Physical activity among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities TR Shilton 1 & WJ Brown 2 1National Heart Foundation of Australia, SUBIACO Western Australia, Australia 2School of Human Movement Studies, The University of Queensland, Australia Shilton, TR & Brown, WJ (2004) Physical activity among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities. Journal of Science arid Medicine in Sport: 7 {1} Supplement: 39-42. The epidemiological rationale for a focus on physical activity (PA) among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) people is compelling. PA programs have significant potential to benefit ATSI people and their communities through their contribution to reducing chronic disease, improving physical and mental health and well-being, and improving social factors such as community connectedness. Despite the powerful rationale for a focus on PAin ATSIcommunities, few published intervention studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of community strategies to promote increased PA among ATSI people. There are however, some examples of ongoing community programs in the 'grey' literature, which illustrate ongoing work in this domain. In view of the paucity of work in this area, there is an urgent need for (1) more research into the effectiveness of innovative strategies for increasing PA among ATSIpeople; (2) translation of effective strategies into dissemination trials; and (3) fast tracking of research in this area into the scientific literature. Introduction While the Australian population as a whole continues to enjoy good health, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) people suffer higher rates of disease and injury. Life expectancy at birth for ATSI Australians is estimated to be 56 years for men and 63 years for women - some 20 years lower than that for non-Aboriginal people (1). Chronic diseases, including Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, are the leading causes of premature mortality and morbidity among ATSI people, and these problems are more prevalent at a younger age in ATSI adults 12). Though physical inactivity is a very important risk factor for both Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, psychosocial risk factors are also now recognised as significant contributors to coronary heart disease (CHD). The National Heart Foundation has recently published evidence which shows that depression, social isolation and lack of quality social support are as important as more established risk factors j(such as hypertension, smoking and high blood cholesterol) in their contribution to CHD (a. In light of the significant psychosocial stresses (including, for example, dispossession, separation from family and culture, unemployment, economic hardship and associated deprivation and lack of self-determination), faced by' many ATSI people, these risk factors are likely to be particularly important contributors to chronic disease among this population group. While there is a higher prevalence of individual chronic health problems such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes among ATSI people, there are also much higher rates of co-morbidity due to multiple conditions such as coronary artery 39