Research
Push to Heal
Push To Heal is a short film created by Hull Services and the ChildTrauma Academy. It explores the neuroscience of skateboarding, and highlights skateboarding as an activity that can heal the human brain from past trauma. This film also provides a snapshot of how and why skateboarding should be viewed as a viable option as part of treatment for high needs children.
Hull Services is a non-profit organization that provides child, youth, and family mental health services. The ChildTrauma Academy began as an academic center of excellence at the University of Chicago. It it now one of the leading providers of trauma training for front-line professionals working in education, mental health, coaching, early childhood and research.
Discussing Skateboarding with Neuroscientist Andrew Huberman
A video interview with Andrew Huberman by Karl Watson, for Jenkem. Andrew Huberman is a neuroscientist and tenured professor at Stanford that grew up skateboarding at San Francisco's Embarcadero plaza, where he met Karl. In this interview, he discusses the neuroscience of skating, including how it’s beneficial for overcoming fear and anxiety.
An interview with Joel Pippus by Arthur Derrien of Free Skate Magazine. Joel Pippus uses skateboarding in his work for Hull Services with high needs kids in Alberta, Canada. Employing the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics, Joel studies how aspects of skateboarding can have a positive effect on the brains of traumatized children.
Free Movement Skateboarding is a nonprofit organization based in Athens, Greece, that works to create more accessible and inclusive recreational youth activities. They have a mobile skatepark which provides regular skateboarding sessions. These sessions support and promote the wellbeing, empowerment and social cohesion of youth in Athens using skateboarding as a vehicle. This article provides a great overview of the neuroscientific benefits of skateboarding.