IWG Secretary General

Photograph of IWG Secretary General Lisa O'Keefe MBE, smiling and wearing a red jacket

Lisa O’Keefe MBE

Secretary General, International Working Group (IWG) on Women and Sport, Secretariat & Conference 2022 – 2026

A former international sportswoman, Lisa is a passionate advocate for women’s sport with over 15 years Senior Leadership experience in the sport and physical activity sector. 

She previously worked at Sport England where she held several roles including Executive Director of Sport and latterly Executive Director of Insight. Achievements include redesigning Sport England’s approach to investing in National Governing Bodies of Sport, and the creation of the award-winning Insight Directorate at Sport England putting data, insight & learning at the heart of the business, and a catalyst for innovative work such as the globally recognised This Girl Can campaign.

As Secretary General of IWG Women & Sport, Lisa has responsibility for leading the Secretariat of IWG whilst hosted in the United Kingdom through to September 2026.

  • Development, management and implementation of the IWG Strategic Plan 2022 – 2026
  • Delivery of the 9th IWG World Conference, Birmingham 2026 – the world’s largest gathering of experts on gender equity in sport and physical activity
  • Relationship management with global governmental/non-governmental agencies and organisations (Ie. UN Women, UNESCO, WHO)
  • Promoting and monitoring the IWG Brighton plus Helsinki 2014 Declaration and adding value to the work of the global Signatories – currently nearly 600
  • Responsibility for management of all IWG external and internal affairs, globally, including overnight of research programmes and the Insight Hub
  • Day-to-day support for the IWG Global Executive and IWG Global Network

Lisa can be contacted on:

E: lisaokeefe@iwgwomenandsport.org

Read about her appointment here.

BRIGHTON PLUS HELSINKI DECLARATION

Find out how to endorse and use this global treaty

INSIGHT HUB: RESEARCH & CASE STUDIES

Download useful materials to help support your work

IWG GLOBAL PROGRAMMES

Read about the work the IWG carries out globally

9th IWG WORLD SUMMIT

Taking place in Birmingham, UK, from 9-11 July 2026