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Tell us about the work that #WeRideTogether does.

MC: Our mission is to make the youth and amateur sport environment safer for all athletes. We believe sport should be the safest and healthiest place for children and young adults to grow and flourish, and that every individual has the right to learn, play, and compete without fear of sexual abuse. #WeRideTogether is committed to creating the radical change needed to fulfill that vision by addressing education and awareness, creating a safe place for survivors to find resources and share their voices, and eliminating the stigma around these necessary conversations.

#WeRideTogether strives to continuously advocate for safe, healthy, and fun sport. We believe in empowering every member of athletic communities with abuse prevention resources and safeguarding education and best practices, as well as ensuring that survivors and their loved ones have access to athlete-, survivor-, and trauma- informed resources that can support them in their unique healing journey. 

To date, our team has worked to scale #WeRideTogether, founded in 2021, into an organization that supports all athletes at every level of sport, internationally, with simple, tangible abuse prevention resources and palatable safeguarding education. In 2024, #WeRideTogether directly supported over 300,000 athletes, coaches, and parents, 23 organizations, and 2 International Federations. This year, #WeRideTogether was proud to form a partnership with Sports Integrity Australia, branching key #WRT resources into Australia’s safeguarding education and training materials.

What has your organization done that has been the most interesting to you?

MC: At #WeRideTogether, we provide evidence-based, professional, educational, ethical, compassionate, creative, inclusive, celebratory, and advocatory services. Heart-centered and mind-driven, our team commits to improving sport communities in a sustainable and socially responsible manner. By focusing on current research, integrating insights from our trusted partners, and, most importantly, listening to athletes and survivors across all sports, #WeRideTogether delivers trustworthy and timely solutions. For example, our team created a resource called the . These diagrams serve as a “gut check,” and can help individuals discern between healthy and unhealthy coach-athlete relationship dynamics.

Tell us about a project that #WeRideTogether is working on. 

MC: One project that we are very excited about is a collaboration we have with the . The Sports Equity Lab at Stanford has partnered with #WeRideTogether to break the down into bite-sized chunks. The result of this collaboration is The People’s Guide to the 2024 IOC Safeguarding Consensus, which unpacks and expands critical points from the Consensus. This dissemination project will provide 10 modules highlighting key takeaways from the 2024 IOC Consensus with visuals, activities, and social content that can be tangibly applied and integrated into sports communities. This 10-part series aligns with the values and missions of the Sports Equity Lab at Stanford and #WeRideTogether to promote awareness, eliminate inequities, and provide everyone with accessible information on positive values and best practices to keep sports healthy and athletes thriving.

How have you partnered with Johns Hopkins School of Public Health?

MC: The team at BSPH has consistently provided us with essential feedback on many of our key projects, like our Preventing Misconduct PSA series. Additionally, in 2024, our team was proud to sign on to a in partnership with colleagues at BSPH that was used to advocate for increased funding for the CDC Injury Center’s Division of Violence Prevention to research child sexual abuse prevention.

Tell us a fun fact about your organization.

MC: #WeRideTogether started as a viral video campaign in the equestrian community -- and grew into a nonprofit that tackles sexual abuse prevention across all sports, at every level, around the world. 

What is unique about your structure?

MC: We pride ourselves in our ability to translate incredible research being done in the abuse prevention space into simple, tangible tools and resources for coaches, parents, athletes, and organizations. 

What can other similar organizations learn from you?

MC: At #WeRideTogether, we like to say that we all have a role to play in creating and maintaining safe and healthy athletic environments. As organizations within and adjacent to our space continue to collaborate and intentionally de-silo, we are able to amplify each other’s voices and efforts, resulting in more impactful, sustainable results long term.

What would you like our readers to know about your work?

MC: Our safeguarding education and abuse prevention resources are completely free. Anyone is able to utilize our content and bring it to their unique athletic space. Additional pro bono services include:

• Policy Consultation/Creation
• Supplemental Support
• Content Support
• Education Creation (paired with athlete focus groups)
• In-person, Virtual, Recorded Training
• Event and Competition Support
• Custom Merchandise
• Video Creation/Consultation

What is your goal for 2025?

MC: One of our goals is to continue building out partnerships into new athletic spaces and listening to the needs of all types of athletes to ensure our content is as informed as possible.