What started from a question on her Instagram has turned into a mission for Chanel Contos with a simple but critical goal: teach everyone about consent and stop normalised sexual violence.
Chanel Contos has made waves in the last three years with her work through the company she founded and is CEO, Teach Us Consent, as she continues to strive towards better and more holistic consent education in the country and, in time, across the globe.
Contos’ journey in this area began back in February 2021 after she asked on Instagram ‘Have you or has anyone close to you ever been sexually assaulted by someone who went to an all-boys school in Sydney?’.
“It soon became national as hundreds of people from all over Australia were submitting their testimonies of sexual assault to me that occurred whilst of school age,” Contos told Neos Kosmos.
“I was inspired to start Teach Us Consent because I saw a clear problem – widespread sexual assault, and a clear solution – adequate consent education.”
The 26-year-old has managed to help raise awareness of this issue among Australia’s politicians, leading to necessary reform to address the problem.
These include mandating consent education in the Australian National Curriculum, criminalising stealthing (the non-consensual removal of a condom) in QLD and SA, and securing $3.5 million in government funding for Teach Us Consent.
She explained, however, that this is just part of the solution.
“I used to spend a lot of time speaking with politicians and lobbying for consent education, but now that reform has happened, I spend a lot of my time advocating publicly for ongoing consent education, and training educators and students,” Contos said.
She explained that she lets her team run their government funded project that works on providing social media resources about consent to 16+ year olds, with her strongly believing in the need to educate individuals while they are still in their youth.
“I believe we need a greater need for education in all demographics, but particularly in young people as that is where it is usually lacking,” Contos said.
“Consent education can start from very young, and it does not need to be addressed in a sexual way. However, I believe that consent education that explicitly addresses intimate acts of consent should begin when high school does.”
The Greek Australian stressed that the significance of teaching students about consent before they are sexually active cannot be understated.
“Consent education should be taught before students engage in sex, and 50% of Year 10-12 Australian students are sexually active,” said the 26-year-old with roots from Kastellorizo, the Peloponnese area and the village of Goumenissa in the Central Macedonia region.
“Moreover, the average age that young people experience ‘unwanted sex’ for the first time in Australia is 14.9 years old. Therefore, it needs to be taught far earlier than this to prevent unwanted sexual experiences.”
She elaborated on some of the crucial points of consent education that needs to be taught and learned by everyone such as:
- Sexual coercion counts as a violation of consent (using words to pressure or force someone rather than physical force)
- An enthusiastic yes should be actively sought out in order to obtain consent
- Consent can be withdrawn at anytime
- Intoxication makes consent void
- Age differences, or the age of a person can mean that consent is not able to be given
- Consent is required in all intimate acts
In addition to her work with her company, Contos has also recently published a book titled “Consent Laid Bare” which builds on the notion of developing people’s understanding of consent, which she considered an “incredible privilege”.
“When I wrote the book, my aim was to make it so that it increased people’s capabilities to consent,” she said.
“This is through educating readers about what consent is, and the invisible forces that unconsciously impact our decision making and actions in regard to relationships between men and women.”
Contos explained that her goal is to continue improving teaching training and education in Australia, while also expanding this campaign to the UK, USA, and Greece as she continues her mission to “eliminate normalised sexual violence”.
Even with her important work, Contos still finds time to connect with her roots, making a point of visiting Greece annually.
“I used to go to Greece every few years to visit my pappou in Goumenissa when he was still alive, but unfortunately he passed away a few years ago,” she said.
“As an adult I still go to Greece every year but now spend my time on the islands. I am very proud of my Greek heritage!”
