Indigenous Marathon Foundation: The Warrior Project

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples represent 36% of the adult prison population and 40% of youth in detention, despite being 3.8% of Australians. IMF had been trying to scale a justice-focused program since 2022. Despite genuine interest from corrections departments and available funding, scale never materialised. The design challenge was to build a program that could actually operate inside detention facilities across multiple jurisdictions, work with corrections as partners rather than gatekeepers, embed cultural identity at its core, and connect people leaving custody to an existing community of mentors and runners, without softening the realities of justice system life.

The Warrior Project is a two-phase model. 'The Warrior Within' is a 12-month facility-wide running and walking program for all residents. Selected First Nations participants progress into a targeted Warrior program of 10km to marathon training, Mental Health First Aid, leadership, and vocational pathways. Co-designed at a 4 March 2025 workshop facilitated by ThinkPlace with IMP graduates, RAW Run Leaders, IMP participants with lived incarceration experience, and ACT Government corrections at middle management and executive levels. Throughcare connects each Warrior to a local IMF RAW group. Live across three jurisdictions in 2024-25: Brisbane Youth Detention Centre, Tivendale, and Kurlana Tapa

The Warrior Project operates across three detention facilities in three jurisdictions, backed by $1m+ in committed funding from Women in Regional partnerships ($400k), Queensland Health ($600k), and the South Australian Office for Recreation, Sport and Racing (two-year commitment). It builds on the proven IMF model that has delivered $6.60 of social value for every dollar invested. The Indigenous Marathon Program has produced 156 graduates, 94% of whom are in employment or further education, and 70% in community leadership roles, with 47 accredited Run Leaders supporting 65 communities. National roll-out across five Australian jurisdictions is underway over 12 to 18 months.

The Warrior Project is distinguished by five design features.Lived experience at the design table and on the ground. IMP graduates, RAW Run Leaders, and IMP participants who had themselves been incarcerated or supported incarcerated Indigenous people shaped the design alongside ACT Government correctional officials at middle management and executive levels. Co-design is operational, not consultative.Two-phase architecture. 'The Warrior Within' engages every resident in running and walking. The targeted Warrior program then deepens the journey for selected First Nations participants through 10km to marathon training, Mental Health First Aid, accredited education, leadership, and cultural connection.Throughcare via an existing network. On release, Warriors connect to local IMF RAW groups across 65 communities, supported by 47 accredited Run Leaders. The custody-to-community bridge uses infrastructure that already works.Corrections as partners, not gatekeepers. Facility staff co-designed the program. The 4 March 2025 workshop spent the morning building trust before any design work began.Cultural authority embedded. Charlie Maher (IMP Graduate, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Chief Officer at IMF) leads cultural integrity. The program centres language, country, and First Nations leadership rather than appending them.These features make the Warrior Project distinctively Australian, distinctively Indigenous-led, and coherent across the custody-to-community boundary.