my designs
Athletivism
design research, branding, and website development
My senior capstone project, titled “Athletivism”, is a campaign analyzing the tactics executed by sports activists to achieve change. The primary touchpoint of Athletivism is an online scrollable timeline filtered by each tactic. The capstone process started in the fall of 2021, when I thoroughly researched one topic of a hundred passions I had listed out. My research centered on the link between sports activism and entrepreneurship for community benefit, and evolved into an exploration into the various yet equally important ways that athletes make their voices heard on and off the field.
View Site: https://hannahsteierdesign.com/athletivism/
Athletivism is a portmanteau of the words “athlete” and “activism”.
While the word “athleticism” applies to physical characteristics and skills, “athletivism” refers to the behaviors, qualities, and choices of athletes engaged in activism within the realm of sports.
Athletivism embodies the specific tactics—Leadership, Absence, Entrepreneurship, Adornment, and Action—that sports activists use to make a difference. Oftentimes, the players using these techniques are misunderstood, criticized, and the recipients of outrage; a common reason being that many people don’t realize or acknowledge the strong link that exists between sports and society. The goal of Athletivism and its interactive web-based timeline is to visualize the tactics; demonstrate how sports activism has been impacted by historical events; show how sports activists peacefully disrupt society; and validate the right of athletes to use their platforms as role models and civic engagers working to create change. As a whole, Athletivism should challenge current perceptions of sports activism and broaden ideas of what it truly means.
Each tactic has its own history. What Leadership, Absence, Entrepreneurship, Adornment, and Action looked like back then varies from what they are now. Explore the website on desktop or mobile to familiarize yourself with these tactics and to learn about the athletes and moments, some known and others unheard of, that characterize Athletivism.
LeadershipAbsenceEntrepreneurshipAdornmentAction
LeadershipAbsenceEntrepreneurshipAdornmentAction
The research, prototyping, and installation stages of this senior experience challenged me in more ways than I thought possible. Over the course of two semesters, I gradually became familiar with the rollercoaster-like struggles of a substantial design project, complicated by the competing driving factors of research and personal interest. Even though the final product turned out a lot differently than what I envisioned at the start, my professors preached to me the importance of the entire process—which helped me grow more than anything else.
