As alternative/renewable energy schemes continue to make headlines, major sporting events are not to be left out of the latest trend.
Nairobi was home to the recent meeting at the UNEP headquarters where over 200 participants gathered for the Global Forum for Sport and Environment to discuss the impact of environmental projects from the 2010 FIFA World Cup to the 2010 Youth Olympic Games in Singapore. During this past World Cup in June, China’s Yingli Green Energy became the first Chinese company to sponsor the event. The company installed solar panels in all 20 of FIFA’s “Centers for 2010.
In addition, Belgium company Electrawinds completed its first of 25 wind turbines in Port Elizabeth to help supply renewable energy at no cost to the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium.
At the Nairobi meeting, delegates reviewed the green activities that took place at sporting events in 2010 looking at a motor sports federation, the UNEP-Puma® Play for Life Campaign on football, and the International Year of Biodiversity 2010 – a global initiative to bring awareness of biodiversity issues to sport fans.
The meeting closed with three African-based conservation projects winning $800,000 as part of the Play for Life campaign. The projects, located in Nigeria, Zambia, and Cote d’Ivoire and Liberia, won an online poll that was held during the World Cup where fans selected their favorite conservation project.
Other sports on a smaller scale made headway at the meeting, including the Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM) which promotes the use of environmentally friendly alternatives to fossil fuels. UIM has signed a cooperation agreement with UNEP to further its range of environmental initiatives and to share information and expertise.
Several sporting apparel companies began incorporating green initiatives into their operations such as making clothing items and kits for teams that participated in the World Cup. As part of the Green Goal initiative for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, UNEP partnered with organizers on sustainable public lighting projects in six host cities across South Africa. The UNEP-PUMA collaboration resulted in 11 national teams offsetting their World Cup emissions, while the Green Passport, distributed to 100,000 football fans, encouraged World Cup visitors to make sustainable travel choices while in South Africa. Green Passports, packed full of local, eco-friendly tips and advice for travelers, was introduced in Brazil and Ecuador and new campaigns are about to begin in Costa Rica and Israel.
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