The Greater Columbus Sports Commission has been named a 2021 Project Play Champion by the Aspen Institute for its work hosting the inaugural Community Youth Camp in June. The four-day camp promoted confidence and personal wellness, while teaching life lessons such as teamwork, sportsmanship and overcoming adversity. Led by local leaders, more than 60 campers aged 6-12 were exposed to 16 different sports, from cycling to yoga.

The Project Play Champions program annually recognizes local and national organizations taking new, meaningful, and specific actions consistent with the Project Play framework. Launched in 2013, Project Play has helped hundreds of organizations develop, apply and share knowledge that helps build healthy communities through sports. Its 2015 report, “Sport For All, Play for Life: A Playbook to Get Every Kid in the Game,” aggregated contributions from 250+ industry experts to outline the eight guiding strategies, or Plays, for a healthy, inclusive sport environment.

The Plays

Play 1: Ask Kids What They Want

Play 2: Reintroduce Free Play

Play 3: Encourage Sport Sampling

Play 4: Revitalize In-Town Leagues

Play 5: Think Small

Play 6: Design For Development

Play 7: Train All Coaches

Play 8: Emphasize Prevention

As a member of the 2021 class of Project Play Champions, the Sports Commission will be featured at the 2021 Project Play Summit, presented by ESPN and TeamSnap. The virtual event will take place Oct. 19-20. Register here.

Project Play - In Their Own Words

The Aspen Institute’s Project Play has been called the “conscience of youth sports.” Our mission is to develop, apply and share knowledge that helps build healthy communities through sports. We identify gaps and work with leading organizations to fill them so every child in America can access sports, regardless of zip code or ability.

Stay Up to Date

Interested in learning more about Community Youth Camp? Check out our website and stay tuned for information about 2022!