positive difference for those that need it the most.
Our center is unique in a couple of different ways. We cover the breadth of sports governance and management in looking from grassroots through to elite. We really have three interrelated functions. We research, we do consulting work and we teach. And those combination of skills that we bring from the university allow us to use our research to design our programs to work and provide contemporary advice to organisations and to have an opportunity for our students to learn practical sports management, practical skills, whether that's in a short course or all the way through to a PhD.
We also contain within us the Australian Center for Olympic Studies. When we think about the Olympics, we often think very much about Olympic legacy and the design of the value of sport beyond the sporting moment. And again, that's an important part for us. It's not just about the event, but actually the impact sport has on people's lives and, on the community, and on business.
