Our Purpose
Our purpose is to help the young people of Aotearoa to develop a love of movement that creates a strong foundation of health that allows them to grow, learn and thrive.
"It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver." Mahatma Gandhi
Our Virtual Coaches
We are so grateful to have our inspiring ASICS Ambassadors Ardie Savea, Kane Williamson and Ameliaranne Ekenasio as our virtual coaches, "leading" classes through the Zespri Young and Healthy Virtual Adventure.
They provide support and encouragement and whenever possible we visit participating schools so tamariki can meet our sporting superstars in person.
Sustainable Development Goals
The Young and Healthy Trust contributes to improving;
Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all.​
Science suggests that optimal physical and brain health contributes to Goal 4, being able to receive a quality education.
What are SDG's?
The Sustainable Development Goals: Agenda 2030 is a global commitment to address the most important issues we face. These Global Goals (or SDGs for short) were developed by communities, businesses, educators, scientists, and advocates from over 100 countries, including NZ.
Aotearoa has signed up to these Global Goals to help shape the difference we want to make in our communities. For the Young and Healthy Trust, Good Health and Wellbeing is a big contributor to all the Global Goals, but especially being able to receive a quality education, both of which are critical for the people of our nation to thrive.
Our Founder
For over 25 years, founder of the Young and Healthy Charitable Trust, Kim Harvey has poured her energy, passion and knowledge into encouraging people, big and small, to nurture and improve their health and wellbeing as well as they possibly can by taking small steps, every single day.
With research showing that the first 10 years of life are critical to ensure children develop a love of being healthy and active, Kim started her journey by developing a home-based activity program for children and their families to help them find their way to create sustainable healthy habits.
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With funding from Sport Auckland and teamed with a DHB dietician, she visited families in their homes and often brought her families together to have fun being active together in a supportive environment. It was incredibly successful and drove her desire to create a more scalable solution that could reach more tamariki and their whanau. The seeds of this were developed while she was running one of NZ's first corporate wellbeing company's and developing engaging programs for adults.
The New South Wales Ministry of Health noticed the success of the engaging activity challenges Kim had developed for workplaces and a collaboration was born to develop a program for school children.
With support of NSW Rugby League who supplied NRL players as the virtual coaches, the Virtual Adventure pilot program was launched and subsequently evaluated by the University of Sydney who found the program had a positive impact on the physical activity of students, and importantly doing more physical activities, becoming fit and feeling healthier were identified by the students themselves as some of the things they liked the best about the program. Teachers also reported that the program was a great opportunity to motivate students to become more physically active and also noted improved attendance and that the event facilitated positive social behaviours by promoting teamwork and encouraging student relationships.​
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Following the success of the pilot, In 2019 Kim established the Young and Healthy Charitable Trust and thanks to the support of our partners and Sport New Zealand funding, ongoing feedback from teachers, students, parents and our Advisory Board, we continue to evolve the program and deliver it at no cost to schools across Aotearoa. To date over 170,000 kiwi kids have taken part in our school program cultivating habits that lay the groundwork for a lifetime of health and vitality.
Our Advisory Board
Sarah Ryan is a Professional Learning Partner at Sport Waikato under the Healthy Active Learning umbrella through Sport NZ. After 10 years of secondary teaching and a dean in the Horowhenua, Sarah has made the move back to the Waikato with her family. Sarah brings passion and enthusiasm for physical education and has a keen interest in the holistic nature of the subject. Sarah has a proven track record in whole school approaches to wellbeing and in her current role is delivering professional development to primary and intermediate teachers around the delivery of quality physical education. She is a great supporter of the work of the Young and Healthy Trust, and many of the schools she works with in the Waikato have done the Virtual Adventure program. Having experienced the impact first hand, and with her wealth of knowledge, Sarah is a great asset to the Advisory Board.
Tanya Nielsen brings over 20 years of experience in education, community engagement, and student wellbeing. Having dedicated two decades to Makauri School as a parent, teacher aide, and teacher, she has made a lasting impact on countless students, fostering a supportive and enriching learning environment.
During that time she has participated in the Young and Healthy Virtual Adventure integrating it into all aspects of the curriculum, bringing the learning to life. This combined with her deep understanding of student development, her hands-on classroom experience, and her passion for children’s wellbeing make her a valuable voice on the Young and Healthy Trust Advisory Board.
Laura McAlpine is a registered Health Psychologist with nearly two decades of experience in health and wellbeing settings across New Zealand and Australia. She has worked with thousands of individuals over the years, helping them understand the drivers of their wellbeing and supporting them to feel confident and empowered in managing their own health journeys.
Based north of Auckland with her husband and tween daughter, Laura is also a passionate youth netball coach. She firmly believes that wellbeing is the foundation for sustainable performance whether in sport, work, or life.
Laura is particularly passionate about the importance of early intervention, believing that the earlier we build these skills and habits, the better equipped young people are to thrive. She’s excited to contribute as an advisor on the Young and Healthy Trust project, supporting initiatives that give youth a strong start in lifelong wellbeing.
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The Zespri Young and Healthy Virtual Adventure uses a unique digital platform to engage tamariki in a fun way, inspiring and encouraging them to make healthy choices.
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