The impact of Indigenous community sport programs: the case of surfing. Final report submitted to the Indigenous Sport Program – Australian Sports Commission

This research project investigated the social impact of sport and physical activityon the lives of Indigenous Australians and their communities.While there has been strong research interest in the links between sport and recreation programs andvarious health and social outcomes in mainstream society, what remains unclear is the value and impact ofsport and physical activity on Indigenous communities.Given the lack of research on sporting programs, from a socio-cultural perspective this project was largelyexploratory in nature.To the best of the researchers’ knowledge, this is the first empirical research project to document andinvestigate the outcomes of surf programs on Indigenous Australians and their communities