We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Steve Zanco a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Steve, appreciate you joining us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

Skatepark Respect, Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN# 82-5378615). We conserve skateparks and skate spots through outreach, cleanup efforts, and responsibility within the skateboarding community worldwide.

OUR MISSION

To create awareness and community involvement in keeping skateparks clean and maintained.

THE WHY

As skateboarders, we love the amazing gifts of skateparks everywhere. We didn’t have them growing up so seeing more and more pop up across the country is an incredible gift to skateboarding. We skateboard a lot and have seen the positive benefits of skateparks within a community and have seen skateparks close when they are run down and abused. The Broken Windows Theory by James Q. Wilson and James Kelling states that serious crime and disorder are the result of a lengthier chain of events. The theory posits that a broken window if left broken, sends a message that disorder is acceptable causing more broken windows, more crime, more disorder. Disorder causes crime, and crime causes further disorder and crime. Fixing the broken window sends a message that it is not acceptable and that someone cares and takes ownership of the issue. This relates to skateparks as we have seen parks close due to trash, graffiti, crime, and misuse. These issues require more maintenance by the cities and community and often fuel the negative stereotypes associated with skateboarding. We saw a need for the community to take ownership and for the skateboarding community to be responsible for the longevity of the skateparks and to minimize the negative impact on the cities. This dedication to improving the world around us includes skate spots we enjoy. Some areas don’t have skateparks or have skate spots that require maintenance or DIY creativity. The skateboarding community can bring about positive change together. We believe the opposite of the Broken Windows Theory is also true. One positive action can lead to another. Positive momentum is contagious.

WHAT WE WANT TO ACCOMPLISH

Create a sense of responsibility and strengthen the skateboarding community in the cleaning and maintenance of skateparks and skate spots.

Spread the stoke of skateboarding through cleanup efforts and events at skateparks and skate spots.

Educate about the benefits of a cleaner skateparks, skate spots, and community.

Help to dispel the negative stereotypes of skateboarding with positivity, responsibility, and service.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

Giving back and leaving a positive stamp on whatever environment I happen to be in is the ultimate goal in any situation, whether that be business, volunteering, or 1:1 interaction. Kindness, integrity, and giving are all characteristics that drive all my actions. We can always be better, learn more, and grow. Finding small ways to connect with others and improve our world is what motivates and inspires me. Through strategic partnerships with strong and equally impassioned skaters we formed our nonprofit and have grown our network and reach across 11 countries with almost 150 dedicated ambassadors of cleaner and safer skateparks worldwide…and we are still growing daily.

We have Skatepark Respect Ambassadors all over the world helping work with their communities and cities to keep skateparks clean. It truly takes a village and we are so thankful for our amazing team. We encourage everyone to leave the parks better than they found them and to be part of the solution. To learn more or to connect with us, please visit our website www.skateparkrespect.org or follow us on Instagram or Facebook @skateparkrespect.

Our focus is on education and creating a network of positivity and stewardship to the skateparks and community as a whole. Our programs help cities, schools, and individuals learn about the benefits and how-to’s to keep the gifts of skateparks around for many years.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Cleaning a skatepark seems like a simple enough concept and sounds like it would go smoothly. Not so much. Cleaning things is rarely “cool” and not “core”. Growing up with very few skateparks and then seeing them destroyed because of misuse really makes you value what we have now. There are skateparks everywhere nowadays and we want to help preserve them for many years to come. Skateparks are a great place for kids to go to stay out of trouble and learn new skills. They serve as a training facility and have helped skateboarding, roller-skating, and more progress far beyond the streets and backyard ramps could. The cities can’t always dedicate the resources to keeping the parks clean and maintained and can get discouraged when the locals are trashing the place. We want to help educate the communities and cities about the benefits of a cleaner and safer skatepark while bridging that gap between the two. There is often a negative stereotype about skaters that they are just vandals and don’t care. They do care and we have found more and more wanting to make a positive difference in their community and more and more who care about their local parks. The road is getting smoother as we go.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Contact Info:

• Website: www.skateparkrespect.org
• Instagram: @skateparkrespect
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SkateparkRespect
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/skatepark-respect-inc/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9g0tE4jmQmGQXgKJ_OcPiA

Image Credits
Paul Montero, Steve Zanco, Colorado Skateboarding Society, Jack Parker and Francisco Vinho