https://www.dynamicaging.ca/blog daily 0.75 2026-03-11 https://www.dynamicaging.ca/blog/Blog Post Title One-3zaa9-zlxng-67tfc-3w4tg monthly 0.5 2026-03-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/8add751e-cd6d-4610-bde2-3ea274c4ef9d/madison-badger-3-edited.jpg Blog - Meet the SOARWell-AiP Research Assistants! - Make it stand out Madi Badger (she/her), MA Hello folks, my name is Madi and I am a PhD Student in the Applied Health Sciences (Social and Cultural Health Studies) program at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario. While I come from an anthropology background in my previous studies, my PhD thesis research will focus on social and cultural health in the LGBTQIA+ community from a recreation and leisure perspective. As a research assistant on this project, Mya and I are each responsible for our own set of participants. This includes interviewing them, answering questions, providing training on how to use the Google Nest Hub 2nd Gen, and meeting them for check-ins to make sure they are getting the help they need. I look forward to continuing to work with these folks to help support them through their participation in our study. At this stage in the project, I have had many opportunities to connect with older adults to discuss what aging in place means to them and how the voice assistant may be helpful for that process. My favourite aspect of research is getting to interact with people and learn about what is important and impactful to them, which is what first interested me in the SOARWell-AiP project. Beyond research, I also like to get involved in my communities in other ways. Currently, I am a committee member with Safe Space Niagara, a local non-profit focused on providing the LGBTQIA+ community with a safe, accessible communal space. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/b2a2c53d-ed5b-4a16-adb6-6b54ed95457a/madis-device.webp Blog - Meet the SOARWell-AiP Research Assistants! - Make it stand out Madi’s Device (featuring Franklin, the Lab Technician) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/013bd8a9-e63e-45d4-af4d-9c687721a245/mya-george-edited.webp Blog - Meet the SOARWell-AiP Research Assistants! - Make it stand out Mya George (she/her), BHSc Hi everyone, I’m Mya! I am currently a second year Master’s student at McMaster University in the Health and Aging MA program. My thesis research focuses on the experiences of older adults with close-friend bereavement and is being supervised by Dr. Nicole Dalmer. It has been such a privilege to talk with older adults about their close friends, the meaning and value of such relationships, and to learn about what grief looks like for them. For the SOARWell project, I work alongside Madi on everything from onboarding new participants to conducting device training and meeting with participants. It has been nice to connect with so many participants over the course of the summer and help to troubleshoot any issues! Prior to starting this project, I had only used the Google Home Mini. It has been interesting to learn about the added functionality of the Google Nest Hub, as unlike the mini, it has a screen and can show videos and photos. Outside of this project and my thesis work, I am involved in accessibility advocacy work through the Accessibility Hamilton Alliance (AHA!). As a group, we work to promote accessible film-going experiences through our annual film festival, we advocate for necessary change in the city in the city of Hamilton and produce relevant podcasts in collaboration with other organizations. Fun fact: technologies used in virtual assistants (such as voice recognition) were originally designed to support individuals with mobility impairments and sensory disabilities. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/de3b172b-136f-422d-b190-a4c478f9970b/hettie.jpg Blog - Meet the SOARWell-AiP Research Assistants! - Make it stand out Mya’s Device (featuring Hettie the Hedgehog for scale) https://www.dynamicaging.ca/home daily 1.0 2026-03-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/1767882654216-A0UGVU4123YQK841S4B8/unsplash-image-FOxb05WmIY0.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/90c4ddc0-8416-412b-9e79-dd55d1b9a01a/Seniors_with_Devices_on_Bench.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/0192d784-44c9-4e05-a38b-497a31645037/Man_and_Woman_Using_Tablet_While_Cooking.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/2707cdfb-e1db-48b4-9962-93c289c4d8f3/AdobeStock_175812603.jpeg https://www.dynamicaging.ca/our-team daily 0.75 2026-03-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/a47a27cb-875f-4894-91fa-3e6144d118b3/Frame+3.jpg Who are we https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/5d5141d8-6d53-4008-bba7-162383525902/unnamed.jpg Who are we https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/c4f4fb81-6d9b-40c5-9ae4-eee8379032b2/madison-badger-3-edited.jpg Who are we https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/1766853225244-ZV9TDC2WKPIKQ36PLB4Y/unsplash-image-eICUFSeirc0.jpg Who are we https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/99b17563-a427-48de-9502-f200a1f5092f/alisa-grigorovich-3+%281%29.jpg https://www.dynamicaging.ca/toolkit daily 0.75 2026-02-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/b9dd0c67-fb0c-45e8-9d48-eb471f9a9393/Screenshot+2025-12-27+at+12.05.49%E2%80%AFPM.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/166998d6-90fa-4b3b-bb47-4450853d851b/Screenshot+2025-12-27+at+12.17.23%E2%80%AFPM.png https://www.dynamicaging.ca/contact-us daily 0.75 2026-01-02 https://www.dynamicaging.ca/our-research daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://www.dynamicaging.ca/our-research/project-one-f5w4d-z9nem-s3jda-eyssk-73f62-tmxz9-2cfet monthly 0.5 2026-03-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/694405011cf1c268e8e7161a/98ef1be9-f605-44fe-8c7c-58d1082369d1/alisa-grigorovich-3+%281%29.jpg Our Research - 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