SUP for All: when the Strait of Messina becomes a classroom for inclusion

An adapted water sports project for children and young people on the autism spectrum, born in Reggio Calabria from the meeting of behavioural science and a passion for the sea.

by Daniela Gullace — Behavior Analyst · Sebastiano Michele Militti — President of A.S.D. Blue Tribe and project instructor

Sometimes chance encounters lead to great projects. This, and much more, is "SUP for All" (SUP per Tutti): an experience born in Reggio Calabria through the collaboration of Insieme per la Città APS, promoted by ASI Calabria EPS, and strongly championed by A.S.D. Blue Tribe together with Behavior Analyst Daniela Gullace. The goal? To let children and young people on the autism spectrum try water sports on a SUP board, immersing them in the wonderful world of the sea in one of the most breathtaking settings in the Mediterranean: the Strait of Messina.

The framework: really talking about inclusion

(Daniela Gullace)

I'm Daniela Gullace, a Behavior Analyst. For years I have worked with children and young people on the autism spectrum, and I also support their families. I know their daily difficulties well: the lack of dedicated services, and the ignorance of a society that celebrates Odd Socks Day and Autism Awareness Day, but has not yet understood what true inclusion is.

Today there is a lot of talk about neurodivergence, a fashionable term for a nervous system that works differently from what we consider "typical". So we are talking about diversity: a diversity that can be seen as richness, not as a handicap. That is exactly where we started, thanks to the collaboration with A.S.D. Blue Tribe and with Sebastiano.

Why the sea

There is a scientific reason behind choosing the water. Contact with the marine environment is not just a beautiful backdrop. Water provides enveloping, adjustable sensory feedback — pressure, temperature, buoyancy — that helps organise bodily experience. The vastness of the natural setting lowers alert levels and supports self-regulation. And coordinated movement on the board engages processes of motor and attentional integration: keeping your balance means constantly reading your own body and the environment, and responding accordingly.

Through contact with the sea, movement and the guidance of qualified instructors, children and young people can learn to manage their emotions, build self-confidence and improve balance, coordination and social skills.

From observation to results

Every solid project starts with observation. The Open Day held at the swimming pool allowed us to identify who was truly motivated to learn SUP. And in behavioural science, motivation is not a detail: it is the engine that makes learning possible. High motivation led the young participants to make great progress.

Session after session, we watched them achieve small-yet-huge goals: accepting waiting, taking turns, following instructions even when we weren't standing in front of them looking them in the eye. Their attention span and focus on the task grew longer. They developed good balance on the SUP sitting or kneeling; some even tried standing up.

Anyone familiar with behaviour analysis will recognise that these milestones reflect goals that are anything but random: tolerance for waiting, turn-taking, joint attention, understanding and generalisation of instructions.

Their level of independence grew day by day. The young participants became aware of their own abilities and less dependent on help from others — that gradual reduction of support which we technically call prompt fading, and which in real life simply means: "I can do it by myself". They even completed their lesson excellently on a day of rough sea, naturally avoiding the standing position. That's when we understood that the skills hadn't stayed "in the pool": they had transferred and taken root. In a word, they had generalised.

The sea as a teacher

(Sebastiano Michele Militti)

I'm Sebastiano, president of A.S.D. Blue Tribe, an IKO kitesurfing instructor and the SUP instructor for these young people. For those who live it every day, the sea is never just water: it is a patient and demanding teacher, one that rewards calm and repays every gesture of trust with interest.

Teaching SUP to a child on the autism spectrum has taught me more than I have taught them. I learned to slow down, to communicate without rushing, to make every movement predictable — because on the board safety comes from trust, and trust comes from knowing what will happen a moment before it happens. In the water there are no shortcuts: there is the young person, the instructor at their side, and the Strait of Messina watching over us with its thousands of years of experience.

There was no longer a diagnosis, no longer a label: there was a young person standing on the water, proud, looking at the sea the way you look at an achievement.

I will never forget the look on the face of someone who, for the first time, rose to their knees and then stood up on the board, feeling balance come from within rather than from outside. It's for moments like these that Blue Tribe exists.

How our sessions are structured

Every SUP for All session follows key steps designed to build a routine, encourage participants and help them overcome anxiety about the unknown. The predictability of the structure is not a formality: for a person on the autism spectrum, it is the very condition that makes the environment safe and learning possible. Every step is designed and managed through close collaboration between the Behavior Analyst and the instructors.

1 · Theory on land

Dedicated to getting to know the SUP board, the life jacket, the paddle, the leash and the whole process to follow, through verbal explanations supported by pictures. The pictures are not a nice extra: visual support anchors information, reduces verbal load and makes the unknown familiar before even entering the water.

2 · Dry-land exercises

To work on balance, coordination and physical preparation in a playful way, adapted to each participant's abilities. Every exercise is tailored to the individual: no goal is too high, no success is too small to be celebrated.

3 · Getting into the water

Every child or young person is paired with an instructor, supported by parents at the water's edge who watch, help keep the group safe and celebrate everyone's successes. This is the moment when theory, body and emotion meet — and when the trust built on land turns into floating.

A diversity that becomes richness

SUP for All is not a miracle therapy and does not promise cures: it promises something more concrete and more honest. It promises a summer in which a young person can learn to wait for their turn, to trust an adult who is not a parent, to find balance on a board and within themselves. It promises families who, for once, don't have to explain or justify anything. It promises that the word inclusion stops being a slogan for an awareness day and becomes what it was on the Strait of Messina: a child and the sea, side by side, as equals.

This is the heart of the project. And for us, this is only the beginning.

Project carried out in Reggio Calabria by Insieme per la Città APS, promoted by ASI Calabria EPS, championed by A.S.D. Blue Tribe with the scientific collaboration of Dr Daniela Gullace, Behavior Analyst. Instruction provided by A.S.D. Blue Tribe.

The sea belongs to everyone. The next step can too.

If you are a parent, an educator or simply someone who believes in inclusion made of real actions rather than slogans, SUP for All continues: we are looking for new participants, volunteers and supporters for the next season on the Strait of Messina.

Write to us, come and meet us, step onto the board → www.bluetribe.surf