New Youth Access and Wellbeing Through Art Initiative Launches at the Aga Khan Museum in Partnership with GreenShield

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 17, 2026--

The Aga Khan Museum is pleased to announce the launch of Youth Access and Wellbeing Through Art in partnership with GreenShield, a new initiative designed to give youth free access to art, space and other wellbeing resources.

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“At GreenShield, we know that improving youth mental health requires working alongside communities to remove barriers and support wellbeing in practical, accessible ways,” said Mandy Mail, Executive Vice President, Head of GreenShield Cares. “Our partnership with the Aga Khan Museum reflects the importance of supporting initiatives that create inclusive spaces, foster connection, and contribute to mental health and wellbeing, particularly for youth who may otherwise face barriers to access.”

The need to improve youth mental health is urgent and evident, and arts institutions can play a meaningful role. According to the Government of Canada, young adults aged 15 to 24 are most susceptible to mental health issues. A Harvard University research project found that “Slow looking” in museum settings can increase observational skills, reflective thinking and emotional awareness.

Led by this shared commitment to supporting youth mental health and wellness, the Aga Khan Museum and GreenShield are joining forces to create space for reflection and self-care for youth through art without financial barriers.

GreenShield, Canada’s only national non-profit health care and insurance organization, is dedicated to improving health equity for underserved populations, with youth mental health as a key area of focus. Through GreenShield Cares, GreenShield works closely with community partners to help remove barriers to care and apply its health expertise in ways that improve access, wellbeing, and outcomes for young people.

The initiative also introduces the Slow Looking Experience, a self-guided journey that invites visitors of all ages to spend extended, intentional time with selected artworks in the galleries. By slowing down and giving focused attention to fewer works, participants are encouraged to notice details, reflect more deeply, and form personal connections with art. This practice supports stress reduction, cultivates mindfulness, and fosters a sense of calm in an increasingly fast-paced world.

"Art has the transformative power to strengthen youth mental health and foster a sense of belonging. Providing free admission is a critical step in helping youth engage with the Museum’s collections, exhibitions, and programs,” said Dr. Sascha Priewe, Director of Collections and Public Programs at the Aga Khan Museum. “Through special programming developed for this initiative, we invite young visitors to explore and engage with art in ways that nurture their curiosity and sense of community. We are grateful to GreenShield for their collaboration, which allows us to create experiences that are not just about seeing art, but feeling and immersing themselves in it in a meditative way.”

To mark the launch throughout the month of March, the Museum is presenting enhanced Sunday programming designed to support moments of pause, reflection, and creative exploration. These special Sunday experiences, which include talks and creative workshops, will invite all visitors to engage with art in ways that nurture wellbeing and community, reinforcing the Museum’s role as a space of belonging and shared exploration.

This partnership builds on GreenShield’s broader Youth Mental Health initiative, launched in 2025, which was developed alongside youth and community partners to respond to the growing mental health needs of young people across Canada. The initiative introduced two foundational elements: the Youth Mental Health Data Hub, a publicly accessible dashboard that provides a national snapshot of youth mental health, and GreenShield’s Youth Mental Health Ecosystem, a centralized digital platform offering timely, culturally informed supports. To date, more than 100,000 youth have accessed free, culturally appropriate mental health services and resources through these efforts.

To learn more about Youth Access and Wellbeing Through Art visit agakhanmuseum.org/wellbeing.

About the Aga Khan Museum

The Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, Canada, has been established and developed by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC), which is an agency of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN). Through permanent and temporary exhibitions, educational activities and performing arts, the Museum’s mission is to spark wonder, curiosity, and understanding of Muslim cultures and their connection with other cultures through the arts. Designed by architect Fumihiko Maki, the Museum shares a 6.8-hectare site with Toronto’s Ismaili Centre, which was designed by architect Charles Correa. The surrounding landscaped park was designed by landscape architect Vladimir Djurovic.

About GreenShield

As Canada's only national non-profit health care and insurance organization, GreenShield believes health care is a right, not a privilege. We're dedicated to improving health outcomes, driving systemic change, and building a future where every Canadian can reach their full health and well-being potential.

We are revolutionizing the health care and insurance experience by bringing coverage and care together in one place. Through our unique integrated payer-provider ("payvider") model, we offer insurance, administer benefits and pay claims as a ‘payer’ while offering health care services such as mental health, pharmacy, telemedicine and chronic disease management as a ‘provider’.

As a non-profit social enterprise without shareholders, we reinvest our excess earnings to directly support underserved communities. Through GreenShield Cares, we positively impacted the health and well-being of over one million Canadians between 2020 and 2025.

What’s driving us now is the commitment to measurably impact an additional three million Canadians by 2030 – across mental health, essential medicines, and chronic disease management – through scalable initiatives that deliver meaningful change in pursuit of our mission of Better Health for All.

GreenShield is proud to be recognized multiple times as one of Canada's Most Admired Corporate Cultures, certified annually as a leading Imagine Canada Caring Company, and honoured with repeat placement on Fortune’s prestigious Change the World list – a testament to our sustained commitment to purpose-driven innovation and impact.

Slow Looking Experience at the Aga Khan Museum. Credit: Raheel Azim

LONDON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in London on Tuesday for talks with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the British government said, as European countries look to keep international attention on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine while the unfolding Iran war engages world leaders.

Starmer’s office said that NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte will also join the meeting at 10 Downing St. to discuss peacemaking efforts in Ukraine and “the need to maintain sanctions pressure on Russia.”

The meeting comes days after the U.S. temporarily waived some Russian oil sanctions in a bid to ease pressure on global supplies triggered by the war in the Middle East, which was sparked by the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran starting on Feb. 28.

Zelenskyy criticized Washington’s move to ease sanctions, saying it would provide a windfall for Moscow to keep up its attacks on Ukraine.

U.S. President Donald Trump says he wants to secure a peace deal that ends Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II and has rattled the continent’s leaders, who reckon that Russia could pose a credible security threat to the European Union by the end of the decade.

But U.S.-brokered talks between delegations from Moscow and Kyiv, which so far have yielded no significant progress on key issues, have lost momentum amid the Middle East conflict.

At the same time, Trump has spurned Zelenskyy’s offer of help for the United States and its Persian Gulf partners in fighting Iranian drones. Ukraine has become one of the world’s leading producers of high-tech, battle-tested drone interceptors.

British officials say that Russia and Iran are collaborating on drone technology and tactics in the Middle East. Drone combat experts from the U.K. and Ukraine have been sent to the region to help Iran’s neighbors repel its drone attacks.

Starmer’s office said the U.K. and Ukraine will sign a deal combining “Ukraine’s expertise and the U.K.’s industrial base to manufacture and supply drones and innovative capabilities.” Britain is also funding an “AI Center of Excellence” in conjunction with the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.

Zelenskyy, announcing his arrival in London on X, said his priorities are “more security and opportunities for Ukraine.”

Starmer said in a statement that “drones, electronic warfare and rapid battlefield innovation are now central to national and economic security, and that has only been further magnified by the conflict in the Middle East.”

“By deepening our defense partnerships, we are strengthening Ukraine’s ability to defend itself from Russia’s brutal, ongoing attacks, while ensuring the U.K. and our allies are better prepared to meet the threats of the future.”

Russia's Defense Ministry said Tuesday that its air defenses intercepted and destroyed 206 Ukrainian drones overnight over Russian regions, the annexed Crimean Peninsula and the Azov Sea. A total of 40 intercepted drones were flying toward Moscow, the ministry said.

Asked about an increase in Ukrainian drone attacks on Moscow over the past few days, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that authorities in Kyiv were “continuing absolutely futile resistance" against Russia's invasion.

Zelenskyy said late Monday that counterattacks by Ukrainian forces at eastern and southern points along the front line have wrecked Moscow's plans for a March offensive.

His comments couldn't be independently verified, but the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said Monday that Ukrainian counterattacks “are likely constraining” some Russian offensive operations.

Ukraine’s air force said that Russia launched 178 long-range drones of various types across the country overnight starting late Monday, with 154 of them either intercepted or jammed while 22 more struck their targets.

In the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzhia, a Russian strike damaged a terminal of Ukraine’s biggest private delivery company, Nova Poshta, the company said on Telegram. Eight people were wounded, according to Ivan Fedorov, the head of the regional military administration.

Illia Novikov contributed to this report from Kyiv, Ukraine.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

A post office storehouse ruined by Russia's missile in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Kateryna Klochko)

Sappers examine the site of a Russian missile strike which hit a post office storehouse in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Kateryna Klochko)

Sappers examine the site of a Russian missile strike which hit a post office storehouse in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Kateryna Klochko)