“Play is the highest form of research,” said Einstein.
“It’s also the raddest form of resistance,” replied Skateistan*

In the hardest places to be a child, play isn’t a pastime—it’s a lifeline. And around the world, our partners are proving that skateboarding is more than a sport—it’s a tool for healing, learning, and building a future.

Take Duhok, Iraq, where The Lotus Flower is creating safe spaces for displaced Yezidi girls. These young women, many of whom have faced unimaginable trauma, now gather not just to talk—but to roll, laugh, fall, and get back up. Skateboarding helps them find confidence again, together.

In Kibera, one of Nairobi’s largest informal settlements, Project Elimu runs a vibrant after-school program blending skateboarding, dance, and art. For kids growing up surrounded by instability, this space offers something radically simple: freedom. A chance to move, create, and just be kids.

And at UCanSkate in Mexico, a women-led organization, young people are finding resilience in movement and self-expression through skateboarding. Their mission is to inspire more women and youth to join the skateboarding community and reclaim public spaces, which in many areas of Mexico are dominated by men.

Across our network, we’re reminded every day:

 Play is not the opposite of work. It is the work of being human.

At Skateistan, we champion that work. Our global partners lead it. And thousands of children are shaping their futures with it.

👉 Join the movement. Support play.
Become a Citizen of Skateistan and donate monthly.

*Unfortunately, we never got to speak to Einstein, but if we did, we like to think the conversation would have gone something like that.

‍