Deakin partners on national 'Respect. Now. Always.' campaign

Deakin has unveiled a major new campaign to prevent sexual assault and harassment, partnering with other Australian universities in a new national initiative.

The campaign – Respect. Now. Always. – highlights the determination of Australia’s universities to ensure that students and staff are safe from sexual assault and sexual harassment.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Jane den Hollander said the campaign built on longstanding work at Deakin and across the Australian university sector.

“Universities must be places of safety and respect and that’s why Deakin has a zero tolerance approach to sexual assault and interpersonal violence,” Professor den Hollander said.

“The new campaign seeks to prevent sexual assault and harassment by raising awareness, supporting students in need of help, and giving bystanders the confidence to speak up. We all have a role to play to ensure our university communities are places of respect - now and always.

“The campaign will build on the prevention strategies Deakin has in place to promote respectfulness and challenge inappropriate behaviour, because one incident is one too many when it comes to sexual assault and harassment.”

The Respect. Now. Always. campaign will also be an opportunity for the university sector to review the effectiveness of local policies, responses and support services to ensure they are best practice.

The campaign will coincide with the release of the US film ‘The Hunting Ground’ in Australia. Deakin plans to screen the film, which looks at sexual assault in American universities, on-campus in coming weeks.

To learn more about the campaign visit www.deakin.edu.au/respect-now-always