- Cook Government funds new education program to help young people critically challenge harmful online content
- The Gist will provide alternative information about sex and relationships in the context of online pornography
- Funded by $150,000 grant allocated through the Women's Grants for a Stronger Future Program
- Cook Government investing in a more inclusive community
The Cook Government is funding a new education program which aims to curb the influence of pornography on young people's understanding of consent, sex, and relationships by giving them the skills to recognise harmful online content.
Research shows that early exposure to pornography can negatively influence young people's attitudes and practices about gender roles, identities, and relationships.
A 2024 survey by Our Watch found that the average age of exposure to pornography was around 13 years for both boys and girls.
The Cook Government will fund a program called The Gist, which will be delivered by the Burnet Institute via a $150,000 grant allocated through the Women's Grants for a Stronger Future Program.
The program has been developed by a team of public health researchers and educators to respond to the needs of young people.
The Gist provides information about sex, relationships, and gender norms in the context of online pornography. It encourages critical discussion to help young people identify and challenge harmful messages.
Topics include consent, healthy relationships, how pornography differs from real life, sexting, camming and other sex-tech interactions, sextortion, deepfakes, artificial intelligence-generated porn, gender and sexuality diversity, as well as safe sex.
It will be delivered in youth and education settings via workshops by trained educators, complemented by an online platform that provides additional resources.
The Women's Grants for a Stronger Future Program supports initiatives that focus on the primary prevention of violence against women and the ongoing implementation of Stronger Together: Western Australia's Plan for Gender Equality (Stronger Together).
One of the key priorities of Stronger Together was the development of the Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Strategy 2025-2035: Addressing Sexual Violence Together, which was released by the Cook Government last month.
As stated by Women Minister Simone McGurk:
"This innovative new education program has been developed through co-design research and aims to curb the influence of pornography on young people by giving them the skills to recognise and critically challenge harmful content.
"A 2024 survey by Our Watch found that the average age of exposure to pornography was around 13 years for both boys and girls.
"It is crucial we give young people alternative information about sex and relationships in the context of online pornography and other media."
