UCalgary researchers help launch national program for newcomer youth

Calgary has been selected as a hub for research into the impact of sport and physical activity on newcomer youth. Researchers at the University of Calgary’s O’Brien Institute for Public Health say organized physical activity can help young people feel more confident, connected and at home in Canada.

Calgary is one of five hubs of the Co-creating Opportunities through Physical Literacy for All newcomer children and Youth (CO-PLAY) Network, a national initiative that recently also launched in Halifax, Hamilton and Victoria, with a final hub being developed in Quebec. The project brings together a multidisciplinary team of researchers, community partners and service providers to co-develop, implement and evaluate physical literacy-developing programs that help young newcomers build healthy, active lifestyles.

“Physical literacy takes a holistic approach to movement. It’s about developing the skills, confidence, motivation and understanding needed to be active for life," says Dr. Matthew Kwan, PhD, co-director of the CO-PLAY Network. "This is especially important for newcomer children and youth because sport and recreation experiences may have been different in their country of origin.

“Developing physical literacy helps them learn how to move confidently and safely in the Canadian context, supports inclusion and belonging, and helps ensure safety and comfort in new environments." 

Intersectoral collaboration drives real-world change

Calgary’s hub is uniquely positioned to support this project. With one of the country’s fastest-growing newcomer populations and a strong history of cross-sector collaboration, local researchers say the city offers both the scale and partnerships needed to test and refine programming that could influence practices across Canada.

“Calgary is one of Canada’s fastest-growing newcomer hubs, and that creates both urgency and opportunity for the work we’re doing,” says Dr. Turin Chowdhury, PhD, who leads the Calgary CO-PLAY Hub. 

“There is a strong culture of collaboration here that makes the city an ideal place for this kind of work to take root and have real impact.”

The Calgary Hub currently has 23 members spanning academia, government agencies, education and more, including 13 community partners working directly with newcomer families. Together, they aim to explore how sport and recreation programs can support smoother settlement experiences, not just through recreation, but through relationships, confidence, and long-term community belonging.

For partners already serving newcomer populations, the network provides a critical opportunity to align expertise.

“Our involvement in the CO-PLAY Network demonstrates our commitment to designing programs with accessibility and inclusion in mind,” says Jennifer Konopaki, senior vice president, Strategy & Business Development at WinSport, a Calgary non-profit that offers year-round sports and recreation to the community. 

“At WinSport, we aim to be a community hub where everyone belongs, and, by working with academic experts and other key partners, we can be more thoughtful programmers and better meet the needs of our community.”

Scaling local insights nationally

The CO-PLAY Network builds on the 2022 Calgary-based pilot, Immigrant-focused Physical Literacy for Youth (IPLAY). That project demonstrated the value of innovative, movement-based activities in helping refugee youth develop confidence and comfort in physical activity settings, insights the team believed could have broader national application.

The eight-week program enabled refugee youths aged 12 to 16 to participate in new activities and games that target different movement skills each week. In addition to Kin-Ball — a team sport played with an oversized ball — and archery, youth got to experience activities such as ice luge and human curling — where team members are pushed across the ice — at a local arena.

“The evolution from IPLAY to CO-PLAY allows us to test programs in diverse community settings, strengthen collaboration between partners, and better understand how to support newcomer children and youth in developing lifelong physical activity habits,” Kwan says.

Following its launch in October, the Calgary Hub is conducting an environmental scan to identify local strengths, gaps, and opportunities. Similar work is underway in the other hubs, allowing CO-PLAY to compare regional contexts and develop resources that reflect the realities of newcomer settlement across Canada.

Looking forward

As the work progresses, researchers envision outcomes that go beyond program participation. They see the potential for changes that shape how newcomer children and youth access recreation, how their families engage with their communities, and how systems support physical and cultural well-being.

“By fostering physical literacy early on, we aim to help young newcomers not only thrive physically and mentally but also grow into engaged, active citizens who continue contributing to their communities well into the future,” says Kwan.