As a member of the Zephyr skateboard team in the 1970’s -- made famous by the documentary Dogtown and Z Boys -- Peggy Oki was at the top of the women’s skateboarding world while pioneering the vertical skating movement alongside the DogTown crew of Jay Adams, Tony Alva and Stacey Peralta, as the lone Z-Girl.
Peggy is a surfer, skater, rock climber, and visual artist who has adventured between these creative expressions for more than fifty years. Parallel to living an adventurous life by way of stone and water, Peggy has become a tireless activist for the wellbeing of all beings.
Her Origami Whales Project, an installation of 38,000 cascading paper whales, was recently showcased at The Smithsonian Institution. Peggy began the project in 2004 to raise awareness about the potential re-emergence of sanctioned commercial whaling. That number – 38,000 --- represents the approximate number of whales killed since the International Whaling commission’s moratorium on whaling in 1986.
We caught up with Peggy as she made her way down the Australian coast to chat about adapting surfing for concrete, the inspiration of Sadako Sasaki's paper cranes, the importance of mindset in injury, and the projects currently capturing her imagination.
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Listen with Lauren L. Hill & Dave Rastovich
Sound Engineer: Ben Alexander
Soundtrack By: Shannon Sol Carroll
Additional music by Ben Alexander
Join the conversation: @Waterpeoplepodcast
