International Practice

Aboriginal Sport Circle (ASC)

• Established in 1995 the Aboriginal Sport Circle, opens in a new tab is Canada's national voice for Aboriginal sport, physical activity, and recreation bringing together the interests of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. Through partnerships and collaborations, the Aboriginal Sport Circle supports expertise in athlete and coaching development, physical literacy, and physical activity programs to Aboriginal communities throughout Canada. The Aboriginal Sport Circle is also the franchise holder for the North American Indigenous Games (NAIG), and annually hosts the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships (NAHC), in addition to effecting policy change at the highest levels of government.

Resources

• Indigenous Peoples, opens in a new tab, Sport for Life, (accessed 19 August 2025). Sport For Life are a nationally recognized not for profit organization consisting of sport and physical literacy experts working to create lasting change within the sport and physical activity ecosystem and beyond. By bridging gaps between sectors, creating new collaborations with Canadian institutions, and mobilizing knowledge to communities across the country, they aim to create a future in which absolutely everyone has access to quality sport and physical literacy experiences.
  • Indigenous Long-Term Participant Development Pathway, opens in a new tab, Sport For Life, (version 1.2, 2019). This document presents a roadmap for developing sport and physical activity among First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. It is a reference for those who work with Indigenous participants in sport and recreation. The Pathway has grown out of the understanding that mainstream pathways for sport development do not necessarily align with Indigenous needs or experiences. As such, the Indigenous Long-Term Participant Development Pathway tries to address that gap by outlining the key elements that need to be considered when planning, developing, and implementing programs for and with Indigenous peoples and Indigenous communities.
  • Indigenous Long-Term Participant Development Pathway - Sport Organization Guide, opens in a new tab, Sport for Life, (2019). Gives Sport Organizations an appreciation for and the knowledge to maximize collaboration with the Indigenous sport system, as well as provide the steps to map out how the mainstream sport system can support Indigenous athletes as they move between systems. By using this guide, Sport Organizations will improve the quality of the sporting experience for Indigenous athletes. By improving their experiences, Sport Organizations will benefit from enhanced capacity through mutually beneficial partnerships with Indigenous sport leadership, increased athlete and coach participation, and potential increases in podium performances.

Research

• Canadian National Sport Organizations’ Responses to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission: Calls to Action and Settler Silence,, opens in a new tab Yasmin Rajwani, Audrey Giles, Shawn Forde, Sociology of Sport Journal, Volume 39(2), pp.205-215, (2022). The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 2015 Calls to Action identified societal measures necessary for a successful reconciliation process between Indigenous peoples and settlers in Canada, five of which were specific to sport. The authors employed summative content analysis to examine the ways, if any, in which national sport organizations in Canada have implemented relevant Calls to Action. The results indicate a lack of response by most national sport organizations which, they argue, represents settler silence.
• Indigenous sports and recreation programs and partnerships across Canada: A literature review and environmental scan,, opens in a new tab Julie Sutherland, National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health, (November 2021). This literature review and scan focuses on physical activity, recreation, and sport opportunities for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples, families, and communities. The authors conclude that decolonizing physical activities, spaces, and practices, and infusing sport and recreation with traditional, land-based, culturally appropriate, practices and Indigenous ways of knowing and being are critical for strengthening First Nations, Inuit, and Métis health and well-being moving forward. The report includes:
  • An overview of the landscape of Indigenous physical activity, recreation, and sport organizations from the community and regional levels to the national, provincial, and territorial levels.
  • A review of the facilitators of and barriers to participation in physical activity, recreation, and sport in Indigenous populations, with a special focus on Indigenous youth.
  • A summary of existing guidelines or best practices for improving participation in physical activity, recreation, and sport among First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples.
  • A synopsis of gaps in research and programming.
• A Meta-Study of Qualitative Research Examining Sport and Recreation Experiences of Indigenous Youth,, opens in a new tab Tara-Leigh McHugh, Colin Deal, Clara-Jane Blye, et al., Qualitative Health Research, Volume 29(1), pp.42-54, (January 2019). The purpose of this research was to produce a meta-study of qualitative research examining sport and recreation experiences of Indigenous youth in Canada. Following record identification and screening, 20 articles were retained for analysis and synthesis. Strengths and weaknesses of included studies were identified through the meta-method and meta-theory analysis. The meta-data analysis revealed five themes that represent the sport and recreation experiences of Indigenous youth: (a) potential holistic benefits; (b) multiple levels of barriers; (c) necessary relationships within Indigenous communities; (d) importance of Indigenous cultures, traditions, and connections to the land; and (e) strategies for enhancing sport and recreation experiences. Working collaboratively with community members, our final meta-synthesis situated these five themes within the integrated Indigenous ecological model. This review consolidates the qualitative evidence base and provides direction for future research and practice.
• “There’s a Cultural Pride Through Our Games”: Enhancing the Sport Experiences of Indigenous Youth in Canada Through Participation in Traditional Games,, opens in a new tab Michael Dubnewick, Tristan Hopper, John Spence, et al., Journal of Sport and Social Issues, Volume 42(4), pp.207-226, (August 2018). The purpose of this community-based participatory research was to better understand how participation in traditional games can enhance the sport experiences of Indigenous youth. Eight Indigenous youth (14-18 years) and 10 adults living in various communities in the Northwest Territories, Canada, participated in either a one-on-one interview or group interview. Findings suggest that participating in traditional games can enhance the sport experiences of Indigenous youth by (a) promoting cultural pride, (b) interacting with Elders, (c) supporting connection to the land, (d) developing personal characteristics, and (e) developing a foundation for movement.
• A Comparison of Indigenous Sport for Development Policy Directives in Canada and Australia,, opens in a new tab Kevin Gardam, Audrey Giles, Steven Rynne, et al., Aboriginal Policy Studies, Volume 7(2), (2018). Through a review of government policies and reports, we highlight the often-divergent policy directives set out by federal departments in these two countries. Namely, inter-departmental partnerships in areas such as health, education, and justice fail to be adequately facilitated through SFD policies in Canada, while, conversely, Australia has strived towards greater federal partnership building. Within the identified Canadian and Australian policies, both countries consistently produced sport as having the potential to contribute to Indigenous peoples’ social and economic development, thus highlighting the growing institutional support behind Indigenous SFD.
• Canada and Australia: SDP and Indigenous peoples,, opens in a new tab Audrey Giles, Steven Rynne, Lyndsay Hayhurst, et al., Chapter 40 in 'Routledge Handbook of Sport for Development and Peace', Routledge, (2018). The chapter provides an overview of SDP initiatives that target Indigenous peoples in Canada and Australia. More specifically, it examines SDP in Indigenous communities in Canada and Australia to emphasize and broaden understandings of where and how SDP takes place. The authors seek to underscore the point that while SDP may have some merits, it is not necessarily relevant or valuable to Indigenous people. Indeed, while SDP has been positioned as an important social, political, and economic benefit for Indigenous people in Canada and Australia, they question the need for, and benefits of, such initiatives.

Ihi Aotearoa [Sport New Zealand]

• Te Tiriti o Waitangi: Treaty of Waitangi, opens in a new tab. Ihi Aotearoa [Sport NZ] is committed to building a play, active recreation and play system that reflects its commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the Treaty principles of Partnership, Protection and Participation. In 2019 Ihi Aotearoa announced the organisation’s commitment and articulated this from a play, active recreation and sport perspective. We enacted this commitment by ensuring that their Outcomes Framework reflected our Te Tiriti o Waitangi commitment through the System and Cultural Vitality Long Term Outcomes. Three primary principles of the Treaty of Waitangi are Partnership, Protection, and Participation.
• Te Wāhanga Kaupapa Māori, opens in a new tab [Māori section of Ihi Aotearoa [Sport NZ] website], (accessed 19 August 2025). Provides information about programs and resources in both Māori and English.
  • Te Whetū Rehua [The Guiding Star], opens in a new tab. A framework to help play, active recreation and sport providers consider how they might design or adapt activities to be culturally responsive to Māori. It has been developed with Māori community sport and recreation providers, and supports Māori being able to participate as Māori, recognising that a strong and secure cultural identity helps facilitate access to wider society, as well as being vital to wellbeing as indigenous New Zealanders.
  • He Oranga Poutama [Stairway to Wellbeing], opens in a new tab. An investment fund that promotes the development and implementation of physical recreation and sport in a way that is culturally appropriate to Māori.
  • Mātaiao, opens in a new tab. Funded by Ihi Aotearoa, this initiative aims to enhance the physical activity experiences of tamariki and rangatahi through strengthening their connection with te taiao (the environment) and their culture.
• Diversity and Inclusion Survey 2020: Report on Findings, opens in a new tab, (2020). Sport NZ undertook a comprehensive and confidential survey across the play, active recreation and sport paid workforce and governing boards in October 2020 with a specific focus on diversity. The survey explored the make-up and experiences of the paid workforce within the participating organisations.
  • Maori were most strongly represented in Regional Sports Trusts and in Territorial Authorities but underrepresented in comparison to percentage of population in most other organisational categories.
  • The median income for Maori CEOs and Senior Leadership roles was lower than that of those from NZ European backgrounds. Most other roles are relatively similarly paid.
• Case study: Increasing physical activity opportunities through a marae-centric initiative, opens in a new tab, Sport NZ Ihi Aotearoa, (2019). MaraeFit is a marae-centric initiative that provides opportunities for sport and recreation organisations, whānau, hapū and marae to increase their physical activities and capability in an ‘as Māori’ context.
• Case study: Active Youth Wellness Programme, opens in a new tab, Sport NZ Ihi Aotearoa, (2018). This case study has been created for organisations working with MÄori and Pacifica youth. Developed by Community Leisure Management (CLM) with support from Aktive – Auckland Sport and Recreation, the programme involves a variety of activities and provides support for participants over an initial 20-week period all based on hauora (overall health and wellbeing). Attendance and engagement over the 20-week programme was high, with participants attending over 80% of the weekly sessions and showed marked improvements in their fitness goals.
• Case study: Tamaki touched, opens in a new tab, Sport NZ Ihi Aotearoa, (2018). The Tāmaki Touched concept was developed in October 2015 following a meeting between Touch NZ and the New Zealand Police, which discussed ways to use sport as an engagement tool to help achieve positive community outcomes in at-risk communities.

Research

• Ako and Indigenous Athletes: Kaupapa Māori Principles and Game Sense Pedagogy, opens in a new tab, Jeremy Hapeta, John Evans, Graham Smith, Chapter 9 in 'Game Sense for Coaching and Teaching', Richard Light, Christina Curry (eds.), Routledge, (2021). The title ‘Ako (culturally preferred pedagogy) and Indigenous athletes’ refers to the preferred learning styles for Māori (Indigenous people of Aotearoa, New Zealand) athletes, particularly (but not exclusively) when adopting a ‘culturally inclusive’ pedagogy in sport. Throughout this chapter we respond to the question: How can sport coaches who adopt a Game Sense (GS) approach cater to the learning needs of Māori (and other Indigenous) athletes? In response, we outline core GS elements and explore the application of principles underpinning Kaupapa Māori (KM) theory, practices and methodologies that align with GS pedagogy. Our intention is to augment the GS approach in order to be more responsive to cross-cultural nuances that can create a sense of belonging for all team members, including Indigenous athletes. In considering the interrelationships between KM principles and GS elements, we propose an alternative model for pedagogues to apply, especially when engaging with Māori and Indigenous athletes.
• Māori (indigenous) knowledge in sport and wellbeing contexts: “Tūturu whakamaua kia tina!”, opens in a new tab, Farah Palmer, Bevan Erueti, Angelique Reweti, et al., Chapter 6 in 'Sport in Aotearoa New Zealand', Routledge, (2021). This chapter presents case studies that illustrate and examine the growth and development of Māori participation and wellbeing in sporting communities (Waka Ama/Outrigger Canoe paddling); codes (Rugby); and events (Olympic and Commonwealth Games) respectively. These are woven together via a wellbeing framework referred to as Whakamaua: The Māori Health Action Plan 2020–2025. The four concepts embedded within the framework are Mana whakahāere (stewardship), Mana motuhake (self-determination), Mana tangata (equity), and Mana Māori (customary practices) which are exemplified throughout the case studies, illustrating how Māori knowledge in sport can impact on Māori wellbeing. These case studies reveal that sport and active recreation in its broadest sense contains the potential to empower Māori stewardship, Māori self-determination, Māori equity and Māori customary practices for athletes and their wider social groups so long as Māori (indigenous) knowledge is integral to the sport and active recreation experience.
• Cultural identity, leadership and well-being: how Indigenous storytelling contributed to well-being in a New Zealand provincial rugby team, opens in a new tab, J. Hapeta, F. Palmer, Y. Kuroda, Public Health, Volume 176, pp.68-76, (2019). The purpose of the article was to explore the application and interpretation of Indigenous stories introduced in 2015–2017 in relation to the identity and leadership (well-being elements) of players and coaches of a men's provincial rugby team in Aotearoa/New Zealand (NZ).The study utilised a Kaupapa Māori case study approach and indigenous forms of storytelling (pūrākau, whakataukī) to encourage participants to share their narratives and experiences of how the inclusion of Māori knowledge in a team context influenced their sense of identity and leadership and thus well-being on and off the field. Analysis revealed that the team narrative, values and expectations were enhanced by embracing Māori stories (pūrākau) and symbols. In particular, this enhanced the cultural identity, sense of belonging, leadership and well-being of a number of team members on and off-field. Neither the players nor coaches disclosed any negative impacts to their well-being from incorporating indigenous storytelling (pūrākau, whakataukī) into their team building practices and culture.
• Sport for Social Change With Aotearoa New Zealand Youth: Navigating the Theory–Practice Nexus Through Indigenous Principles, opens in a new tab, Jeremy Hapeta, Rochelle Stewart-Withers, Farah Palmer, Journal of Sport Management, Volume 33(5), pp.481-492, (2019). Indigenous worldviews and scholarship are underrepresented and underdeveloped in sport for development and wider sport management spaces. Given many sport for social change initiatives target Indigenous populations, this is concerning. By adopting a Kaupapa Māori approach, a strengths-based stance, and working together with two plus-sport and sport-plus cases from provincial and national New Zealand rugby settings: the Taranaki Rugby Football Union’s and Feats’ Pae Tawhiti (seek distant horizons) Māori and Pasifika Rugby Academy and the E Tū Toa (stand strong), hei tū he rangatira (become a leader) Māori Rugby Development camps, the authors provide an illustration of Indigenous theory–practice. They argue sport for social change practices that focus on Indigenous peoples would be greatly improved if underpinned by the principles of perspective, privilege, politics, protection, and people. Thus, any sport for social change praxis seeking to partner with Indigenous communities ought to be informed by Indigenous philosophical viewpoints.
• An examination of cultural inclusion and Māori culture in New Zealand rugby: the impact on well-being, opens in a new tab [thesis], Jeremy Hapeta, Massey University, (2018). This thesis presents four separate, yet related studies. The purpose was to interrogate the inclusion of ‘culture’ (specifically in terms of ethnicity) within New Zealand Rugby environments and settings and to understand the impact of Māori knowledge practices on the well-being of players, coaches, other participants and communities.
• Maori Participation in Community Sport Report, opens in a new tab, KTV Consulting for Sport New Zealand, (May 2017). A variety of people across the sport sector were consulted, including Iwi providers, Sport NZ partners, and the Sport NZ Board and staff. The review showed:
  • Sport and recreation is a positive space for Māori and one in which Māori excel.
  • While Māori participate and volunteer in sport in high numbers, like all New Zealanders, these rates are declining.
  • There are a number of opportunities in the sport sector to better engage with Māori participation in sport and physical activity to achieve wider government outcomes, such as improvements in health and educational outcomes.
  • Opportunities to further increase participation, and impact on multiple social outcomes via sport, especially in communities where there is low participation among Māori, and where there are multiple disadvantages.

The Sámi people are the Indigenous people of the northern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula and large parts of the Kola Peninsula, which today encompasses large northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. Sápmi is the Sámi people’s own name for their traditional territory. [source: Indigenous peoples in Sápmi, opens in a new tab, International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs, (accessed 19 August 2025)]

Research

• The politics of organizing indigenous sport – cross-border and cross-sectoral complexity, opens in a new tab, Eivind Å. Skille, Kati Lehtonen, Josef Fahlén, European Sport Management Quarterly, Volume 23(2), pp.526-543, (2023). The authors studied the complexity surrounding the organization of sport in nations without nation-state status, exploring three research questions: (1) How do representatives of Sámi sport organizations in Finland and Norway perceive and act upon the proposal to reorganize Sámi sport? (2) How do representatives of the Sámi parliaments in Finland and Norway perceive and act upon the proposal to reorganize Sámi sport? (3) How do representatives of the state bureaucracy in Finland perceive and act upon the proposal to reorganize Sámi sport? The analysis revealed the dominant role of the Norwegian side of Sámi sport, largely based on the institutional power of the Sámi parliament in Norway. In that respect, voluntary sport organizations in both Finland and Norway were reluctant to consider or were even negative towards an ongoing reorganization of Sámi sport since it was initiated by the Norwegian authorities and by the Norwegian Sámi parliament.
• Indigenous Sport and Nation-Building: Interrogating Sámi Sport and Beyond, opens in a new tab, Skille, Eivind Å., Routledge, (2022). This book investigates the social, political, and cultural dimensions of Indigenous sport and nation-building. Focusing on the Indigenous Sámi of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia, it addresses how colonization variously impacts organizational arrangements and everyday sporting life in a modern world. Through detailed case data from the Norwegian side of Sápmi (the land of the Sámi), this book provides a critical and contemporary perspective of post-colonial influences and their impacts on sport. The study uses concepts of conventions, citizenship and communities, to examine the tenuous roles of Indigenous-based sport organizations and clubs towards the building of an Indigenous nation. The book further draws together international, national, and local Sámi experiences to address the communal and assimilative influences that sport brings for people in the North Calotte. Taken together, the book signals the importance of sport in future community development and the (re)emergence of Indigenous culture.
• A Sporting Nation: Creating Sámi Identity through Sport, opens in a new tab, Helge Chr. Pedersen, International Journal of the History of Sport, Volume 38(12), pp.1210-1227, (November 2021). Sport and identity are closely interrelated; sport creates identity and identity creates sport. This is also the case in the development of Sámi sport, as the Indigenous Sámi population in the north of Finland, Sweden and Norway has used sport to contribute to (re)building Sámi identity for over 40 years. This sporting identity has been based on an essentialized past, portraying Sámi culture and identity as being indistinguishably linked to Sámi reindeer husbandry culture. By deploying sports such as reindeer racing, lasso throwing and cross-country skiing, the Sámi sport association has painted a picture of Sáminess as a unique identity distinctly different from Norwegian culture and identity. Gayatri Spivak uses the term strategic essentialism to explain how Indigenous people and minority groups can create and use specific historical traits and traditions in their political struggle for recognition and self-respect. Sámi sport is an example of Spivak’s theory – the Sámi sports movement has been deployed to create greater self-esteem amongst the Sámi and to promote greater political rights. The Sámi sport movement has developed a Sámi sporting identity across (at least) three intertwined dimensions: an ethnic identity dimension, a national identity dimension and an indigenous identity dimension.
• The role of sport organizations for local and national community – the case of Sámi sport organizations, opens in a new tab, Eivind Å. Skille, Josef Fahlén, European Sport Management Quarterly, Volume 20(2), pp.239-254, (2020). This paper investigates (1) how representatives of Sámi sport clubs understand local and national communities, and (2) and the role of the sport organization in the creation and perception of local and national community. Interviews were conducted with seven board members representing five Sámi sport clubs in four municipalities. The sport clubs were all members of the Sámi sport organization and located in core Sámi areas where Sámi language and culture is manifested in everyday life. For sport club representatives, Sámi sport refers to specific activities associated with Sámi husbandry heritage, and to the Sámi sport organization. Sport clubs function as community organizations at the local level. Moreover, through affiliation with the Sámi sport organization, the sport clubs are the link to the Sámi national community. Sámi indigeneity is played out internally in the local community as well as on the borderline to other communities with other ethnic compositions.
• The Development of Sámi Sport, 1970–1990: A Concern for Sweden or for Sápmi?, opens in a new tab Isak Lidström, International Journal of the History of Sport, Volume 36(1), pp.1013-1034, (2019). It is widely agreed that sport and national identity are two interwoven phenomena. Recently, researchers have taken an interest in how sport has been used for nation-building purposes among groups not defined in terms of nation-states. These include the Sámi, an Indigenous people living in an area that extends over the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. Sámi championships and a Sámi national football team have been important elements in shaping a Sámi national identity across the state borders. Against this background, the historical development that led to the formation in 1990 of a Sámi National Sports Federation was highly complicated. The period from 1970 to 1990 was fraught by the dilemma of how sport was to be organized – based on the division of the Sámi by state borders or through a transnational Sámi sports organization. The outcome was a compromise in that the Sámi National Sports Federation was founded as an umbrella organization under which Sámi in Norway, Sámi in Finland, and Sámi in Sweden established separate and autonomous Sámi ‘district associations’.
• The Nordic model and multiculturalism: the case of Sámi sport, opens in a new tab, Eivind Å. Skille, Sport in Society, Volume 22(4), pp.589-605, (2019). The Sámi are the Indigenous people of the North Calotte, living in Sápmi (land of the Sámi, which covers the north parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and north east of Russia). This paper examines the role of Sámi sport with reference to the Nordic model – centred on the welfare state and social democracy – and draws on Norwegian and some Swedish empirical data. The analysis shows that on a state level, Nordic sport policy towards Sámi sport corresponds to the neo-traditionalist perspective, that the revitalization of indigeneity is an issue primarily for the indigenous peoples and not for the entire population of the nation state. However, there are several nuances. First, the situation for Sámi sport is better in Norway than in other countries of the Sápmi region. Second, the experiences reported by representatives of local sport clubs show a bicultural, integrated approach to sport organizations.
• State sport policy for indigenous sport: inclusive ambitions and exclusive coalitions, opens in a new tab. Josef Fahlen, Eivind Asrum Skille, International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics, Volume 9(1), pp.173-187, (2017). With the policy aim ‘Sport for all’ as a backdrop, this paper investigates sport policies for Sami sport in Sweden and Norway (the Sami is the indigenous people residing in the northern parts of Finland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden). By applying an Advocacy Coalition Framework, the purpose of the paper is to explore how the organisation of and possibilities to exercise Sami sport are affected by political coalitions, social structures and institutions.