August 2023

My experience as a Youth Partner for POPCORN

Written By: Cedar Davidson

My name is Cedar Davidson and I am a youth partner for POPCORN.  I completed my BSc in Biology, minoring in French, Bioinformatics & Human Services at Lincoln University, the first degree-granting Historically Black University (HBCU) located in Pennsylvania, in 2021. I was captain of the Women’s Soccer Team and held many other leadership positions on campus. Upon graduation, I moved home to Ontario where I volunteer on the oncology floor at SickKids, in the post-op unit at Southlake Hospital, and as a bilingual Kids Help Phone Responder. I’m a respite caregiver and tutor for children with special needs. I am completing my Master’s of Public Health at Brock University and will be applying to medical school.

With aspirations of working in medicine, I have always been interested in research. I participated in a bioinformatics internship in 2019 at Loyola University Chicago, as well as in the Undergraduate Research Program where I developed and conducted a survey relating to parental satisfaction with healthcare team communication. These experiences in my undergrad familiarized me with research protocols, conducting research, and the many factors and barriers that affect participation in research from the investigator and respondent standpoints.

I am passionate about advocacy and seek opportunities to amplify marginalized voices. I am an Athletes’ Voices Student Fellow, where I work with past and current professional athletes who want to use their platforms to address social justice issues. Attending an HBCU prompted me to start the Allies Advocating for a Purpose Initiative which pairs students of diverse backgrounds to learn from the experiences of one another.

I seek ways to bring advocacy into the research and medical field, which is something partnering with POPCORN has allowed me to do. I was very excited to work with the POPCORN Patient Engagement and Knowledge Mobilization teams earlier this year.

Being a youth partner for the family-friendly website project made me feel that my voice matters. I wanted to be part of this initiative because I felt that my experience of conducting my own research, as well as witnessing the recruitment of families for research at the hospital was an important part of increasing participation and supporting children and families in research. What we said during our meetings was noted and how we felt was validated and understood. Our feedback was given based on the clarity and accessibility of information and communication from the lens of potential patients and families participating in the study. It was also great to see the follow-up and implementation of what we suggested. I got to learn from the diverse experience of other youth partners whether that be as researchers themselves or as patients trying to engage in research.

This project was also meaningful to me because I could echo the voices of some families I spent time with at the hospital and share their thoughts on research engagement. This opportunity emphasized how more youth can engage in research which I carry with me into future research projects and advisory councils. It also highlighted that youth voices have a place in research and that many more great ideas can be generated when we work together and consider various points of view.

To learn more about ways to get involved in POPCORN research, please email:

Carla Southward, Patient, Family, and Engagement Coordinator
carla.southward@sickkids.ca.