My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
Yes
I am 18 years of age or above, by the application deadline.
Yes
My organisation is a registered UK entity and has a London-based address.
Yes
My organisation is a non-profit (e.g. school, university, or local authority) — not a for-profit, which can only join as a partner.
Yes
If there is a for-profit organisation as a partner in my initiative, they work on a cost-recovery basis only.
Yes
My solution is implemented at scale, or if not, I have a clear business plan, a minimum viable solution (prototype, pilot, or proof of concept), evidence of access to a lease for the space you are leveraging, and evidence of work or impact in London within your coalition.
Yes
I am aware that, if I am submitting more than one application to a Challenge run by Ashoka and Go! London, only one of them is able to progress through the stages.
Yes
Are you an employee (and their children and grandchildren) of Ashoka or any of its respective affiliates and participating advertising and promotion agencies?
No
I have read and accepted the Challenge Terms & Conditions.
Yes
First Name
Nicolas
Last Name
Alvanis
Pronouns
He/Him
Email address
I would like to receive notifications and updates about Go London!, Ashoka, Ashoka Changemakers, and other Ashoka opportunities.
0
Are you an Ashoka Fellow?
No
Are you applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow?
No
If you are applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow, please specify the name and organisation of the fellow below.
Lead Organisation Name
TheCaliAcademy CIC
Year that you started/ registered your organisation
2025
Initiative Title
Built For The Future
My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
1
Website URL(s) or Social Media Handles
www.thecaliacademy.com, @thecaliacademy
Initiative Stage
Idea (You have a solid concept and are hoping to get started in the future)
Sectors/Themes: What topic does your project most directly relate to?
Children & Youth
Initiative Summary: Describe your initiative in one sentence
A youth-led partnership turning an unused secondary school classroom into a shared calisthenics and creative hub.
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve and who will benefit the most from your solution? How close are you to the problem and/or community impacted?
Young people, particularly those aged 16-25 from Lambeth and surrounding boroughs - are excluded from spaces that combine regular physical activity with creative learning and paid work opportunities. Even where facilities exist, they are often underused, unaffordable, or feel culturally unwelcoming, meaning young people, especially those from underserved communities, have limited reasons or routes to engage consistently. Equally, progression through sport is rarely built into the programmes on offer. Physical activity is often presented as a standalone or short-term activity, rather than as something that can lead to leadership positions, skill development or paid work. As a result, the participation of young people wanting to build careers in sport drops sharply during late adolescence, especially among young people facing economic and social barriers. These are the young people involved in our operation as The Cali Academy CIC, using accessible movement as a contemporary solution to combat social issues and sculpt a healthier generation. This project offers a bottom-up approach designed by young people for young people who currently lack access to inclusive multi-purpose spaces that offer clear pathways into learning, leadership and paid creative and/or sport-related work.
Your approach: How are you/ will you addressing the problem outlined above? How does your solution unlock or reimagine access to spaces for sport and physical activity? What role do landowners, local authorities, or other decision-making stakeholders play in your approach? We'd love to know about the origin of your idea, and what was your "aha" moment" that led you to take action?
We are addressing the problem outlined above by reimagining both space and progression through a model that shifts power to young people, giving them free access to a safe and culturally relevant space for movement and creativity. We will do this by transforming an unused classroom within Oasis St Martins Village, a key stakeholder in providing opportunities for young people, and a former high school turned into a community village - into a free, multi-use space for young people between 16 to 25. The Cali Academy CIC (previously ‘University Calisthenics Association’) will partner with Kalos Creates - both former Go!London Young Entrepreneur winners - to integrate Calisthenics and creative enterprise into one space that will operate as a split studio: one half an indoor calisthenics gym, the other a creativity and print studio. We will work closely with stakeholders such as Sport England and the GLA, who have actively supported our idea by visiting the space and being part of our collective mission. The origin of our idea began on the Go!London Young Entrepreneurs programme, where we crossed paths and aligned over the common community-centred approach we were adopting. It was realising that the combined power of accessible movement and creativity in combination provided the perfect growth opportunity for a young person to develop themselves, both physically and mentally. After both succeeding on the scheme, we are joining forces to create an even more impactful and resourceful solution.
Collaboration with young people and the community: In what ways does your initiative engage young people and community members closest to the problem? What role do they play in building the solution you deliver?
Our initiative engages with young people directly facing these problems. The Cali Academy has already engaged thousands of young people - and specifically in Lambeth, where many communities are facing rising isolation, youth violence, and declining physical and mental health. We have been able to engage with these young people through accessible mediums that instigate transformative change on an individual and collective level. Our chosen medium is Calisthenics, otherwise known as bodyweight exercise, which is uniquely positioned to do this due to requiring minimal equipment and accessible to all skill levels. Alongside movement, we are partnering with Kalos Creates, an entity run by young people offering employment to disenfranchised communities through creative mediums and paid work opportunities within the sector. Currently, Kalos Creates have offered over 45 hours of paid youth-employment and engaged over 250 young people. Instead of separating sport, creativity and employment pathways, they operate together. Free access removes financial barriers, while embedded paid roles ensure participation leads to progression. Through this asset-based community development model, young people aged 16–25 will train, co-design how the space runs, support delivery, and move into paid leadership roles. Alongside physical activity, they will build practical skills in branding, production, teamwork and entrepreneurship. Rather than treating sport as a one-off activity, creativity as a hobby, or space as single-use, this integrated model supports: - Increased and sustained engagement in physical activity - Paid work experience opportunities. - Development of leadership and coaching pathways - Progression into paid roles linked to sport and creative industries
Potential for/Evidence of Impact: How do you imagine your initiative will make a difference in unlocking spaces for and access to physical activity and sport so far? If you have already implemented it, what difference have you made so far? What is the impact your initiative has had , and or what impact do you envision having in the future?
The Cali Academy has delivered calisthenics sessions for 16–25 year olds across London for over four years with great success, engaging thousands of young people through training sessions, competitions, workshops and 15+ large-scale community events. Many sessions are student-led, with a very strong inter-university community. These sessions have greatly inspired many of our members, with many reporting them to improve their physical, mental, and social wellbeing. Kalos Creates builds on this with a proven youth-led enterprise model. Originally founded as a calisthenics community, Kalos has grown into a working creative production studio delivering live workshops and projects for brands such as Football Beyond Borders, Harlequins Rugby Foundation, Hennessy and Gymbox. Young people have designed and produced merchandise, supported live print activations and worked on real-world briefs, gaining paid experience and industry exposure. By bringing these two tested models together in one reimagined space, we unlock more than access to sport, we unlock sustained participation linked to income, leadership and long-term opportunity. In year one, we anticipate: Weekly calisthenics sessions with consistent participation. Paid assistant and youth leadership roles in the sport fashion sector. Creative enterprise workshops linked to live commercial briefs. Community events activating wider underused facilities. To capture this impact effectively, we will use innovative methods of data capture, tested with local stakeholders, that our partner has been developing, to best represent the depth of our impact on young people. This will track participation, progression into paid roles, qualifications and employment pathways, while capturing youth feedback and stories of change.
Innovation: What is different about your initiative compared to other solutions that are already out there? How is your approach original and innovative?
Our solution is unique as it aims to combine the physical and creative side of skillset building in the most accessible way. Firstly, through calisthenics as an emerging form of fitness (now booming in popularity), alongside merchandise printing, branding and business opportunities. Together, this creates a holistic experience that is attractive for a young person wanting to grow and progress in life. On a spatial level, we are transforming our indoor environment into a state-of-the-art calisthenics gym and integrated print studio, complete with both physical and digital systems - creating a pioneering hybrid design that has not been explored before. Aside from the split design, there are only a handful of indoor calisthenics spaces across the entire UK which is a unique opportunity in itself. We are also addressing a structural gap by creating a continuous pipeline from participation to leadership and paid work, which is rarely embedded in traditional models. For example, one of our key long-term goals is to create an official accredited Calisthenics certification to upskill our participants and create long-term employment opportunities. Furthermore, the staff and direction of the initiative is led by young people - drawing from real experience and youth-led perspectives to create culturally relevant and impactful solutions and address the core conditions of the complex problems underpinning our initiative. Finally, this initiative transforms two domains (sport & creative pursuits), often stigmatised as unviable career pathways, from short-term activities into long-term opportunities.
Viability and Scalability: How are you setting your initiative up for success, and what is your plan to ensure operational sustainability of your solution and its impact? What are your ideas for scaling your initiative to the next level?
Our initiative is designed for operational sustainability through a blended model of funded provision, earned income and structured partnerships. The Cali Academy will deliver free youth calisthenics sessions supported through grant funding, commissioned delivery and structured programme income. Kalos Creates will operate the creative studio strand as a commercially viable enterprise within the same space, delivering creative enterprise workshops, and generating revenue through live print activations, branded merchandise production and paid commissions. While both organisations retain independent financial structures, the shared space model reduces overhead, increases utilisation and strengthens overall viability. The presence of commercial activity within the studio supports long-term stability of the site, while youth programming remains protected and accessible. We are setting the project up for success through: • A formal partnership agreement outlining responsibilities and space use • A secured site within Oasis St Martins Village • Clear governance and financial separation between partners • Embedded monitoring and evaluation tracking participation, progression and outcomes Long term, this initiative has the potential to operate as a replicable “youth-led space activation” model, where underused institutional spaces are transformed into multi-pathway hubs linking physical activity, creativity and economic opportunities. For scalability, we will: 1. Develop a documented blueprint for reactivating and unlocking underused spaces through the sport-creative hybrid model. 2. Expand partnerships with schools, local authorities and commissioners to reach additional underserved communities and deliver more programmes.
Roles and Responsibilities: Describe how responsibilities are shared among your team or partners.
This initiative is delivered through a structured partnership between The Cali Academy CIC and Kalos Creates, with clearly defined roles across finance, programming, enterprise and operations. From The Cali Academy CIC: Yasin Baahmed leads finance and compliance, overseeing budgeting, forecasting and financial reporting. He ensures resources are allocated sustainably and that commercial income is reinvested into free youth provision. Nic Alvanis leads programme design, developing structured calisthenics pathways from participation to coaching and paid leadership roles. He ensures sessions are inclusive, high-quality and aligned with long-term progression. Demi Alvanis leads marketing and communications, overseeing content production, storytelling and brand strategy. He ensures consistent messaging and amplifies youth voice to grow reach, partnerships and long-term visibility. Andrew Wong leads event delivery and outreach, managing logistics, supplier coordination, sponsorship engagement and on-the-day operations to ensure safe and high-quality activations. From Kalos Creates: Luke Phillips leads commercial strategy, building brand partnerships and securing paid creative commissions that generate sustainable studio income. Martyn Tutin oversees creative development and brand strategy, while supporting young people to gain hands-on industry experience.
Upcoming Milestones: Please provide an overview of the milestones that are required for your initiative to come to fruition/to grow.
Phase 1: Space & Partnership Setup (Months 1–4) - Finalise partnership agreements between The Cali Academy CIC and Kalos - Secure and prepare the Oasis St Martins Village classroom - Install core gym equipment, creative studio systems and safety measures - Announce partnership and get eyeballs on our project Phase 2: Pilot Launch (Months 5-8) - Begin weekly calisthenics sessions and creative enterprise workshops - Embed youth leadership roles within delivery - Implement monitoring and evaluation systems Phase 3: Full Rollout & Growth (Months 8-12) - Deliver consistent weekly sessions with paid youth roles - Host community activation events - Expand B2B partnerships with schools and organisations Phase 4: Digital & Replication (Future) - Develop digital learning resources - Document impact data and operational systems - Create a replicable blueprint for activating additional underused spaces. Other longer-term goals include formalising an official, accredited certification for calisthenics coaching - and consequently offering young people pathways to become calisthenics coaches - using the space to upskill and assess them.
Capacity-Building Participation and Support Funding: If you were to make it as a finalist, you will be required to participate in an 8-week capacity building programme. If funding/ cost is a barrier to your participation, we may be able to offer up to 10,000 GBP of grant money available to support you. Please break down below, if it is the case, what costs you would incur and you would need covered. (Please note that there are restrictions on how the grant money may be used; please refer to the T&Cs for further details.
As a youth-led CIC, the majority of our income is currently reinvested directly into the business. To ensure participation does not disrupt delivery or reduce earned income that sustains free youth provision, we would require support for: 1. Time contribution Partial compensation for time dedicated to the 8-week programme, particularly for the lead applicant, reflecting reduced capacity for income-generating work during this period. 2. Delivery backfill support Contribution towards sessional coaches or assistants to maintain consistent weekly work while senior leadership capacity is reduced. 3. Travel & associated participation costs Travel and incidental costs linked to attending in-person sessions (if required). We would use this support to ensure we can participate at full capacity and apply learning directly into our impact, whilst maintaining stable operations.
If you selected “Other”, please specify below.
The opportunity to explore a completely novel idea in the sports space - combining sport and creative activity into one space and being thought leaders with our new approach to youth engagement. Then, to strengthen it into something truly scalable and impactful for the community, all alongside a fellow partner organisation from Go!London.
