The YCRH will present at "Seizing the Opportunity: Equitable Child Health Research in Post-Pandemic Recovery"

On November 18th, the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children is hosting the inaugural Annual Symposium “Seizing the Opportunity: Equitable Child Health Research in Post-Pandemic Recovery” in Toronto. The event will gather leading Canadian and international academics and policymakers to discuss the role that research should play in addressing equity in children’s health outcomes in an era of pandemic recovery.

The YCRH’s Stacie Smith and Raissa Amany have been invited to participate as a presenter in a workshop titled “Community Engagement & The Youth Voice”. The workshop will cover why community engagement with youth matters; how to plan and design the engagement process for youth engagement; and lessons learned from their community engagement initiative post pandemic.

November 20 is National Child Day!

November 20th is National Child Day in Canada. This annual celebration recognizes two historic events: the 1959 signing of the UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child and the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989 (UNCRC).

Canada signed the UNCRC in 1991 and made a commitment to ensure that every child have every opportunity to reach their full potential. The commitment also includes:

  • Providing children opportunities to have a voice (speak out and be heard)

  • Protecting children from harm

  • Ensuring children's basic needs are met

National Child Day is an excellent opportunity for educators, parents and caregivers to teach children about their rights.

Join The Sandbox Project and partners to celebrate National Child Day this November 20th.

 

MLSE Foundations "Change the Game 2.0" Research Study is live!

To better understand the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on youth participation in sport, MLSE Foundation and the University of Toronto partnered together to release the Change the Game 2.0 report following the removal of COVID-19 restrictions on sports in Ontario.

Over the course of a year, over 8200 youth (aged 6-29) and parents shared their experiences related to sport access, engagement, equity and culture. The purpose of the study was to better understand the current state of sport and Sport For Development offerings in Ontario.

The report, infographics and data sets can be found on the ML:SE Foundation’s website. You can also click here

Child Welfare League releases “Equitable Standards for Transition To Adulthood for Youth in Care Evaluation Model”!

This month, The Child Welfare League of Canada released the “Equitable Standards for Transitions to Adulthood for Youth in Care Evaluation Model” and it’s accompanying Primer Report.

The ultimate goal of the model is to create conditions where youth in/from care can be part of a society where they are valued, invested in and interdependently supported throughout their entire lives.

The model and the report was a collaborative effort between the Child Welfare League of Canada and the National Council of Youth in Care Advocates. To read the report and review the 8 pillars of the module, please click here

The Sandbox Project is proud to have supported this important effort through the Sandbox Impact Program.

Sandbox Impact Program Partners wanted!

The Sandbox Project is proud to annouce the launch of the next iteration of the Sandbox Impact Program.

The Sandbox Impact Program is designed to empower collaborations to achieve better health and wellbeing outcomes for children and youth across Canada. This program was created to assist initiatives that leverage multiple partners to address a specific health and wellbeing challenge faced by children and youth in a Canadian community.

By bringing organizations and sector leading individuals together and providing microgrants and in-kind services, we take our shared priorities to the next level.

In-Kind Services:

Along with Microgrants of up to $4500, The Sandbox Impact Program also provides partners with in kind services. We have partnered with Altus Group for this iteration to provide program partners access to skills and expertise housed within Altus Group. Project partners will identify the skills that would be most beneficial and work closely with Altus Group staff for a total of 10-12 hours over the project span to fill this skill gap.  The in-kind support provided by Altus Group include:

·         Fundraising

·         Marketing and branding

·         Legal and Governance(including Board matters)

·         Financial management

Eligible partnerships in need of other in-kind skills are still encouraged to apply. Please provide a brief paragraph about the support needed and how this will facilitate the completion of your project.  

The Sandbox Impact Program continues to prioritize the needs of the most vulnerable Canadian children and youth. The four focus areas of this program are:

·         Mental health and wellbeing

·         Social determinants of health and vulnerable populations

·         Improving access to services and programs for caregivers, youth and children

·         Filling data gaps that exist in the sector

Who Can Apply?

The Sandbox Impact Program support is available to project teams supporting child and youth-focused initiatives in Canada. Project teams must be composed of:

1.      A minimum of one young person (aged 25 or younger) or youth-led initiative

And

2.      One charity, not-for-profit organization or foundation

And

3.      Team Members from at least two other organizations whose area of focus are:

·         Research OR

·         Healthcare OR

·         Policy

Deadline

 The Expression of Interest is due on November 15, 2022, by 11:59 PST.  Eligible partners will then be invited to submit a complete application. Completed applications are due by 11:59 PM PST on November 30 2022.

Application Process

The application process begins with completing the Expression of Interest form here:  http://sandboxproject.ca/apply. The purpose of the Expression of Interest is to let us know how your project team meets the initial program criteria. If you qualify, you will be invited to submit a full application.

Alternatively, prospective project teams are welcome to submit a video that addresses all the application criteria. To submit a video, please send us a YouTube or Vimeo link or share the file via Dropbox or Google Drive.