Welcome to Why Can’t They Play?, a Strong Girl Talk podcast presented by RE.sport. Today we’re joined by RE.sport’s Principal Investigator, Dr. Catherine Sabiston, a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Physical Activity and Mental Health and the Director, Mental Health and Physical Activity Research Centre, in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education at the University of Toronto. Cathi’s research has been extensively featured in the media, has been used to inform evidence-based practice, and has advanced theory and methods in sport and exercise psychology.
Cathi’s also one of the main co-authors of the graphic novel, Why Can’t They Play from the RE.sport team here, and listen to our episode with Cathi here.
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In this episode Strong Girl Talk host, Sasha, talks with Cathi about her career in research and what led her down this path during her undergraduate degree. Cathi was first inspired by a series of Nike advertisements (Sasha’s got a few favourite’s including Lauren Fleshman’s Objectify Me and You Were Born to be a Daughter) and initially studied sports marketing in her masters.
And in that masters, Cathi really fell in love with research. Cathi is incredibly humble in this episode, but we’re celebrating what a leader she is in reimagining the space for girls in sport. Cathi’s work continues to challenge the space so more kids can play.
We wrap up with the motivation to write this first of its kind grant in Canada.
And if you want to learn more about the RE.sport microgrants, which Sasha mentions at the end, you can find more information here.
Remember you can follow Molly and Sasha on Social Media including:
Molly - @mollyjhurford @stronggirlpublishingSasha - @SGollishRuns @Yellow_Running_ShoesRE.sport - @project_resport
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Get the book!
We worked with the RE.sport team to create a graphic novel that’s research-based and evidence-informed to help kids understand the barriers that their peers may face in sport. It’s available for preorder now, and bulk options (with PDF lesson plan downloads and a tryout assessment) are available for classes and teams. Check it out here.
You walk past the tryout poster in the hallway.Some kids can’t wait.Some feel nervous.Some don’t even stop to look.
What is stopping some kids from trying out for the team while others don’t think twice? What makes some kids excited, while other kids don’t even consider signing up?
Asking “Why Can’t They Play?” seems like a simple question, but it has an incredibly complex answer. All kids should be able to play, but for some, a tryout poster hanging in the hall is just another reminder of why they can’t play.
In this graphic novel, a team of researchers breaks down some of the main ways that a soccer tryout can exclude many kids—and why that’s wrong, and what kids, coaches and educators can do about it.
When we work together, we can find a way that we can all play.
