‘Look at what we can do with all the broken stuff!’ Youth agency and sporting creativity in sites of war, conflict and disaster

Abstract

Too often youth are considered ‘victims’ in sites of war, conflict and disaster, with little consideration for their perspectives and ability to develop culturally specific responses to such conditions and events. Thus, unique forms of youth agency, creativity and resourcefulness continue to be overlooked. This paper adopts an interdisciplinary, multi-scale approach to reveal examples of youth agency and sporting creativity within local contexts of conflict and post-disaster, and signals important considerations for Sport for Development and Peace organisations working in such locations. Examining the different scales at which youth are engaging with informal, non-competitive action sports (i.e. skateboarding, parkour) in sites of conflict and disaster, this paper consists of three parts: (1) youth agency in sites of conflict, (2) youth agency in sites of post-disaster, and (3) transnational corporations use of action sports for ‘cause marketing’ in contexts of ‘disaster capitalism’. Each section offers insights from a series of on-going case studies (including interviews, media analysis and digital ethnography) in the post-disaster zones of Christchurch and New Orleans, and conflict zone of Palestine. In so doing, this paper offers a critical examination of the fluid and dynamic nature of youth agency and everyday politics in disrupted and dangerous geographies, but ultimately advocates the need to locate such initiatives within the broader flows of power, which are never neutral, equal or consistent.

Keywords:

• Youth
• action sports for development
• agency
• conflict and post-disaster
• sport for development

Acknowledgements

I am grateful to the three reviewers and the Editors of this Special Issue for their constructive feedback, particularly to William Massey for his support throughout the process. My sincere gratitude to the local youth who have shared your stories with me, and those who continue to do so: Your experiences motivate me to be a better researcher and human being!

Notes

1. There are currently between 150 and 200 ASDP non-profit organisations relating to an array of social issues, including health (e.g. Waves for Change – a South African youth development and HIV education programme rooted in surfing), education (e.g. Skateistan – co-educational skateboarding schooling in Afghanistan, Cambodia and South Africa), female empowerment (e.g. Waves of Freedom – women’s surfing in Iran); and anti-violence (e.g. Surfers for Peace – an informal organisation aimed at bridging cultural and political barriers between surfers in the Middle East). There is considerable variation within such action sport-related non-profit organisations and social campaigns. While some of these organisations remain at the grass-roots level and are relatively unknown beyond the local community or outside the action sport culture, others are gaining recognition from mainstream social justice and humanitarian organisations for their innovative efforts and creative strategies to create change in local and global contexts (Thorpe 2016a). For an overview of the ASDP community, see www.actionsportsfordev.org. Of particular relevance to this paper, it is important to note that many ASDP organisations are working in contexts of war, conflict and disaster with the aim of developing youth confidence, resourcefulness, and resilience, through opportunities to participate in action sports (e.g. surfing, skateboarding) in ‘safe’ and supportive spaces, as well as educational programmes. In some cases promoting and supporting youth agency is at the core of such programmes. For example, the two Skateistan facilities in Afghanistan have recently been passed over to local youth who manage the facilities and play key roles in producing their own media content and curriculums with the support of the international team housed in Berlin. As part of a three year grant, I am continuing to work with Skateistan to understand the experiences of international and local staff, volunteers and students, and the struggles and strategies of this award-winning ASDP organisation.