Baller Magazine ToKyO: Girls Empowerment through Basketball!
Baller Magazine gives a voice to youth/female athletes, featuring the talents of 'girls baller' communities in Tokyo and around the world
About You
Contact Information
Title
Mr.
First name
Jason
Last name
Hutson
Your job title
Rotary World Peace Fellow (Tokyo)
Name of your organization
Ballers for Hope
Organization type
Sports NPO
Annual budget/currency
$30,000
Location
Project Street Address
Ikejiri 4-27-5
Project City
Setagaya
Project Province/State
Tokyo
Project Postal/Zip Code
154-0001
Project Country
Japan
Your idea
Choose your sport: (check all that apply)
Basketball
If you chose "other" for Sport, please define in 1-2 words below
What approach does your initiative incorporate?
Knowledge/educational materials
Year the initiative began (yyyy)
2008
Paste your video code here:
If your project has a website, paste the web address here:
Plot your innovation within the discovery framework:
Barrier
Perception shapes the future
Insight
Visibility multiplies participation
This field has not been completed.
Name Your Project
Baller Magazine ToKyO: Girls Empowerment through Basketball!
Describe Your Idea
Baller Magazine gives a voice to youth/female athletes, featuring the talents of 'girls baller' communities in Tokyo and around the world
Innovation
What is your signature innovation, your new idea, in one sentence?
Baller Magazine gives a voice to youth/female athletes, featuring the talents of 'girls baller' communities in Tokyo and around the world
How many people does your innovation serve or plan to serve? Exactly who will benefit?
The global launch of the project is expected to directly benefit 1000+ youth basketball players and local volunteers currently networking from Tokyo, Beijing, Paris, and the San Francisco Bay Area through B4H. The project will extend to reach a wider periphery in each respective target region, through the use of localized events/activities/components and additional efforts on-line, promoting girl ballers of the world.
Do you have any existing partnerships? If so, please list and describe.
Kubota Fashion & Beauty Institute: one of Tokyo’s leading vocational schools for fashion/beauty industry; assisting with B4H design concepts and promotional materials (flyers & posters).
Gallery-2: premier sportswear distributor for youth basketball players in Tokyo, providing support for new girl baller sportswear line.
Tokyo District Rotary Clubs: support network of business professionals; helping B4H build effective community service and international exchange projects.
BJ League: famous pro-players assist with local youth coaching and mentoring.
International Christian University (Tokyo) & Kwansei University (Kobe): media departments from top Japanese universities, specializing in intercultural communications; providing help with B4H online platform (interpreting, translation, and web development services).
Habitat for Humanity, Red Ribbon Magnet Group, Nike China CSR, QUAI 54 Streetball Tournament, Yuca Fitness, PNG Rotary
In which sector do these partners work? (Check all that apply)
Citizen sector (non profits, NGOs) , Private sector .
How do you implement your innovation and apply it to the challenge/problem you are addressing?
Our online platform "Baller Magazine" brings together the latest multi-media and social networking/web 2.0 tools to highlight local youth/female athletes and give them a way to interact with the international community. Each month, our website (and corresponding e-newsletter) will feature stories on local female basketball players in Tokyo, as well as inspiring stories from other regions (Beijing, Paris, SF Bay). In addition to the virtual sphere, relationship-building and social inclusion will also be promoted on the ground level through sports-based activities and events. We harmonize trends in youth, sport, media and global action.
Impact
Provide one sentence describing your impact/intended impact
The project inspires a greater sense of social inclusion and empowerment amongst female athletes, and helps engage youth as global citizens.
What does impact/success look like? Please list any tangible measures of the impact of your innovation
Female/youth basketball players are given a safe, friendly atmosphere to play and interact across borders. Social inclusion is openly provided to all project participants- regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, or background. Local community members extend their interest and support of projects, and get involved in planning/project management. Gradually, new communities from each of the five continents are involved and voices are shared. The world opens up and young athletes are inspired to gain appreciation for other cultures, learn the value of social responsibility, and support the rights and empowerment of women.
Is there a chance that your project could change policy (within an institution or government)?
Grassroots efforts for positive social change in Northeast Asia have shown some impact on governance in recent years, but NGOs and civil society members are constantly reminded of the power of the status quo. New actors and new ideas in the policy-making sphere are few and far between. Rather than asking political leaders to reconsider their long-standing policy formulation style, this project aims to produce measurable results and demonstrate the power of sport in relationship-building and social inclusion gradually over time. It appears the most appropriate (or feasible) way for this project to influence key decision-makers would be to establish a legitimate 'policy-oriented learning tool' for future consideration from the top. Such a tool will ultimately serve as an effective form of dialogue between grassroots community members and institutional leaders, especially in a region where a public sphere for dialogue on socio-political issues is yet to play a prominent role.
Aside from financial sustainability, how do you plan to grow the initiative or expand your intended impact?
Involve local actors, stakeholders and community leaders in the various stages of project development:
*Our media-based platform will receive tech support for long-term sustainability from students of our partner universities (International Christian University and Kwansei University) on a volunteer basis.
*Our cutting-edge design teams will collaborate with partners in the fashion/design/sportswear industries to create a new ‘global conscious' brand of custom/limited edition products.
This Entry is about (Issues)
Sustainability
How is your initiative financed (or how do you expect your initiative will be financed)?
The organization's founder has invested $10,000 to cover initial project supplies and travel expenses. Since B4H's launch in April '08, our board has successfully involved a core group of local sponsors and partners- asking only for value-in-kind support (posters, uniforms, etc.). This amounts to approximately $2,500 in our first year. For Tokyo, we expect this number to triple in the next 2-3 years. Beijing+Paris+SF will have a similar pilot growth phase, working with the interests of local stakeholders first. We have also branched out to gain support from the international community, building partnerships with key leaders in the international sports, business and NGO sector. Joint fundraising activities are currently being planned.
Financing source
Annual budget
Total expenditures and estimated cost for 2009 global launch
(Tokyo, Beijing, Paris, SF): $30,000
Annual revenue generated
Total donations and value-in-kind support received: $3,000
Number of staff (full-time, part-time, volunteers)
B4H is led by one full-time executive director, four part-time trustees, an advisory panel of five specialists, a youth volunteer base of 100+ members
What are the main barriers to financing your initiative, and how do you plan to address these barriers?
Building a social innovation to help support gender empowerment in Japan has obvious barriers. Showing respect for local values and customs; developing a sense of relevancy to connect with the hearts of Japanese society; gaining trust and representing interests of local actors and stakeholders. These are major keys to financial sustainability. Transnational non-state actors, cultural intermediaries and other third party mediators will benefit financially from long-term commitment.
What are the major challenges with regards to partnerships?
Within the region, Japan faces difficulty in establishing Sport for Peace partnerships due to historical issues and ongoing postwar tension. Outside the region, Japan is carefully weighing its options about how to become more involved in a larger 'Sport for Peace & Development' framework for global partnerships- offered by the UN, international sporting federations, private businesses and NGOs. Grassroots initiatives in Northeast Asia are limited by this lack of political will from above.
The Story
What stage is your project?
Ongoing project .
What was the motivation or defining moment that led to create this innovation? Tell us the story.
Ballers for Hope was officially launched in the spring of 2008, and specifically targeted to coincide with China's first-ever Olympic Games. Using basketball to help build relationships and cooperation amongst youth in E. Asia was a natural choice, with roughly 400,000,000 people taking an interest in the game in China, and a mutual interest in the Olympic basketball venue shared by Japanese and Chinese youth. With the momentum gained at the Olympics, B4H has since adopted a more encompassing goal to help support groups struggling to find social inclusion within Japanese society (women athletes, non-Japanese, troubled youth, and others).
Please tell us about the social innovator behind this initiative
An unwavering passion for sport- especially the game of basketball- has remained with me throughout my life. During my travels to all corners of the globe, this passion has allowed me to build lasting friendships across cultural and ideological barriers. Sport and physical fitness, healthy lifestyle choices, social activity and inclusion, I live by these values and practice them daily. I know the importance of leadership in action, when working with local youth in my community.
(Optional) To be eligible for an additional prize, please select age range
27 or older
 | 174 weeks agoJason Hutson submitted this idea. |
