ParticipACTION is Canada’s leading physical activity promotion brand with a mission to support all Canadians to be more active. The goal of this research is to enhance the organization’s physical activity promotion practices for individuals who experience health inequities by identifying inclusive physical activity promotion strategies that currently exist, evaluating perceptions of ParticipACTION as a brand, and developing standards that can be used within physical activity promotion organizations to improve their inclusion and accessibility.

This project looks to examine the safety of the medication Pimavanserin, marketed under the brand name Nuplazid. Pimavanserin is prescribed to manage Parkinson’s Disease Psychosis, a common side effect of Parkinson Disease medications. This medication has already received regulatory approval in the United Stated by the Food and Drug Administration under a special program called the “Breakthrough therapy program”. Although it initially showed promising results, concerns have been raised regarding its safety and efficacy.

Current wound care products use synthetic chemicals and antibiotics that are not acceptable to a growing number of eco-conscious consumers. We plan to utilize both the antibacterial and cell proliferation properties of certain bio-actives such as collagen in sea-food waste. Marine collagen is known to show higher biodegradability, biocompatibility, and lower immunogenicity compared to other collagens. Several studies have tested cell proliferation and wound healing properties of marine collagen in in vitro cell culture and small animal studies.

Canadian girls and women experience disadvantages in sport participation and quality experiences. These challenges have been intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic due to decreases in sport opportunities that disfavor girls and women. Canadian Women & Sport (the partner organization) are committed to improving gender equity in sport and have recently conducted a large survey measuring Canadian youth sport participation and experiences. The current project will implement the survey at the beginning of the first and third years.

Our ability to sense where our limbs are in space can be lost as a result of injury to the nervous system. For example, when reaching for a glass many people who have had a stroke only know where their hand is by looking directly at it. The sense of limb position also becomes reduced with aging. When sense of limb position is limited then humans must move more slowly and carefully because our movements now require us to use visual feedback to know where our limb is in space.

Canadian adolescent athletes suffer many mental health challenges such as hyper competitiveness and a culture of silence which often precludes individuals from discussing mental health issues. These challenges have been compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. Team Unbreakable (the partner organization) have run a highly successful physical activity and mental health program which is implemented through local school boards. The current project will adapt this program by integrating a team building module which will be implemented through coaches of community sport programs.

Six to eight South Asian-Canadians interested in rock climbing will participate in a day of outdoor rock climbing as a combined research activity and community initiative. Participants will provide feedback from the experience in the form of an on-site focus group discussion. Additionally, a photograph of the event, as a performance art piece, will be captured, blown up to 4’ x 6’ and displayed in a climbing gym in the Vancouver area for one month.

Sprint kayak is a water sport where athletes propel themselves forward using blades on either end of their paddle, with the goal of completing the distance in the shortest amount of time. Along with high volumes of on-water training, athletes often use weight training to increase their paddle force production. Strength and conditioning coaches use key performance indicators to track athlete progress in the gym. However, modern technology has increased the amount of key performance indicators available, making it difficult to know which are accurate and related to race performance.

Women with elevated cardiovascular disease risk can improve their health by participating in interventions that encourage health promoting behaviours, such as physical activity. However, although a person may know that they will benefit from participating in a health promotion program, there are many reasons why people do not adopt healthier lifestyles. Patients with lived experience have specific knowledge of the barriers and facilitators that limited or supported their failure or success completing health promotion programming.

The proposed research project will be to provide an understanding and overview of Inuit women’s concerns, feelings, and thoughts regarding how their day to day lives are changing due to climate change and increased development in Nunavut. The partner organization (Sapujiyiit Society) will have the role of guiding the HQP through formulation of the research question, project design and implementation, assistance with research objectives and incorporation of perspectives of Inuit women.