Traditional games, which incorporate traditional ways and Indigenous values, provide a unique opportunity to enhance the sport experiences of Indigenous youth. In fact, research shows that engaging Indigenous youth in traditional games can promote cultural pride, interaction with elders and connection to the land, as well as physical literacy and fundamental movement skills.
Use double quotes to find documents that include the exact phrase: "aerodynamic AND testing"
Use double quotes to find documents that include the exact phrase: "aerodynamic AND testing"
Today marks Canada’s inaugural National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, an opportunity to recognize and commemorate the legacy of residential schools in Canada. Take some time to learn and reflect by visiting the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR), an online place of learning and dialogue where the truths of residential school victims and survivors, and their families and communities, are honoured and kept safe for future generations.
June 21st is National Indigenous Peoples Day.
Strategies to reduce barriers to physical activity and build capacity in the Canadian sport system are just one part of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action. Common barriers to physical activity in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities include limited access to recreational facilities, wildlife and inclement weather. Learn more about evidence-based strategies for promoting physical activity in these communities.
Warmer winters contribute to thinner, weaker, and less stable ice. This puts Indigenous communities in northern Canada at increased risk for winter drowning because of their dependence on ice cover for subsistence and travel. Water safety programs that use local cultural and traditional knowledge in dialogue with community stakeholders can empower communities with the capacity to adapt to the regional impacts of climate change.
For sport and physical activity organizations, creating successful partnerships with First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities requires an intentional approach. This includes understanding individual communities and cultures, recruiting volunteers and coaches from these communities, and recognizing that building meaningful relationships based on trust will take years and genuine commitment.
Common barriers to physical activity in rural, remote and Indigenous communities include limited access to recreational facilities, lack of sidewalks, uneven road surfaces, wildlife, and inclement weather. Learn more about evidence-based strategies for promoting physical activity in these communities.
Understanding the cultural context of a community is critical when designing and implementing physical activity and sport programs. For example, integrating Indigenous values, beliefs, and practices (e.g. smudging, berry picking, hunting) into programs can greatly enhance their value among Indigenous groups. Engage stakeholders in the process, and ensure that their needs and priorities are taken into account.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, “inclusion” is the action or state of including or of being included within a group or structure. True inclusion involves authentic and empowered participation and a true sense of belonging for all participants. However, if we want to be successful with inclusion, we must intentionally plan for it – if we are not specific and clear about how we create inclusion in sport spaces and places, we will continue to fail those on the margins.
During a keynote session at the 2020 Canadian Sport for Life Summit, I facilitated a discussion about participant-centered approaches to inclusion. More than 400 sport, recreation, education and health leaders worked to define core principles of inclusion, and how they could be integrated into policy and practice within their organizations. This article shares the highlights from that conversation and provides examples of how organizations are bringing the principles to life.
Principle 1 – Respect is a deep admiration for someone’s abilities, qualities, or achievements; and would be lived by appreciating everyone’s unique journey and lived experiences.
The Hijabi Ballers project, based in the Greater Toronto Area, seeks to recognize and celebrate the athleticism of Muslim girls and women, and increase their participation in sport spaces and programs around the city. The name Hijabi Ballers represents three things: being a female of Muslim faith, being an athlete, and being a boss. The project is meant to shine a light on those who visibly represent their faith, while portraying themselves as athletes. The word “baller,” an umbrella term for all athletes, holds a strong connotation of being a boss, being successful, and being bold.
Principle 2 – Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically; and would be lived by meeting participants at the place they are at so they can engage in different ways and levels.
Skate Canada’s Trans Inclusion Policy, developed with input from members of the LGBTQI2S community and inclusive sports advocates, was designed to ensure athletes have the right to participate in a sport they love free from discrimination and exclusionary regulations. In competitions under Skate Canada jurisdiction, athletes can participate in the gender category with which they identify, which allows for dignity in the choice of how athletes show up. All identifications of gender identity by athletes are believed to be made in good faith and do not require further disclosure or documentation.
Principle 3 – Openness is receptivity to new ideas and new experiences; and would be lived by sharing and honoring our cultural experiences, and giving participants a seat at the table to lead the design, implementation and evaluation of sport and recreation programs.
Through the North Preston Surf Program, the Surfing Association of Nova Scotia and Blxckhouse are working together to create a program for youth of African descent. North Preston is the oldest and largest indigenous Black community in Canada. Despite its proximity to Lawrencetown – the birthplace of Canadian surfing – few people of African descent in Nova Scotia surf. There are far-reaching historical and social reasons for this, and the purpose of this program is to collaborate with the community to remove the barriers to this experience.
Principle 4 – Allyship is when a person of privilege seeks to work in solidarity with a marginalized person or group; and would be lived by investing our abilities, compassion and heart in developing new relationships.
The Canadian Olympic Committee’s One Team initiative was created to fight gender-based discrimination, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, and any other type of discrimination in sport. The #BeYou and #OneTeam campaigns have included a presence at Pride parade events and have celebrated athletes who identify as LGBTQI2S for their accomplishments and for living their identity.
Principle 5 – Compassion is concern for the challenges faced by others; and would be lived by leading by example.
Free Footie is a free after school sports club delivered in partnership with highly vulnerable schools in Edmonton, AB. Most of the 4,000 kids reached each year are refugees, newcomers or Indigenous youth who cannot afford the typical “pay to play” model or face other barriers to participation. Free Footie was designed to close the gaps – equipment and registration are free, transportation is organized and paid for, and participants are picked up from their school right after class. Through play, the program surrounds kids with role models and teaches them leadership, respect and commitment. Partner schools see participants improving their grades, behaving well, and attending classes so they get to take part in the fun at the end of the day.
Principle 6 – Safe is a positive space that promotes consent-based participation and supports all participants’ physical, emotional and social development and wellbeing. It is free from abuse, misconduct, bullying, harassment and hazing, and requires that all participants are treated with dignity. Safe would be lived by examining the different needs of people in sport and recreation spaces and places. This will ensure we can better plan to support the diverse people who are part of our programs, and those who deserve to be included but haven’t been planned for properly yet.
As part of their plan to create an inclusive workplace culture where staff feel safe bringing their authentic selves to work, the Canadian Paralympic Committee invested in training for staff and board members about LGBTQI2S Inclusion. The training was delivered by Canadian Women & Sport, and included a Paralympic athlete who is openly gay who shared her lived experience. The training laid the foundation for two staff to self-identify as gay and host internal staff “lunch and learn” dialogues.
As we think about what people need to be successful in our programs, it is an opportunity to rethink how we structure our organizations, our programs, our roles…and indeed the broader sport and recreation system. The above examples can inspire our work and provide promising practices to guide our intentions. Being intentional about inclusion requires us to make room for more voices at the table, to listen, to learn, and to consider what type of system we could create if we built from people, rather than from budget, funders or mandates.
Coaches can play an important role in teaching athletes about healthy relationships in and through sport. The Coaching Association of Canada is leading a new project to build the capacity of coaches and other sport system stakeholders to help prevent and address gender-based and teen dating violence. To learn about the project and complete coach and athlete surveys to help develop new training materials, click here. (Note: Surveys available until February 27th.)
This is the fourth blog of a series leading up to the 2020 Arctic Winter Games that will be hosted by Whitehorse, YT March 15-21, 2020. Check out the previous blogs about the development of the Games, volunteer recruitment, and First Nations engagement.
Since the Arctic Winter Games (AWG) began in 1970, cultural exchange and social interaction have been key values of the Games and part of what makes them unique. With contingents from across Canada, the United States (Alaska), Greenland, Russia and Sapmi (stretching over Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia), the AWG may be the first time participants have traveled outside their territory, province or country. The opportunity to visit new places, meet new people, and experience new cultures make the participation at the AWG a life-changing experience.
The importance of cultural exchange and social interaction are perhaps most evident in the Games’ Cultural Program. The performers at AWG don’t come to compete against one another, they come to work together. With many different languages present, performers often rely on their art form to communicate with their peers. In the cafeteria, participants might randomly break out in a jam session. While waiting in line for marshalling prior to the Opening Ceremony, throat singing, drumming and dancing can usually be heard as they celebrate their cultural identity.
During the Opening Ceremony on March 15, and throughout the week of the Games, traditional culture and contemporary performance will be on full display. This includes pop-up performances, workshops, artist demonstrations and art exhibits, as well as a Cultural Marketplace.
The pop-up performances are free, 3 to 5 minute performances by professional artists at accommodation and sport venues. Cultural participants will also have a chance to take some workshops with professional Yukon artists, to gain new skills and build knowledge.
There will be three exhibits at the Yukon Arts Centre. The Main Gallery exhibition, Emerging North, is a celebration of emerging Indigenous artists from across the Circumpolar North. The exhibit is being curated by Indigenous artist Teresa Vander Meer-Chassé from Beaver Creek, Yukon. Future of the North will be the Youth Gallery exhibit, featuring art work from Yukon students, as well as students from Yamal. The third exhibit will be a mural painted by the Youth of Today Society, with nine separate panels – representing each of the nine contingents. The exhibits are free to the participants and the public.
The AWG Cauldron, being created by Yukon metalworks artist Brian Walker and his son Justin, will also be housed at the Yukon Arts Centre. The Cauldron is made out of copper, a material that goes back at least 1,500 years in the history of the Yukon. The cauldron will reflect traditions and stories relating to copper that are important for Yukon First Nations.
At the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre in downtown Whitehorse, where Dene Games competition is taking place, there will also be a Cultural Marketplace, showcasing and selling work from visual artists across the territory. Traditional arts such as beading, sewing and tanning, will be on display.
The AWG Cultural Program will culminate with a Cultural Gala, incorporating aspects from all nine northern contingents, embracing the Circumpolar identity of the Games. The Gala will mix traditional practices from Nunavut, Sapmi and Greenland with contemporary performances from residents of larger northern communities such as Whitehorse. Watching youth so in tune with traditional knowledge, languages and practices will inspire audiences, as well as their fellow performers.
When the Arctic Winter Games are officially declared closed on March 21, participants will celebrate with something a little less traditional – a DJ’d dance party and pizza. They’ll trade uniforms and pins, and then the majority will board their planes home with new stories to tell and new skills learned from their week-long collaborations.
Of course, hosting hundreds of athletes, cultural performers, coaches and officials can be logistically complicated, particularly in the North. Imagine trying to get 1,800 mattresses shipped 2,100 kilometres up the highway to a northern remote community, or building 900 bunk beds in less than 24 hours. We’ll explore the ways communities address those challenges in the next AWG series blog – follow SIRC’s Canadian Sport Daily newsletter to stay up to date on postings!
The 2020 Arctic Winter Games will be held in Whitehorse, Yukon March 15-21, 2020. Follow the action leading up to and during the Games on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.