Sylvia Cardenas

Apart from reducing health related issues that arise from being overweight or obese, physical activity and sport has the ability to shape national and cultural identity, act as a social cohesive for communities, as well as foster a sense of social connection to community. As a result of the growing trend towards sedentary behaviour, however, national recommendations for physical activity are not being met, while sport participation is on the decline. Geodemographics, the study of neighbourhoods by way of demographic, behavioural and psychographic classification, allows researchers to identify and examine the relationship between supply and demand in a geographical context for many specialized markets. The primary intention of this report is to generate a physical activity/sport focused geodemographic cluster system that will identify households in the GTA that have a higher propensity to engage in physical activity or participate in sports (organized or unorganized) and provide insight into the geography of participation with in the Greater Toronto Area.