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Ontario Tech acknowledges the lands and people of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation.

We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

Learn more about Indigenous Education and Cultural Services

Clara Onell, Nutritionist, MSc, PhD (candidate)

  • Program of study: PhD, Care SciencesClara Onell
  • Institution: Sophiahemmet University, Stockholm, Sweden
  • Project title: Lifestyle behaviours, musculoskeletal pain and sports injuries in students
  • Project background: Injuries among adolescent handball players are common and increases the risk of discontinuing sports participation. Also, musculoskeletal pain among university students is common and may result in future implications for individual health and society. The knowledge about the role of different lifestyle behaviours for sports injuries and musculoskeletal pain in young adults is scarce and large prospective studies assessing these associations are warranted for the implementation of future prevention strategies.
  • Project objectives: The Swedish Handball Cohort aims to evaluate the implementation of prevention strategies for knee and shoulder injuries among adolescent handball players. The specific aim of my thesis is to describe players’ food habits and prospectively assess the role of food habits for injury incidence. The Sustainable UNiversity Life study aims to identify modifiable risk factors for mental health problems and musculoskeletal pain among university students. Here, the specific aim of my thesis is to describe students’ lifestyle behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the association between compulsive exercise, body image and musculoskeletal pain.
  • Funding sources:
    • Sustainable UNiversity Life study:
      • The Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare.
      • Sophiahemmet Ideell Förening.
    • Swedish Handball Cohort
      • The Swedish Research Council for Sport Science
      • The Scandinavian College of Naprapathic Manual Medicine
      • Sophiahemmet Ideell Förening
      • The Swedish Naprapathic Association
  • Committee Members: 
    • Eva Skillgate, PhD (Sophiahemmet University, Sweden)
    • Martin Asker, PhD (Sophiahemmet University, Sweden)
    • Pierre Côté, PhD (Ontario Tech University)

Photo Credit to Joakim Lehnström