TORONTO, SEPTEMBER 30, 2014 – Dr. Angelo Belcastro, Chair of Active Healthy Kids Canada, and Elio Antunes, President and CEO of ParticipACTION, are pleased to announce that both organizations have made a strategic decision to turn leadership of the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card over to ParticipACTION, a long-standing partner. This decision will also involve winding down Active Healthy Kids Canada operations by the end of June, 2015. Already closely aligned in their respective missions to inform and inspire Canadian families to move more, both organizations see value in combining business activities in a way that harnesses recent successes, seeks efficiencies, serves the physical activity sector and preserves their most important joint project—the Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth.
“On the heels of the successful Global Summit on the Physical Activity of Children, and the most successful Report Card launch of all time—achieving over 1,000 news stories and 219 million media impressions, including a lead story on CBC’s The National and a two-page feature spread in The Globe & Mail—we know we have been successful in raising awareness of the issue of child and youth inactivity,” said Belcastro. “Now it’s time to turn this awareness into sustained action, which is where ParticipACTION comes in.”
As an existing strategic partner in the annual development and dissemination of the Report Card, and a Canadian leader in the provision of credible and trustworthy resources to inspire and support Canadians to get more active, ParticipACTION is in an ideal position to preserve the independence, the integrity and the reputation of the Report Card, and connect the knowledge to specific opportunities for action. Going forward, ParticipACTION will continue to work with the Report Card’s strategic research partner, the Healthy Active Living and Obesity Research Group at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute (HALO-CHEO), to deliver the much anticipated annual comprehensive assessment of child and youth physical activity in Canada.
ParticipACTION and HALO-CHEO will also continue to work with The Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance to expand the global matrix of grades on the physical activity of children and youth based on nine international common indicators, slated for release in 2016.
“The Report Card has generated huge national—and now global—attention to the issue of child and youth physical activity,” said Antunes. “ParticipACTION is committed to working with our current and new partners and stakeholders to continue to advance knowledge on the issue and, ultimately, use this information to help enable measurable change in child and youth physical activity levels in Canada.”
About Active Healthy Kids Canada
Active Healthy Kids Canada is a charitable organization that advocates the importance of physical activity for children and youth where they live, learn and play. As a national leader in this area, Active Healthy Kids Canada advances knowledge to influence decision-makers at all levels, from policy-makers to parents, in order to increase the attention given to, investment in, and effective implementation of physical activity opportunities for all Canadian children and youth. For more information, please visit www.activehealthykids.ca
About ParticipACTION
ParticipACTION is the national voice of physical activity and sport participation in Canada. Originally established in 1971, ParticipACTION was re-launched in 2007 to help prevent the looming inactivity crisis that faces Canada. As a national not-for-profit organization solely dedicated to inspiring and supporting healthy and active living for Canadians, it works with its partners, which include sport, physical activity, recreation organizations, government and corporate sponsors, to inspire and support Canadians to move more. ParticipACTION is generously supported by Sport Canada. For more information, visit www.participACTION.com
For more information, please contact:
Katherine Janson
Director of Communications & Public Affairs
ParticipACTION
Tel: 416-913-1471
Email: kjanson@participACTION.com
