Earth Day skate jam blends Navajo youth recreation, land stewardship

Skateboards, native seeds and trash bags shared the same stage at Two Grey Hills Skate Park, where more than 100 young people and family members turned out for the Protect the Land Skate Jam. The Earth Day gathering mixed skateboarding lessons with art-making, seed planting and a park cleanup, turning a remote skate spot into a place where recreation and stewardship moved together.

The event carried real weight for Two Grey Hills, a small rural Dinétah community at the base of the Chuska Mountains between Shiprock and Gallup. The park, built in 2022, remains one of the few dedicated recreation spaces in that part of the Navajo Nation, where outdoor sports facilities have long been scarce. That makes every session more than a casual hangout. It gives Navajo youth a place to roll, learn and build confidence close to home.

The skate jam was hosted by 4KINSHIP, the Native-owned creative studio in Santa Fe, and the Diné Skate Garden Project, a Navajo-led effort that has been building skateparks and mentorship opportunities across the Navajo Nation since 2019. Partners included Nation Skate Youth, the New Mexico Outdoor Equity Fund, and Navajo Power and Home. Amy Denet Deal, founder of 4KINSHIP, said the turnout from partners and volunteers made the day feel especially important, a reminder that it took a village to pull off something that served both the kids and the land.

That larger vision has been developing for years. The Two Grey Hills park held its grand opening and dedication on April 10, 2023, with Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren and Tony Hawk in attendance. Hawk also helped partially fund the project through The Skateboard Project. Weekly skateboard classes began at the park in 2024 with Outdoor Equity Fund support, expanding access for local youth. In August 2025, the Diné Skate Garden Project received a $500,000 Trails+ Grant from the New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division to add solar-powered lighting, drinking water access, shade structures, bathrooms, benches and trash cans. A Navajo Nation update in April 2026 said the project has also expanded skate equipment access more broadly.

For Four Corners outdoor communities, the model is clear. At Two Grey Hills, skating is not just recreation. It is a way to strengthen place, support young people and link action sports to Indigenous leadership and care for the land.