People in Motion: The Key Principles of Exploration and Skill Adaptation and their Role in Designing Movement Experiences for Enhancing Motor and Cognitive Development Throughout the Lifecourse

James Rudd is a Professor in Motor Learning and Pedagogy at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences; his research interests are in the area of motor learning theory and its practical applications for skilled behaviour. James’ work is applied across the life course from children’s movement learning and development, to stroke rehabilitation in clinical and elderly populations. To date, most of his work has been with children and young people through designing and evaluating PE curriculums and sports programmes with a focus on developing enriched environments where children are able to become highly adaptable and skilled movers and learn to be creative and seek out physical activity regardless of their setting i.e., urban or countryside. You can learn more about this work in a recent book titled, Physical literacy the importance of play, that James led and was commissioned by Routledge. In recent years James has secured significant funding in stroke rehabilitation. The project titled PEER (Pedagogy and Enriched Environment for Rehabilitation), leverages the home environment to enhance patients' cognitive and motor functions. This approach aims to empower healthcare workers, patients and families to design tailored home-based interventions, promoting equitable, sustainable and cost-efficient care that is accessible to all individuals, regardless of their economic status. The project envisions a future where home-based rehabilitation is widely used, reducing the strain on healthcare facilities and bridging the gap between inpatient and outpatient care settings.