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what’s the deal?!

A REPORT ON SKATEBOARDING AND SUSTAINABILITY BY MARCUS GRAßL!

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Within the EU-project „what’s the deal?“, the city of Munich concentrates its research on the local skateboarding scene and its exposure to sustainability. Tough subject, when you think about it: Do urban skateboarders actually have any opinion or attention on sustainability within their sport and lifestyle, or is this subject excluding itself from its own habitus? During the time of research I tried to dive into the scene, talking to main actors of the scene as much as regular skaters. Everybody had something to say about it, which was already one main objective of my field study. What are the arguments of a scene whose original culture may have shifted away from a devoted punk and slacker attitude in order to refocus its old politics on a new ethos of sustainability?!

!A quick retrospective on skateboarding and sustainability!

If we go back in time where the idea of sustainable thinking and actions were as far away as a common idea

climate change and its relevance, I found something quite interesting: The first form of what we call

„skateboard“ today was nothing else than sustainability in its purest output. Back in the 1950’s countless kids

were riding so called „sidewalk scooters“. It consisted simply of an old roller-skate nailed to each end of an

old plank. On top of it, an upended fruit crate was nailed to one end of the plank and some handles were

added on top of the fruit crate. For the benefit of youngsters, fruit came in re-usable wood crates which found

a new disposal in the self-made scooters. It would take some more time, until someone thought of it as a

skateboard. Matter of fact it wasn’t Marty McFly from the movie „Back to

the future“ who first thought of those scooters as a skateboard, when

talking of the fruit crate (fyi). This is not too far away from the truth,

though. The flaw in this design was the fruit crate, which eventually came

loose from the plank. !

The kids found out, that the plank with wheels alone was actually better

than the scooter with the fruit crate on top. This is the first development of

what we call a skateboard today and took place around the late 1940’s in

the U.S.. So a skateboard is nothing else than the result of some bored

kids, who used their creative minds to form something new out of some

old and used material or even garbage. The kids started to copy the

movements of surfing on the ocean and conferred it on the asphalt or later even in abandoned swimming

pools. „Sidewalk Surfing“ as they called it in those days, was seen as a short-term phenomenon which

wouldn’t last for long. Though, using those abandoned swimming pools was

already a sustainable move, if you think about it. As we all know the people

were wrong and 60 years later, skateboarding is still around and it is even

bigger than ever. Statistics count a number of approximately 40 million skaters

world wide these days. But before we talk about those statistics on

skateboarding and how it developed to become such a lasting subculture with

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a very certain attitude towards life, let’s talk about the meaning of sustainability and what it actually

means. !

Nowadays the word „sustainability“ is used quite inflationary in a lot of ways, as I read about „most

sustainable highway ever“ for example. It means nothing else but a longterm and future-oriented

development or eventually going easier on our natural resources when planning massive construction. If we

go back a bit further in time, we’ll learn, that the actual principle of sustainability emerged already 300 years

ago in Germany. A smart woodsman of Freiberg suggested in 1713 to chop exactly that amount of wood

which could grow again through reafforestation and systematic seeding and planting. Seems pretty logical for

a woodsman, as he probably had the problem of exhausted resources many times. In doing strategic

seeding, he of course wouldn’t have the problem of exhaustion again. Sustainability was born. !

It wasn’t until the 20th century when the world would seriously devote itself to the problems of environmental

pollution. Besides the over-population of the world, the main focus was put on the wasteful exposure of

natural resources. Most of the regulations they made, were noncommittal and no sanctions were forced by

disobeying them. So what happened to the first revolutionary plan to save the environment? Actually nothing.

Since no pressure was put on anybody, nobody cared. In the 1970s a devotion to environmental topics grew

distinctly. The declaration of the United Nations conference on the human environment in Stockholm 1972

counts as one of the most important climax on the research of our environmental change. From this date on,

mandatory regulations were settled, which ensure the protection of our environment through the UN. Many

goals and propositions followed the contract. So it was all already a bit more obligated.!

!Sustainability today!

In 2014, sustainability has risen - like never before - to a very noticeable public spirit. But we have also to be

aware, that it is used for a lot of outrage. If you go on research what sustainability is all about, you will find

out that among certain people “sustainability” evokes a feeling of suspicion, and an inclination to disagree

with whatever is being said. Apart from political or social misuse, “sustainability” is a very positive term,

suggesting stability, continuity, environmentally responsible behavior and peace. These days, sustainability is

quite fancy to use for a more suspenseful image. For example in modern urban youth- or subcultures: The

beginning of youth culture as we know it today, has its roots with the first appearance of pop culture in the

1950s. First subcultures like e.g. „Mods“ appeared in the late 1950s out of the working class in England. With

nice suits and a certain taste in dress, dance and music the „Mods“ tried to undermine their origins and find

their own unique way of expressing themselves. Youth culture or even subculture these days are hard to

point out. What we call the „Hipster“ today is one last noticeable uprise of a certain kind of youth culture.

Through globalization and the internet the prototype hipster ist pretty much a conglomerate of some former

subcultures. You’ll eventually find the alleged hipster with some old ripped skinny jeans combined with a Hip

Hop shirt and some vintage sunglasses. But this is a total different chapter. What I’m trying to point out here

is, that living in a manner of a certain responsibility towards our environment has become quite important for

a hip young urban lifestyle like the hipsters. Drinking your soy-latte out of a recyclable cup, shopping in an

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organic grocery store and carrying a totebag instead of getting a plastic bag for your groceries and

last but not least being vegan is already a to be observed habitus of a more sustainable thinking youth

between 20 and 35. This sounds pretty promising for our environment, doesn’t it? Still, we also have to look

on the reverse side. Buying products from all over the world online instead of trying out the retails in your

neighborhood or buying frozen shrimps of aquacultures in Thailand in a discount shop instead of going to

your local fish dealer isn’t that common, yet. Let’s face it. We all have responsibility towards our environment

and to the future generations. But still, almost none of us is willing to minimize their standards of living to

reach a certain target. The youth is going in the right direction, though. With a global youth phenomenon like

the hipster, also urban biking became very en vogue. Especially „fixie bikes“ (a fixed-gear bicycle is a bike

that has a drivetrain with no freewheel mechanism), which offers the advantages of simplicity compared with

the standard multi-geared bicycle, have been very popular the last couple of years. Since fixies are single-

speed bikes, they’re quite easy to build out of used old bikes, if you got

some skills. A lot of old race bikes have found a new life because of this

hip fashion and is of course another great way of sustainable thinking in

even two points: Build something new out of something old and ride your

bicycle instead of an automobile. This group of people, who have a

reflective opinion on their environment is still a tiny little bubble en bloc.

Hardly anybody on earth is willing to change their live for the

environment and subsequent generations. What we can do, is pointing

out the necessity of sustainability and how it is exerted throughout the scenes of urban culture. !

!Munich research !

Within the last year, I had to find a little gate to get a glimpse of a scene which is not that easy to get into. As

a researcher you have to handle the fact that people feel easily observed and exposed during interviews.

Especially when talking about a topic in a field, where sustainable actions are quite rare. Although, a

common sense towards fair-trade products and environment-friendliness is a fixed place within the scene as

pro-skater Fabian Lang told me: !

„Of course, fair-trade, or other production quality marks are important for us, too. Skating

involves a lot of wear and skaters are always focused on costs. We’re happy to find a shoe

below the price of 100,00 €. On the other hand, our gear wears down quickly. So, you

should try to have a sustainable approach towards these products. You should buy

products that were produced fairly. Skaters undergo many influences from music, sports

and culture, so environmental awareness is higher too, since we deal so with it so much. Wether a skater

buys fair-trade products or not. At least he thinks about it. He thinks about where his gear comes from, where

it’s made and from what materials. And how long does it last. This is important. How long does a board last?

Shall I buy a €20 deck, which breaks the next week or shall I buy a quality product that was produced more

sustainably but pay more for it? (Fabian Lang, 2014)!

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Fabian’s quote represents the common view of most of the skaters I interviewed. But a good will is

not what I was looking for. Especially in a scene where deterioration belongs to the sport just as concrete or

asphalt is the best surface to skate on. Where are the sponsors of pro skaters, who offer a deal along with

fair-trade equipment? Since most of the skate brands are produced in low-cost production countries, this is

still a far way to go. !

During this research some skaters mentioned the „Pigeon Plan“. This is a project aiming to collect used

skateboards for children from poorer regions in South Africa. !

„The Pigeon Plan works with children's homes, primary schools, and other social services

in the townships. At each location, a crew of volunteers, skateboarders, and helping hands

provide one-week workshops, where kids get taught the basics on a skateboard.

Skateboarding is something special and unique; no team, no special training, and only a

piece of tar/concrete is needed. Rather than having old boards lying uselessly around at

home, they can be put to good use. On a board we learned how to deal socially with

others, to see the world differently, and express ourselves through movement; the urban jungle can become

your playground. That's what skateboarding is about for us and that is the reason why we want to share our

love for skateboarding with the kids of South Africa.“ !

The Pigeon Plan achieved their goal to convey used skateboards to kids in South Africa and to offer skate

workshops in the township. This is not only an examination with sustainability in its material form, but also a

sustainable manner on international understanding. !

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The perspective on sustainability is seen in many different ways within the skateboarding scene.

While some are more focused on fair-trade products and material, others put their focus on how

skateboarding can teach you a way of living your life. In Munich I talked to Tobias Kupfer aka. „Albertross“,

who offers skateworkshops for young school kids. His goal is not only to teach some „Ollis“ or „Kick-flips“ but

to learn for life: !

„We teach the kids that they need to wear helmets as beginners. That’s better than ending up in a hospital.

We try to protect them and offer a smooth entry. We try to limit the amount of pain. But falling down and

getting up again is an existential issue for everybody. If a child doesn’t learn to get up after falling down, it will

haunt them forever. It builds willpower. This is more sustainable than anything else. (Albertross, 2014)!

In a more or less philosophical approach Albertross is putting his own thoughts on sustainability on a lesson

for life and of course your own body. „Skateboarding is still a dangerous sport, where injuries are daily

business. If you don’t look after yourself, you might get some serious problems when older. So consider this

as my personal sustainable thought.“ (Albertross, 2014)!

During my research hardly anybody denied that a certain responsibility towards sustainability is necessary.

„Skateboarding is one of the leading contributors to maple deforestation, with over 100.000 skateboard

decks produced per month in the United States alone. It takes 40 to 60 years for the Canadian maple tree to

mature before it can be cut down and made into skate decks. The negative environmental impact is

palpable“, as Eric Nay from „Made in Canada“ Blog remarks. It is noticeable though, that everybody is

thinking about, what can be done:!

„Of course skateboards are made of wood. Real skateboards are all made of one type of wood, maple. The

original decks are from Canada. And of course, they cleared trees to make them or various adhesives were

used and pressed. Every skater has to be aware of that.“ (Simon, 2014)!

The politics of skate culture may have changed from a certain punk rock attitude and rejection of conformity

to a post-capitalist message. It seems, that they are refocusing its old habits on a new ethos of sustainability.

As a result one can see that many skaters - who are also designers - are exploring sustainability through

innovative design to ride the wave of ecological responsibility:!

„There’s a demand. There’s a group that collects old skateboards and plants a tree in the alps for every five

boards collected. People build furniture or make jewelry out of them. They even make

frames for sunglasses from old skateboards. You can do a lot with them.“ (Simon,

2014)!

One of those designers is Florian Bürkle. He sees skateboards as a source of

inspiration for his output. Next to classical products like skateboard axles, wheels or

decks which he develops for the skate industry, he also builds these extraordinary

furniture out of old skateboards. !

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Conclusion!

If we think about sustainability these days, we have to come to terms with a general Zeitgeist, which is about

to escalate in every corner of our lives. And to be honest, at a first careful glance, this is a very good

development of environmental thinking:!

Movements and brand marks like „Bio“ or „Slow Food“ are already a settled industry in mostly urban spaces

in our western civilization. They are even slowly finding their way to totally complementary assets like

worldwide fast food chains as „McDonalds“, Matter of fact McDonalds is just turning their red/yellow symbol,

to a green/yellow one to symbolize their development to a more environmental thinking way on their offers.

This trend is recognized by everybody right now. The label „Fair Trade“ is also about to find its way in big

fashion chains like „H&M“ as its boss Karl-Johann Persson remarks. It first sounds like a big conspiracy that

big enterprises are about to commercialize the brand marks of „Fair Trade“ and „Bio“. How is it possible to

produce „bio-products“ in such a big amount? This is of course still a long way to run until this is

development is guaranteed alongside every brand and market. !

But still, seeing this as a trend might just not be the worst thing, since it will automatically be transferred in

everybody's mind and even habits of consumption. So the big question we all might ask someday when

consuming hopefully will be „what’s the deal?“.!

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!Bibliography:!

http://www.alternativesjournal.ca/community/blogs/made-canada/after-thrashing-making-skateboarding-sustainable!

http://hipsterconservative.com/tag/sustainability/!

http://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/handel-konsumgueter/guetesiegel-hundm-will-nur-noch-faire-mode-herstellen/8460456.html!

Borden, Ian: Skateobarding, Space and the City - Architecture and the Body. New York 2001!

!Interviews:!

Fabian Lang!

Kilian Heuberger!

Lea Schairer!

Tobias „Albertross“ Kupfer!

Matt Wiegele!

Kilian Gerle!

Martin Winkler!

Sofija Pantelić !

!Photo credit:!

Cover: Marko Dukić!

Kids: The Pigeon Plan!

Stool: Florian Bürkle!

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