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Action Sports, Music & Art are changing & saving lives. Practicing the Action Sports lifestyle as well as expresing the music & art that emanates from this lifestyles can make a great difference in nowadays troubled Youth, be in the States, Cuba, China or anywhere else. Regardless your living environment or social position, kids/youngster who learn our action sports lifestyles are able to experience freedom from the day to day problems and regain self esteem, among many other cool benefits for body and mind. If action sports, music & art helped us in dealing with modern world problems and made a big difference for ourselves + our Youth, what are we all really giving back? Objective here is to share & show my social work towards this common mentioned direction, in many different countries to inspire kids/people on a worldwide level. Tomas Crowder, author of this presentation (and baldest guy in pic), in Havana, Cuba, with local and Puerto Rican skaters invited ACTION SPORTS, MUSIC & ART AS A WAY TO HELP THE YOUTH WORLDWIDE

Action Sports, Music & Youth Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done Tomas Crowder

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Page 1: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

Action Sports, Music & Art are changing & saving lives.

Practicing the Action Sports lifestyle as well as expresing the music & art that emanates from this lifestyles can make a great difference in nowadays troubled Youth, be in the States, Cuba, China or anywhere else.Regardless your living environment or social position, kids/youngster who learn our action sports lifestyles are able to experience freedom from the day to day problems and regain self esteem, among many other cool benefits for body and mind.

If action sports, music & art helped us in dealing with modern world problems and made a big difference for ourselves + our Youth, what are we all really giving back?

Objective here is to share & show my social work towards this common mentioned direction, in many different countries to inspire kids/people on a worldwide level.

Tomas Crowder, author of this presentation (and baldest guy in pic), in Havana, Cuba, with local and Puerto Rican skaters invited

ACTION SPORTS, MUSIC & ART AS A WAY TO HELP THE YOUTH WORLDWIDE

Page 2: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

BACKGROUND WORK OF TOMAS CROWDER: “SURFING FAVELA” DOCUMENTARY PROJECT (2006)“Surfing Favela” is a documentary shot inside the biggest Favela (slum in Portuguese) in Latin America, during a war between drug-dealing lords. It helped change the way people see the surfing lifestyle & showed the other side of surfing & how it can save lives + help those in needs. It was premiered in Sundance/X-Dance Film Festival, bought by Nat Geo INT & won many film festivals...Most important, it did help the kids since Mr Jack Johnson ended up donating 10K to this social project & a NGO was created.

d Há pouco mais de umano, o menino C. vivia sol-to pelas vielas da Rocinha,dormia em caixotes, men-digava quentinhas aosPMs e brincava de ‘solda-do do tráfico’ durante asincursões policiais à fave-la. Não sabia ler nem escre-ver o nome, mas atendiaprontamente ao apelidode ‘Chefinho’: nas brinca-deiras com outros garotos

da comunidade, era sempreseguido como um líder.

Em setembro do ano pas-sado, C. foi fotografado porO DIA em cima de umveículo blindado da Coorde-nadoria de Recursos Espe-ciais (Core) da Polícia Civil.Enquanto os policiais caça-vam traficantes, o meninose divertia fingindo atirarnos agentes. Emmarço des-te ano, equipe do jornal o

reencontrou, ainda entre-gue à própria sorte nasruas. Meses depois, VaniaMaria Tavares, 50 anos,mãe de dois filhos, avó dedois netos, R$ 800 de orça-mento, resolveu ajudar o ga-roto. Levou-o para casa e,com o consentimento damãe verdadeira, que tam-bémmora na Rocinha masnão tem condições de criá-lo, passou a educá-lo.

Hoje, C. está finalmentematriculado na classe dealfabetização de uma esco-la próxima. Ainda traumati-zado pelos anos entreguesà própria sorte, ele conti-nua desconfiado e arredio.Mas quando sobe na pran-cha e encara o mar, recu-pera parte de sua infância.Sorri e volta a ser o que to-da criança deve ser: ape-nas criança.

d Emsuasmúsicas, JackJohnsonprocurapassarmen-sagensdeesperança, comonossucessos ‘UpsideDown’e ‘BetterTogether’.

UPSIDE DOWNWho's to say what's impossi-ble?Well they forgot this worldkeeps spinningAnd with each new day I canfeel a change in everything

BETTER TOGETHERLove is the answerAt least for most of the ques-tions in my heart ,Like why are we here? Andwhere do we go?And how come it's so hard?It's not always easy,And sometimes life can bedeceiving,I'll tell you one thing, itsalways better when we're to-gether

d Abaixo, traduçõesdasduas letras.

UPSIDE DOWNQuem vai dizer o que é im-possível?Bem, eles esqueceram queo mundo continua girandoE a cada novo dia eu possosentir uma mudançaem tudo

BETTER TOGETHERO amor é a respostaAo menos para maioria dasperguntas no meu coraçãoComo por que estamosaqui? E onde nós vamos?E por que é tão difícil?Nem sempre é fácil, e às ve-zes a vida pode serdecepcionante.Vou te dizer uma coisa, ésempre melhor quando esta-mos juntos.

ONDADE SOLIDARIEDADE

SEVERINO SILVA/30.9.2005

Garotada da escolinha de surfe da Rocinha fez faixa de agradecimento ao cantor. O havaiano doou R$ 10mil ao projeto que cuida de 24 crianças

Chefinho foi flagrado em cima de carro blindado da polícia, mas, meses depois, é sobre prancha que se equilibra

Além de receber carinho e dinheiro de cantor havaiano, pequenos surfistas da favela e seu instrutor, Bocão, viraram temade filme argentino rodado no Rio. Neste fim de semana, atleta da escolinha vai disputar campeonato. PORRICARDOCALAZANS

Emsua passagempe-lo Rio de Janeiro, ocantor e surfista ha-

vaiano Jack Johnson fezmais do que cantar suas mú-sicas tranqüilas para umamultidão de cariocas na Pra-ça da Apoteose, em 8 deabril. No dia seguinte, umdomingo como hoje, o ‘an-tiastro’ conheceu os jovensalunos da escolinha de surfeque José Ricardo Ramos, oBocão,mantémnaRocinha.

O fotógrafo PedroMontei-ro acompanhou— e fotogra-fou — toda a história. “A(ONG) Surfrider Founda-tion levou o Bocão para co-nhecer o JJ no dia do show eele gostou do trabalho feitocom a molecada de lá”, con-ta. “No dia seguinte, JJ con-vidou os garotos para conhe-cê-lo, lá no Copacabana Pala-ce.” No encontro, JJ aprovei-tou para dar seus ‘toqueszen-surfistas’ aos pequenos

aprendizes da Rocinha. “Ja-ck disse a eles que tudo emsua vida foi difícil e que elesempre precisou correr mui-to atrás do que sonhou. Eraessa a lição que ele gostariade deixar para os garotos”,lembra Pedro.

Após ter contato com otrabalho desenvolvido comas crianças da favela de SãoConrado, o cantor doou US$10 mil para o projeto de Bo-cão. O dinheiro beneficiouos 24 alunos. Entre eles C.,de 9 anos, que em setembrodo ano passado foi flagradoem foto de O DIA enquan-to ‘brincava de guerra’ con-tra policiais, em cima de umcarro blindado da Polícia Ci-vil. Omenino, que tinha sidoapelidado por outros garo-tos de ‘Chefinho’, devido àsua postura de liderança aoperambular pelas ruas da fa-vela esmolando, hoje prefe-re dropar ondas em São Con-rado, como O DIA noticiouhá uma semana. E deve isso,indiretamente, a JJ.

Algum tempo depois deconhecer o cantor, a garota-da da escolinha decidiu agra-decer a generosidade e con-feccionou uma faixa sim-ples, que foi parar nas pági-nas de uma publicação fran-cesa, com os dizeres “Obriga-do, Jack!”. Mais bem estrutu-rada, a escolinha está partici-pando, neste fim de semana,da terceira e última etapa doCircuito Estadual, na Praiada Barra da Tijuca, em fren-te ao Hotel Sheraton. Filhode Bocão, Ricardo da SilvaRamos, 12 anos, é o represen-tante do projeto na catego-ria grommets.

Da Favela da Rocinha, aescolinha começa agora a ga-nhar fama internacional.Em outubro, estreou emBuenos Aires, na Argentina,o documentário ‘Surfing Fa-

vela’. Filmado há um ano emeio na comunidade e noMorro do Cantagalo (Ipane-ma), conta o dia a dia dos jo-vens que escapam da margi-nalidade e da violência emcima de pranchas. “Somosinteressados pelo social, não

só na Argentina, mas em to-do o mundo”, explica Nata-lia Bacalini, uma das direto-ras do documentário, ao la-do deMax Ezzaoui.

No Rio, em contato comas favelas, os argentinoscomprovaram que a miséria

está globalizada. “Temosproblemas parecidos”, dizNatalia. Já a platéia argenti-na, segundo ela, encantou-se com o filme. “As favelasdo Brasil são uma espécie demistério. E as pessoas vi-bram ao ver que o surfe aju-

da a preservar a pureza dascrianças num ambiente quepode ser muito hostil”, con-ta ela. Em abril, Bocão viaja-rá para Cuba, num festivalonde o filme será exibido.Sua escolinha da paz aindavai rodar omundo.f

s CANTE COM JJ

INFÂNCIA NA FAVELA s EM BUSCA DE EQUILÍBRIO

CRIANÇA PASSOU A ESTUDAR E PRATICAR ESPORTE

TEMA s ESPERANÇA

FPEDRO MONTEIRO/SURFRIDER.ORG.BR

ISABELA KASSOW

Documentáriofilmadoemduasfavelas doRiotemcomovidopúblico emBuenosAires

PROJETO DA ROCINHA s AJUDA QUE VEM DE LONGE

Ao conhecer o projeto desenvolvido por um surfista com crianças da Rocinha, o cantor Jack Johnson, também adepto doesporte aquático, se apaixonou pela idéia. No dia seguinte ao show que fez no Rio, levou toda a garotada para uma tarde de‘bagunça’ em seu quarto no Copacabana Palace, hotel de luxo em que ficou hospedado. E também fez doação de US$ 10mil

D d08 GERAL DOMINGO, 3 DE DEZEMBRO DE 2006 ! O DIA

2

Page 3: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

LA PERLA, PUERTO RICO`S OLDEST SLUM & Tomas Crowder.

Latin American Youth is mostly in Third World Economic classification. Tomas being Argentinian knows this from the inside perspective. Having lived and worked in action sports/social related matters for the last 10 years, in more than 9 countries, he had the chance to convince Red Bull to be the first person in the region to mix the concepts of social work with sports marketing activities.

La Perla it´s the first & most violent neighborhood in Old San Juan City, Puerto Rico´s main Capital. In more than a hundred fifty years this place was kept separated from its really close neighbor, the more developed old San Juan, by fortified walls and plenty of policemen in the entrance of this small ghetto.

Dana & Tomas's idea was simply to recycle the place in the neighborhood were people threw their garbage, where stolen cars were dismounted & drugs sold to kids into a…(cont. next page)

CASE STUDY 2: LA PERLA SKATE/SOCIAL PROJECT - PUERTO RICO

Page 4: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

…a skate pool to act as a small swimming & skate pool for the kids to enjoy & get away a little bit from day to day life struggle in the slum…

2

1

3

Page 5: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

...kids loved it and quickly got into skating. The two local skaters involved taught them the basics and a international demo was planned only for the unpriviledged local kids, to teach them what can be accomplished & done if we all work together…

Page 6: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

Tomas, Dana & Red Bull invited Sandro Dias, who understand about unprivileged kids, for the surprise sk8 Demo for local kids. Later on, this unusal place caused so much noise that top youth brands like Quiksilver did part of his Int. sk8 ad campaign in our bowl

Page 7: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

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IT WAS ALSO BIGGEST COVERAGE EVER IN PUERTO RICO OF A RB EVENT

...MEDIA CONFIRMED THIS WAS AN EVENT DONE WOTH PASSION, OUTSIDE THE MOLD, WHO TRULY BROUGHT ATTENTION TO A TROUBLED AREA & OFFERED A CONCRETE ALTERNATIVE TO KIDS.

Page 8: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

…Once the Puerto Rico´s challenge was done as well, Tomas aimed for a country stepped in time, CUBA.

Havana, Cuba. 2004.

Page 9: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

Cuba is, for better or worst, the most ostracized country in the world. It was said that the long time Trading Embargo with the USA & Europe will never allow the development of the Action Sports & its free spirit type of lifestyle…

Also it was told to me before visiting the island that Fidel Castro's Sport Ministers will never allow such an apparent “capitalistic” free spirit lifestyle to be embraced by the Cuban youth…

The closest idea of skating or surfing in Havana, right?...

Page 10: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

...WRONG!Tomas Crowder convinced Alberto Juantorenas, Cuban Minister of Sport & Two Times Olympic Gold Medal, to skate (shown here in the photo) & allowed him to develop a historic 3 years long Action Sport, Music & Culture Program to be developed for the Cuban Youth through skate, surf, bmx, other actions sports & music events…

The Sport Minister in Cuba now skates! Historic first Skate Event ever in Havana, Cuba, 2004.

Page 11: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

In Cuba you cannot advertise anywhere any event and we basically depended on word of mouth between the local Youth for the success of the event and program…Passion and willingness to learn about this truly free lifestyle made a huge event success. More than 3000 persons witnessed the start of another cuban revolution!

We also donated new boards…

Page 12: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

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The Action Sports program included the other faces of the youth urban revolution: a series of Music & Graffiti events in Cuba that served to expose the talent of the local youth for the first time...

First Youth Music Festival

Doble Filo + Os Gemeos Graffiti Project

First Hip Hop Free Style Battle

Page 13: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

MUSIC ACADEMY CUBA

La Comuna Project - Carlos Varela

Rock Hip Hop Electronic

Art + Cinema + Music + Graffiti…

Film festival

...More Music & Graffiti events done/ co produced with our partners in Cuba 2004/2008...

Sting visit to CubaAudioslave in historic Havanna concert

Page 14: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

In the last 3 years of working in the Cuban skate program, many cool stories did happened. One of the most relevant is about Marcel's mom struggle. Marcel is an autistic kid who had never left his home and was always medicated. But that changed when he once heard the construction of a never before seen skate ramp in Cuba. He once pointed the ramp to his mom, asked for a skate and started skating. In less than 8 months, he was a completely changed kid and even won a medal in a skate competition. In his mom´s words: The skate gave Marcel what no other traditional medicine could give and helped positively transform his live.

We are incorporating this positive struggle in our documentary project to inspire even more people...!

Marcel and his mom Marcel is a positive example of how much we can help the kids through the skate/action sport lifestyle!

Page 15: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

Ok. In any “regular” country, the skate project will have keep growing and everyone lived together happily ever after right?...

WRONG!. The only Mini ramp for Marcel and the rest of the Cuban kids to practice (and get better) was destroyed. A combination of a lack of knowledge in how to deal with the ramp from authorities and the power of the Katrina Hurricane broke the only ramp available in Cuba in half!. The only foreign company backing up my work changed his manager, who backed full support to skate activities. Donated skates got broken and things couldn’t look worse...

Also, someone inside the Government thought that I was promoting a capitalistic activity…that this was basically a Californian/US lifestyle activity prohibited & should be erased from Cuba…AFTER SOME THINKING, MY ANSWER TO THEM WAS TO…

Page 16: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

Cuban Minister in Shanghai, China.

From L.t.R: Cuban Recreational Minister, Mr. Bonilla, Vice-Minister of Sports in China, Mr. Wu & Mr. Tomas Crowder, visiting Shanghai´s biggest world skatepark

…TAKE THE RECREATIONAL SPORT MINISTER TO ANOTHER FORMER COMMUNIST COUNTRY LIKE CHINA (!), GET HIM IN A MEETING WITH CHINA`S VICE MINISTER OF SPORT + SHANGAI´S ACTION SPORTS ASSOCIATION . THEY THEN EXPLAINED THE CUBAN MINISTER WHY THEY INVESTED BIG TIME IN THE FUTURE OF YOUTH THROUGH THE MAKING OF THE BIGGEST SKATEPARK IN THE WORLD AT THE TIME IN SHANGHA…After this visit, Cuban gov. understood better & I got permission again to keep working for the skate & action sports scene in Cuba!

Meeting John Dai, President of the Shanghai Extreme Sports Association.

Page 17: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

WITH THE RENOVATED VISION AFTER TAKING CUBAN MINISTER TO CHINA I STARTED “THE OTHER CHE” SKATE DOCUMENTARY PROJECT (BEING FILMED)IN A NUTSHELL: In 1959, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara commanded one of the world's most known revolutions in Cuba. The Cuban Youth was then, for better or worse, ostracized for the last 5 decades of what was happening in the outside world…On the 50th anniversary of this historic moment, our documentary will tell the unknown story of another ongoing cuban revolution, which is also commanded by a person called Che, but this time the weapons has been changed for skates & its urban culture: tattoo art, hip hop music and street art.

SCENE SHOT TAKEN FROM THE CUBAN REVOLUTION SQUARE PARADE

Page 18: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

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MEDIA COVERAGE - PRESENT TIMEThe Other Che Documentary is a groundbreaking project that already gathered international coverage. And its halfway its completion and achivements. For the first time after 50 years of Revolution, we will have a priviledged, inside view of whats going on in the streets of forbidden Cuba; as well as experiment firsthand how our action sports lifestyle is changing minds and uniting apparent enemies. It´s no wonder this interest/coverage will be on the raise since we are simply doing what we love & understand, making history being the first ones to brake the blockade and help cuban/us worldwide youth.

As seen in the RedBulletin, Red Bull´s Int. mag, October 09, 6 pages coverage, 3.5 Millon Copies Dist worldwide. First aumented reality action sport mag. In the UK was distributed inside “The Independent” Newspaper all over the country as well as in more than 134 countries...

Page 19: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

MORE INTERNATIONAL COVERAGE OF SKATE PROJECT IN CUBA

Page 20: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

As seen in REDBULLSKATEBOARDING.COM internet site

ESPN

MORE MEDIA COVERAGE:

Page 21: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

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Nota de tapa

Our ongoing Cuba/US Skate/youth film project was elected to be premiered in the first Redbulletin Ipad version, now starting to reach millons of persons & sharing attention with the likes of 50 Cent, Lady Gaga & other youth celebs...you can download it @ below url:

 h#p://www.redbull.com/cs/Satellite/en_INT/Red-­‐Bulle?n-­‐iPad/001242991025466

Page 22: Action Sports, Music & Youth   Some Of The Groundbreaking Work Done   Tomas Crowder

… THANKS FOR READING! Tomas Crowder.

REGARDLESS USA, LATIN AMERICA, CHINA OR CUBA, ACTION SPORTS LIFESTYLE IS THE FUTURE & BRING KIDS TOGETHER!

To  Chang,  Morris,  Dapena,  Reinier,  Ruggiero,  Boly  &  the  rest  of  the  amazing  photographers  that  are  collaborating  &  I´m  surely  forgetting,  many  thanks!  

JOIN US ON THE NEXT YOUTH REVOLUTION... ALL THE SUPPORT IS NEEDED!, CONTACT US AT:

[email protected]