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How can graphic design encourage young female skaters to embrace the rebellious and disruptive nature of skateboarding in Tokyo?

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"Skateboarding has grown in popularity since Japanese athletes took home three gold medals at the sports 2020 Olympic debut, despite it still being illegal to street skate in Tokyo. By undertaking the Adidas D&AD brief I plan to channel the rebellious history of skateboarding and encourage young Japanese female skaters to embrace the sport and its disruptive stereotype."

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I can't get very good primary research by talking to my direct target audience - however I emailed Shiina, a fellow student, who is living in Japan and could give me some better insight than my secondary research.

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"Embracing and encouraging the rebellious nature and history of Skateboarding in urban Tokyo for young female skaters where they are limited by the illegality of street skating and judgment."

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After a tutorial with Stuart and Cat where I ran through my ideas and research so far:

- My Target audience I will narrow down even further to female skaters in Tokyo, 17-25, this will make my marketing strategies, research and creative development more focused.

- Rather than working round the illegality of skating in the streets, why not work against it? Because of the nature of this module I am under no obligation to follow 'rules' or 'laws'. Skateboarding by history and nature is a very rebellious lifestyle (it's not just a sport), so I shouldn't shy away from this, embrace it, encourage it even.

- What is there already in Tokyo I can use? Just building a skatepark or venue is very mundane and safe - going against Skateboardings nature (as per my previous point). I want to look at brown fields, rundown architecture. Skateboarding started in the US around surf culture, can I touch base with this origin?

- Another student on the course - Shiina - is living in Tokyo, so I have emailed her asking some questions and for the possibility of some images she may be able to take for me, as primary research in my current position will be very difficult:

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"Edinburgh Based Female, non-binary and Queer Skateboarding collective with a drive to empower others."

Skateboobs is a Skate crew that was established in 2019, and now has over 6000 instagram followers. It started with people who moved into the city for University and shared a passion for skateboarding. They wanted to see a change in the way women, queers, and non-binary folk were represented in the community. So they decided to use the instagram page to create this change for themselves.

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Dezeen (2018) Dezeen and Google's Soft Futures talk.

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Dezeen (2018) Dezeen and Google's Soft Futures talk.

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David Dabner, Sandra Stewart & Abbie Vickress (2020) Graphic Design School , Singapore, Thames & Hudsen.

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David Dabner, Sandra Stewart & Abbie Vickress (2020) Graphic Design School , Singapore, Thames & Hudsen.

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Ark League, recently concluded its third annual international event, featuring BMX, skateboarding and, for the first time, breakdancing.

The Ark League was formed in 2017 from a merger of Flat Ark -- a BMX Flatland World Circuit competition started in Kobe in 2013 -- and Skate Ark, which was created shortly after skateboarding was given the tick as a new Olympic sport for the 2020 Games. Break Ark debuted this year as the festival's third offering.

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Vantan Design High School in Tokyo is Japan’s only secondary school for skateboarding, “student” is synonymous with “skater.” Skateparks are their classrooms. When they’re not cruising, students take design classes, paint their boards, and learn how to edit skateboarding videos. Here, arriving on time is often optional, but baggy jeans are the uniform.

Since 2017, a year after skateboarding was designated an Olympic sport, the school has been helping students hone all necessary skills to make it in the skateboarding world.

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Week 1 / After choosing a brief I will conduct in-depth research into the brand itself and any competitive materials/projects that have been established successfully to date. This may give me some loose initial ideas on the direction of my project, if this is achieved, I can do some brief research that is more focused - lots of initial brainstorming.

Week 2 / Create my project plan and decide on a strategy - this is still an early research stage and can be quite open, especially if I'm still developing an idea or approach. However It would be good to be able outline any initial thoughts or direction. Loose aspirations would be good at this stage.

Week 3 / Research current themes and moods relevant to my forming ideas and project requirements. More in-depth competitor research and relevant current affairs. Begin brainstorming and gathering visual ideas and thoughts on the aesthetics for my outcome.

Week 4 / Start concept development - sketches, experiments and testing of ideas.

Week 5 / Further concept development with my experiments and ideas, begin to refine 2 or 3 concepts for audience and peer testing. Identify current or possible upcoming obstacles as we move past the half way point. Refection at this stage is important.

Week 6 / Design development begins, selected route/outcome for project is to be chosen through feedback and reflection and taken to start designing and developing.

Week 7 / Further development and finalised design prepared for 'client' presentation. Exploration of application should also be considered.

Week 8 / Final outcome - delivery and application of project. Final feedback gathered to reflect.

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"Good Graphic Design Is not simply the result of brilliant execution or technique. It is the strong expression engagement with research and an interest in the world at large."

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"Good Graphic Design Is not simply the result of brilliant execution or technique. It is the strong expression engagement with research and an interest in the world at large."

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David Dabner, Sandra Stewart & Abbie Vickress (2020) Graphic Design School , Singapore, Thames & Hudsen.

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David Dabner, Sandra Stewart & Abbie Vickress (2020) Graphic Design School , Singapore, Thames & Hudsen.

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Notes from book:

- Extensive research is vital and key to a successful project - think globally.

- Make sure you create a customer profile - a series of parameters or set of information that defines the desires, trends or interests of the demographic.

- Break the project down into small manageable parts.

- There will be different solutions for the same problem - choose the most appropriate from informed decisions.

- It's good to set a series of checkpoint meetings/approvals with your client.

- Think micro and macro - the whole design needs to appear considered.

- Rigorous testing is needed before launching digital designs to check for hidden errors or glitches.

- Organise your time - plot out the progress of each project from start to end, allocating time to each aspect of the design process.

- Create a schematic diagram to identify how long certain aspects of the job will take to complete, paying particular attention to print and production timeframes near the end.

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Skateboarding as my chosen sport to focus on?

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Skateboarding as my chosen sport to focus on?

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Initial brief thoughts - Adidas as a brand

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Initial brief thoughts - Adidas as a brand

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House of Vans is a place where imagination lets loose over concrete bowls, art installations, workshops and concert stages, inspiring every person who runs, rolls, or stomps through its door. Located in Chicago, London, and Mexico City as well as pop-ups around the world, the House of Vans is home to the creativity that moves us.

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House of Vans is a place where imagination lets loose over concrete bowls, art installations, workshops and concert stages, inspiring every person who runs, rolls, or stomps through its door. Located in Chicago, London, and Mexico City as well as pop-ups around the world, the House of Vans is home to the creativity that moves us.

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Through creative strategy and collaborative design, we create brands and deliver connecting experiences.

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It seems like almost every community has a skate park-a place for the youngins' to go, try out some sick tricks, and hang out with friends. City officials like them because they keep kids off the streets, and kids like them because they provide an adult-free haven where kids can be on their own. But despite their appeal, skate parks are basically empty swimming pools, made almost entirely out of concrete, and do nothing to reduce urban heat island effect or filter stormwater. Now, however, skate park designers are starting to incorporate greener features and nature into their designs. Read on to see how projects like the Ed Benedict Skate Plaza in Portland, Oregon are leading the charge.

Designed by New Line Skateparks and built by California Skateparks the 16,000 sq foot park isn't just one solid mass of concrete. Instead, natural elements like trees and native plants have been incorporated to help reduce stormwater runoff and filter it back into the ground. Granted, the skate park probably has less concrete and surface area than the neighboring parking lot, but it's cool to see designers incorporating elements of sustainability, especially in a rainy environment like Portland.

Ed Benedict isn't the first green skate park in the nation though. That honor goes to the Green Skate Lab in Washington DC, which was hand built by local volunteers out of rammed earth and recycled tires found in National Parks, abandoned lots, and the Potomac River Watershed. Ed Benedict can claim to be the first green skate park in the Pacific Northwest, though, and is the first to make use of bio filtration islands in the center of the park for stormwater runoff.

Despite the large amount of concrete used to build the surfaces, ramps, ledges, and banks, the park is vastly greener than most. Local skater and artist, Dan Garland, also helped design some sculptural elements-cutouts, stamps like "Tread Lightly," and rocks. Trees aren't typically included in parks either, but they abound at Ed Benedict where fully grown perennials will help provide shade for skaters. Let's just hope they're riding bamboo skateboards.

Photos courtesy of Chad Balcom, skateandannoy.com, earthpatrolmedia.com, and California Skate Parks
+ New Line Skateparks + California Skateparks
Via New York Times

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Skate Parks Jump the Gap To Green Design

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It seems like almost every community has a skate park--a place for the youngins' to go, try out some sick tricks, and hang out with friends. City officials like them because they keep kids off the streets, and kids like them because they provide an adult-free

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(Ben Curtis / Associated Press)

On a sunny Saturday afternoon in Tokyo, a few disappointed skateboarders hung about outside the sealed-off grounds of Komazawa Skate Park, boards in hand.

Some were regulars, there to continue working out tricks they'd long been practicing. Others were first-timers, inspired by Japan's dominance at skateboarding's Olympic debut on their home turf earlier in the week.

But they arrived to find the gates shut due to the city's pandemic state of emergency, and outside the fence, unwelcome glares told them it didn't matter that Japan had captured three of the four available gold medals of the Summer Games: Skateboarding would continue to be seen as an unacceptable nuisance on Tokyo's streets and beyond.

Yuta Izumira and his friend had coasted down the paved pathway near the shuttered park - only to get an earful from a passing cyclist who yelled at them to get out of the way.

"It's the first Olympics for skateboarding and the champions were Japanese!" the 18-year-old said. "Here, it's hard to skateboard. ... We get warned over and over again by the police. We get our names and our phone numbers taken down."

The city's skaters say the reality of skateboarding on Tokyo's streets is a far cry from the Olympic glory currently being bestowed on the sport on the country's TV screens. The slew of medals, five in all, including a silver and bronze, the country will readily celebrate. Yet not so much the boundary-pushing, authority-questioning, devil-may-care ethos that comes along with the sport.

Some are optimistic about a change in the sport's image the Games and Japan's gold medals could bring. Others worry a surge in interest may only invite further restrictions. How kindly the city will take to an influx of people keen to try out the new Olympic sport remains to be seen.

In Tokyo, skateboarding is essentially banned in public areas, including most parks, and dedicated skate parks are a magnet for police inspection and complaints, skaters say.

The park that Olympic gold medalist Yuto Horigome grew up practicing in has banned the sport.

Hostility, hurdles and harassment are a daily reality for Tokyo's skaters, for whom the sport can prove a lifeline in a society full of rules and restrictions.

For Shimon Iwazawa, 22, his local skate park in Osaka was a haven when he had trouble fitting in at Japanese public schools after moving back to Japan from Germany in the sixth grade. He was bullied for being mixed-race.

"One of the beauties of skating is that everybody is different and everyone respects and enjoys that difference," said Iwazawa, a YouTuber and author of a book about his relationship with skateboarding. "In Japanese public elementary schools, being different was not always a good thing. But at the skate park, it was comfortable to be different. I was proud to be different."

He hopes that the Olympics will introduce Japanese viewers to the positive aspects of skateboarding, and that they'll come to understand and embrace the rich culture behind it that long preceded it becoming an Olympic sport.

"I want people to know about its origins that lie in freedom," he explained. "It's like a tool to describe yourself. I think of it as more like an art."

Iwazawa waxes lyrical about just how integral the street and the urban landscape - and not just sterile, designated parks - are to the art of skateboarding. It's about charting your own courses, using your creativity, he says, and the increasingly tougher crackdown on skating on the streets of Tokyo sucks the life out of it.

The limitations on street skating may in part be responsible for Japan's Olympic success, Iwazawa said. Skaters are forced to practice only in skate parks, and without that relationship to street culture, they hone skills and tricks with a singular focus on competitions.

Japan's medalists, three of them teenagers and one just 12, have used their moment in the spotlight to plead for more space to practice.

"I hope we'll see many more parks to practice in Japan," 13-year-old Momiji Nishiya said after winning the gold medal in women's street skateboarding. "We'd like to have good trainings and more often."

But a relationship with the city is at the core of the sport's allure, its devotees say.

"We want to be the first ones who conquer that particular handrail or whatever," said Hiroki Hamada, an employee at a skateboard and BMX shop in Tokyo's Shibuya district. "It's something that can only be achieved in that moment, because unlike the park, the city is always changing. I think every skater would prefer to skate street."

On the day of the men's street skateboarding final last week, the board and uniform sported by Horigome flew off the shelves. Hamada said it sold out at the store where he works. But he didn't think skateboarding's newfound popularity would make it easier for the city's skaters - and in some ways, he's perfectly fine with that.

"The older generations don't really understand us," Hamada said with a shrug. "But we aren't really looking to be understood."

Setagaya Skate Park, one of the few in Tokyo that has remained open during the COVID-19 state of emergency, was full of skaters young and old on a recent afternoon despite the stifling summer heat. A young boy flew down a ramp, his dad watching from the sideline with exclamations and feedback like an Olympic coach.

"I like feeling free on the ramp," said 8-year-old Hibito Oshino, already two years into his skating career.

Yuta Machida, a 31-year old teacher who is a regular at the park, fretted that the Olympics could be bad for skateboarding in Tokyo in the short term.

"There are going to be more skateboarders but fewer spots," he said. "The streets are going to get busier and people are going to be stopped more often."

A young skater who'd recently moved to Tokyo from Nara learned that the hard way on Tuesday evening on the streets of Shibuya. The first time he dared let his Baker skateboard touch Tokyo's pavement, two police officers were on his case, giving him a lengthy talking-to and warning he could face consequences.

"What you are doing is wrong, you know," one of the officers scolded.

When they finally let him go, he wandered off into the Shibuya evening on foot, not daring to put down his board again.

But Japan's Olympic skateboarders seem to be winning over hearts in addition to the gold, silver and bronze hardware. A particularly poignant moment came after the women's park skateboarding final Wednesday.

Japan swept with Sakura Yosozumi, 19, taking gold and Kokona Hiraki, 12, taking silver. But the event's most memorable moment came off the course when skaters flocked around 15-year-old teammate Misugu Okamoto after she just missed the podium by placing fourth with a bad fall on her final run. They hugged and cheered her before hoisting her up on their shoulders.

Online, Japanese viewers expressed amazement at the sportsmanship and friendship displayed by the actions of the young female skateboarders.

"To me it was the sort of thing hooligans do," read one remark on Twitter. "The youth taught me something today."
Lowry is a special correspondent. Times staff writer Victoria Kim contributed to this report.

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Japan dominated in Olympic skateboarding. Will it bring acceptance on Tokyo's streets?

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Tokyo skateboarders say the reality on the streets is a far cry from the Olympic glory currently being bestowed on the sport

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adidas x Parley Ocean Plastic | adidas Official Shop

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adidas and Parley are solving the problem of ocean plastics one pair of recyled shoes at a time. Discover the sustainable adidas Parley collection today.

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Being in the business of sport for over 70 years has taught adidas many valuable lessons; lessons on winning, losing and adapting to our athletes' needs, but most importantly we've learned to support all our athletes when the odds might be stacked against them.

The current state of the world might initially cause a lot of us to feel defeated and question the impact we can have. Climate change, pollution, plastic waste, water contamination, you name it, it's happening to our planet.

But our mindset of providing support when an athlete is down and finding new ways to win together is what is driving us as a company to be a better corporate citizen.

We recognize that we are all part of the problem but that doesn't stop us leading the solution, instead it makes us even more creative, innovative and determined.

For over 20 years, adidas has been a change leader in sustainability. We were the first to bring eco-innovations to the mass market, we led the industry with the first sustainability report, and we have been listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) every year since its creation in 1999. We're also a founding member of game-changing initiatives like Better Cotton, Leather Working Group, and Fair Labor Association.

Sustainability is one of the greatest expressions of our purpose, "Through sport, we have the power to change lives." Because if we don't protect the ground we're on, we soon won't have a space to play sport.

"We do have power in our industry beyond the amount of products we're producing."

Erika Benz, Senior Manager Materials Footwear, Environmental Sustainability at adidas

While we raised the bar on environmental standards at our own sites, in our supply chain and for our products, the change is bigger than us. Sustainability is no longer a niche for specialized brands. It's becoming an expected standard for how every company approaches its business. As a big company, we make a big impact in any action we take. This is why we speak up, not only to help our consumers understand why they should care, but our industry as well.

"The reason why I'm at adidas is that as a big company, we do have power in our industry beyond the amount of products we're producing. We have a big voice, we sit on the right committees, we're actively involved with them which gives us a better chance to shift the industry," explains Erika Benz, Senior Manager Materials Footwear, Environmental Sustainability at adidas.

Athletes are surrounded by challenging and inspiring support teams, driving them to perform at their best and enabling others to do the same. We cannot raise our voice alone. Conscious collaborations are a must.

Change is a team sport and we're teaming up with others outside and across our own company's different functions, brands, and markets to change the way we approach sustainable solutions. Some of our most impactful initiatives have come from partnerships with the likes of the Parley network and Fashion for Good innovation platform, while others like the adidas FUTURECRAFT.LOOP and the Reebok Forever Floatride Grow are born from the materials challenges we set ourselves.

Making quality products is just as important as waste reduction, upholding decent labor, and health and safety standards, refining production methods, innovating recycled materials and activating communities to raise awareness of plastic waste. It's about the whole sustainable picture, not only what you see on the shelves.

Sustainability goes beyond the shelves

Sustainability is a uniquely holistic initiative for adidas, from our entire supply chain network, to the offices and stores we work in, to the innovative products we create for our customers.

Our foundations are strong, with clear processes in place at adidas and Reebok to support our drive to become a circular company; not only in terms of what we produce, but how we produce. This means all areas of the business are activated throughout the entire supply chain. It's something that uniquely takes a team effort.

"Everyone approaches sustainability differently. What we tend to do is look into the details, make sure that we do things the right way and incorporate sustainability into everything we do. I'm looking forward to the time when sustainability is going to be the basic consumer ask," continues Erika Benz.

Ultimately, the details may not be obvious in the end product, but leading sustainability isn't only about crossing the finish line. It's about all the unseen hours of training in-between.

A responsible and accountable supply chain

The sustainable solutions we develop target the entire life cycle of sport; how apparel, footwear or equipment is made, sold, played and eventually retired.

Before we even get to the starting line, open and transparent dialogue to set mutual expectations with our suppliers is a must. We have clear policies in place with them and measure their progress with the utmost transparency. For us, setting high standards means having the highest levels of accountability.

We manage our social and environmental impact specifically around water, chemicals, energy usage and workers' rights.

Water: Water is both essential for life and increasingly threatened. That's why we set strong targets for our suppliers to reduce water consumption in our production. We also commit to water conservation practices like sourcing 100% of our cotton sustainably.

Chemicals: Handling chemicals is often unavoidably part of creating high-performance products. That's why it's crucial we do so responsibly across our entire supply chain. We work together with chemical experts, environmental organizations and industry federations to upgrade our end-to-end approach to reducing chemicals.

Energy: We already achieved our energy reduction targets of 20% by 2020 one year ahead of schedule.

Labor: We are committed to fair labor practices, fair compensation and safe working conditions throughout our supply chain. We've been a Fair Labor Association member since 1999, we measure our factories with a rating system for social compliance (C-KPI) and all our strategic suppliers are disclosed and updated on our website. We achieve key rankings for fair working conditions in the Know The Chain and Corporate Human Rights Benchmark listings.

We commit to end plastic waste and, by 2024, we'll eliminate virgin polyester in our products completely and go 100% recycled.

To achieve these goals, we foster open-source partnerships and put a high value on collaboration over competition to create sustainable solutions that go beyond our own business and influence.

We innovate to create change

To become a circular company where the products we make can be either recycled, remade or returned to nature we focus our innovation on our Three Loop Strategy.

We collaborate to create change

From established companies like Stella McCartney to thought leaders like the Parley network, to scientific start-ups like Carbon and open-source platforms like Fashion for Good, our spectrum of partners reflects our approach to sustainability in general: holistic.

We're tapped into a strong start-up network as part of our sponsoring and mentoring role in Fashion for Good. Here, we work with other partner companies to accelerate or create pilot projects to benefit our industry's environmental outlook. One such ongoing partnership is addressing the issue of plastic transport packaging (polybags) with the end objective to create a circular model.

Another pilot program from this collaboration is Infinite Play. Infinite Play is rooted in the idea that if adidas gear is in play, it's out of landfill and ocean waste. The concept is simple: you wear down your adidas shoes or clothes and, instead of throwing them away, you can return them (in any condition) to adidas and receive a voucher for our online store. Your returned products are then either resold or recycled. At Reebok we partner with the world's largest fashion resale marketplace thredUp to extend the life of clothing.

Like every good athlete, we are always keeping an eye on the competition and some might be surprised to learn that we don't exclude teaming up with them for the greater good of the industry.

Running together into a sustainable future

"adidas' commitment to sustainability started way before the topic gained public attention. For 20 years, we have been a change leader in our industry. Our fight to end plastic waste is the best expression of our purpose that, through sport, we have the power to change lives. The increasing use of recycled materials is just one example of our sustainability activities. The spectrum ranges from waste prevention and new types of take-back programs for use products, to climate protection. This will contribute to our ultimate goal of climate neutrality in all our activities as well as our supply-chain by 2050," says Kasper Rorsted, CEO at adidas.

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Definitioner

Definitioner

Definitioner

Definitioner

circular

A circular business model aims to close loops in the organizational system by minimizing resources, waste and emission to reduce the environmental pressure.

circular

A circular business model aims to close loops in the organizational system by minimizing resources, waste and emission to reduce the environmental pressure.

Fair Labor Association

Established in 1999, the Fair Labor Association (FLA) is a non-profit collaborative effort of universities, civil society organisations and socially responsible companies dedicated to protecting workers√Ę‚ā¨‚ĄĘ rights around the world. The FLA aims to promote a workplace code of conduct based on International Labour Organization standards. The adidas Group is a founding member of the FLA.

circular

A circular business model aims to close loops in the organizational system by minimizing resources, waste and emission to reduce the environmental pressure.

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The adidas Sustainability Story - Leading the Change | adidas GamePlan A

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Being in the business of sport for over 70 years has taught adidas many valuable lessons; lessons on winning, losing and adapting to our athletes' needs, but most importantly we've learned to support all our athletes when the odds might be stacked against them.

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"Own the Game is our strategy that guides us through to 2025 – a plan rooted in sport. Sport is adidas’ past, present, and future. ‘Own the Game’ puts the consumer at the heart of everything we do and is brought to life by our people. Our strategic focus is on increasing brand credibility, elevating the experience for our consumer, and pushing the boundaries in sustainability. The execution of our strategy is enabled by a mindset of innovation across all dimensions of our business as well as our digital transformation. We own the game and will drive significant growth."

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David Dabner, Sandra Stewart & Abbie Vickress (2020) Graphic Design School , Singapore, Thames & Hudsen.

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David Dabner, Sandra Stewart & Abbie Vickress (2020) Graphic Design School , Singapore, Thames & Hudsen.