Environment and sustainable development

How can sport contribute to addressing environmental challenges? What consequences will climate change have on the future of sport?

In recent years, dire warnings about climate change have been issued. In November 2022, world leaders reaffirmed their commitment to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. However, the latest science suggests that this will require a 45% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, and we are currently on track for a 2.5°C increase by the end of the century.

We are already seeing the effects of climate change: shrinking sea ice, melting glaciers, increasingly intense heat waves, more frequent droughts. The consequences are considerable and contribute, among other things, to increasing food insecurity, forced migration and poverty.

As the world grapples with the effects of climate change, it is important to consider how sport, as a powerful global phenomenon, can contribute to both the problem and its solutions. In this section, we will look at various aspects of the relationship between sport and climate change. We will explore the impact of sport on the environment, the implications of climate change for sport, the actions taken by sport stakeholders to address it, and some of the challenges ahead.

Follow the links below to learn more about this important topic:

1. Sport and the environment: a team game
2. Making sport more sustainable
3. Community Engagement and Education
4. Advocacy and action
5. Policy
6. Key Resources
7. Community Articles: Responses to our call for articles on sport and the environment

Image from United Nations Environment Programme https://www.unep.org/