HEAL Spotlight: Neil Kovacs
- Post by: Anastasia Soukhov
- 9:36AM Aug 13, 2026
- No Comment
The HEAL Spotlight series is a monthly feature where we celebrate the people behind the research and highlight the diverse voices that make the HEAL such a vibrant community.
Meet Neil Kovacs:
Hometown: North Bay, Ontario
Hobbies: Weightlifting, Running & Genealogy
Education: BAS (Hons) in Biology & Geography from Trent University
Current role at HEAL: Second-year MSc Student in Geography & Environment (Thesis Supervisor: Dr. Jason Gilliland) and Grade 5 ACT-i-Pass Project Co-Administrator
Joined the HEAL: June 2024
My graduate research focuses on using spatial and community-based approaches to explore determinants behind physical activity accessibility and engagement, as a current co-administrator of the HEAL’s Grade 5 ACT-i-Pass project (G5AP) The G5AP works with local service providers to provide a variety of free or low-cost recreational opportunities to Grade 5 children living in the London, St. Thomas, and Middlesex, Elgin and Oxford Counties.
More specifically, my MSc thesis examines the impacts of socio-ecological determinants on youth physical activity accessibility across Southwestern Ontario, as well as the investigating the driving environmental causes of child physical activity engagement in London, Ontario using G5AP participant survey data.
What Neil Enjoys Most About Working with HEAL:
I love being a part of a growing interdisciplinary team of diverse research backgrounds and experiences who are always willing to lend a hand. I have also truly enjoyed engaging directly with the HEAL’s community partners and program participants while working as a co-administrator on the Grade 5 ACT-i-Pass team. These experiences have provided me with the opportunity to hear firsthand stories from children, parents, and service provider representatives of the positive impacts that the HEAL’s projects, such as the ACT-i-Pass, have had on local communities. I greatly appreciate having been able to help support the lab’s continued focus on community-based research, youth health promotion, and knowledge mobilization initiatives in London and across Southwestern Ontario.