By: Lia Mattacchione, Stacie Smith
The Young Canadians Roundtable on Health (YCRH) had a very strong 2021, striving to become a leading organization in child and youth health engagement. While we bid adieu to some seasoned contributors and leaders within the Sandbox Project and YCRH, we are welcoming new members who bring a fresh outlook and enthusiasm in this new year. Upon reflection, this year has been fruitful with accomplishments, however we are most excited about what is to come for 2022.
Reflecting on 2021
In April 2021, the YCRH became a member of the Coalition for Healthy School Food (CHSF). In partnership with the CHSF, we held youth focus groups gathering feedback on their experiences in accessing school food. Members of the YCRH created, implemented and facilitated the feedback groups and contributed the data summary within the overall report. Our newly implemented policy working group will be keeping a close eye on Parliament, as a new bill was recently introduced to see this program become a reality in the near future. We are excited to continue our work with the CHSF to help them establish a Youth Working Group in the near future.
In May 2021, Healthy Debate became one of our newest partners and collaborated on our youth led series, In Their Own Words. As the pandemic continues to dominate the national conversation, the voices of many professionals have been heard. Yet, one group whose stories were not told, nor perspectives sought were Canada’s youth. To provide a public platform to amplify their voices, the series “In Their Own Words” partnered with youth across Canada to communicate their experiences of how the pandemic affected them, utilizing their chosen form of multimedia. Our intent was to inform the general public of the current needs of youth, which could then inform the public and policy makers about future changes required to foster positive growth of current and future youth. We believe that in order to initiate change and include youth in critical conversations, we must be a part of that change by providing youth the opportunity to learn how to utilize existing platforms and forms of communications. This will provide future youth with the tools necessary to more effectively voice their needs, and advocate for themselves and their community. We are grateful for the ongoing showcase of this series, by Healthy Debate and future opportunities with them.
We also had the opportunity to be a part of the release of the Inspiring Healthy Futures key findings and priorities; to create a stronger future for children, youth and families in Canada. Various YCRH members were a part of the consulting team that helped to inform said priorities. We are excited to continue this partnership in the new year.
Previous Co-Executive Director of the YCRH, Umayangga Yogalingam, was able to see through the launch of her project, The Importance of Youth Voices. This project highlighted the need for meaningful youth engagement in health spaces across Canada. We are planning to expand on the important work Umayangga created in the latter part of 2021.
Looking Forward for 2022
This new year is going to be one that will be busy and exciting. We recently welcomed our newest Co-Executive Director, Lia Mattacchione. Lia is a Registered Kinesiologist with a Master of Professional Kinesiology from the University of Toronto. She has had previous project management experience with the Ontario Kinesiology Association, as well as program creation and evaluation in clinical and community settings, creating and implementing curated health and wellness programs for youth and adults. Lia is driven to help the YCRH become a household name, and to have it recognized as a leader, advocate and representative of youth health and wellbeing.
Additionally, we have appointed our new general Directors including: Directors of Policy; Directors of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility; Directors of Events; and a Director of Memberships. Each director has set out goals and objectives for this year, in alignment with our Strategic Plan, and will be collaborating with their respective working groups to achieve their goals.
The YCRH general members are stepping into 2022 with vision and purpose as two new projects are well underway.
We are excited to be leading the creation of a Children’s Book with a focus on youth resiliency. We are looking to partner with healthcare and other professionals who work with youth to show youth how they may develop their mental health resilience. Our intent is to contribute to the resources available for children to learn by experience, through this book.
Concurrently, our Photovoice project is calling out to youth of all ages to participate. This is a qualitative research project that aims to understand the experiences of youth mental health during COVID-19, especially focusing on the marginalized and vulnerable. We are seeking partnership with youth from various communities across Canada to learn about their experiences during COVID-19 through photography and facilitated group discussions.
The YCRH team is excited for what is to come this year. We are always open to opportunities for new partnerships and memberships, so if you or your organization is interested, please contact us at ycrh@sandboxproject.ca. We look forward to sharing with you more of our evolving endeavours.
