RIDING THE WAVE OF CHANGE: SPORTS' VITAL ROLE IN PRESERVING OUR OCEANS FOR CLIMATE HEALTH
OCEANS
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Inspired by Paul Hawken's vision in Regeneration: Ending the climate crisis in one generation, we've launched "Regeneration Revolution: Sport’s Solutions to Helping End the Climate Crisis." This series highlights how sports can be a dynamic force in addressing the climate crisis, with a keen focus on the nine core areas explored in Hawken's book: Cities, Food, People, Energy, Industry, Forests, Land, Wilding, and Oceans.
The ocean is key to regulating weather and longer-term climate. It is the life support system for the planet, producing 60% of the world’s oxygen and absorbing most of the planet’s carbon dioxide.
In his book, Hawken emphasizes the necessity of ending the use of oceans as a dumping ground and instead establishing more marine protected areas.
In the present system, oceans are beginning to fail under the effects of heating, acidification, predatory overfishing, and unchecked pollution. However, through regenerative interaction, the ocean can continue to play a crucial role in sequestering carbon, feeding billions of people, and restoring coastal ecosystems.
HOW IS THE SPORTS
INDUSTRY RESPONDING?
Sports, particularly watersports, are directly impacted by the health of the ocean. Ensuring a healthy ocean is vital to the continued success of sports such as sailing, open water swimming, and surfing.
For this reason, many water sports focus their sustainability efforts on promoting and contributing toward ocean health restoration, focusing predominantly on eliminating ocean pollution. Some organizations are more ambitious and are looking to regenerate coral and coastal ecosystems for even more lasting change.
WSL has made conserving the ocean a priority.
The organization is calling on world leaders and the global surf community to protect and conserve 30% of surf ecosystems by 2030 through its We Are One Ocean program. This initiative leads coastal restoration, climate action, and plastic pollution reduction projects on a global scale.
The campaign has brought people together from more than 150 countries and 90 organizations through projects such as planting native coastal species in Hawaii and restoring coral ecosystems in Tahiti. This has garnered a reach of more than 400 million people on social media and the education of over 35,000 youth on ocean conservation.
IN TERMS OF IMPACT
347,219
hectares of coastal land have been restored
100
tons of plastic have been collected from the ocean
70%
less waste on the WSL tour events.
THE OCEAN RACE - RACING WITH PURPOSE
The Ocean Race is a purpose pioneer. It was one of the first sports events to put purpose at the heart of its strategy and operations under the banner “Racing with Purpose.”
The Ocean Race successfully harnesses the determination and ambition of its grueling round-the-world race to educate, inspire, and accelerate action to protect and restore ocean health.
The Ocean Race set ambitious targets for its operational impacts, including:
Working with 11th Hour Racing to engage people in ocean conservancy.
Advocating for the ocean’s rights to be recognized through summits and policy work.
Educating people through the One Blue Voice petition and Relay4Nature.
Recruiting a new generation of oceans champions through its Learning Programme.
Collecting data on ocean health through its Science Programme.
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E1 is an electric race boat championship launched in 2023 as a new, competitive, on-water racing proposition based on clean technology to protect our waters and coastal areas.
This championship’s Blue Action Programme focuses on accelerating the development of clean technologies and blue restoration programs that will help repair already damaged coastal ecosystems.
In addition to installing charging points at each championship venue to incentivize recreational boat users, E1 is developing education programs that will raise awareness and educate young children on the importance of ocean health.
To raise awareness of the threats of marine plastic pollution, adidas created a campaign for its Ultra BOOST running shoe made by Parley Ocean Plastic, a proprietary plastic retrieved from coastal communities and beaches.
The 2022 Run for the Oceans global campaign invited communities to join hands and run together to raise awareness around the threat of marine plastic.
During the campaign, adidas contributed $1 for every kilometer within the Run for the Oceans Challenge on its Runtastic App. A record 6,760,161 people participated in the campaign, logging 771,225,511 minutes of activity.
INTERNATIONAL VOLLEYBALL FEDERATION (FIVB) - GOOD NET PROJECT
Together with the Ghost Fishing Foundation, FIVB has launched the Good Net Project — a worldwide sustainable initiative to remove ghost nets from the oceans and turn them into volleyball nets.
The reclaimed nets are placed on beaches around the world for local communities to use.
WHAT CAN WE TAKE AWAY FROM THIS?
There is no future for watersports without the sustained wellness of the ocean. Sports organizations, especially big players, have the ability to reduce plastic waste and allocate resources toward improving the health of the ecosystem.
Take a look at our key learnings to see how you can play a part in leading change in this space:
Recognize the Vital Role of the Ocean:
Understand the ocean's pivotal role in regulating weather and climate, producing oxygen, and sequestering carbon dioxide. Acknowledge that the ocean is not just a resource but a life support system for the planet.
End Ocean Pollution and Protect Marine Areas:
Emphasize the necessity of ending the use of oceans as dumping grounds and prioritize the establishment of more marine protected areas. Recognize the harmful effects of heating, acidification, overfishing, and pollution on oceans, and work to mitigate these issues.
Sports Industry's Direct Impact:
Understand that the health of the ocean directly impacts water-based sports such as sailing, swimming, and surfing. Recognize the sports industry's responsibility in promoting ocean health, including eliminating ocean pollution and restoring coastal ecosystems.
Collaborative Initiatives:
Engage in collaborative efforts to restore and protect the ocean. Join or support initiatives like the World Surf League's We Are One Ocean program, which focuses on coastal restoration, climate action, and plastic pollution reduction on a global scale.
Sustainable Sports Events:
Implement sustainable practices within sports events, such as reducing event waste, promoting clean technologies, and educating the community on the importance of ocean health. Use sports as a platform to raise awareness and accelerate action to protect and restore the ocean, as exemplified by The Ocean Race's "Racing with Purpose" strategy and the E1 electric race boat championship's Blue Action Programme.
At 17 Sport, our collaborative work with companies is built on solving global challenges through the lens of sports. We see this industry as uniquely powerful in its ability to ignite positive change and aim to create a fairer, healthier, more prosperous world for all — saving our oceans is no exception.
ABOUT 17 SPORT
17 Sport exists to help businesses use the power of sport to build a more positive future for the world whilst accomplishing commercial goals.
Founded in 2020, our name is inspired by the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and is anchored to SDG 17 and our profound belief in the power of partnerships. Based in 7 different countries on 3 continents, our global team of experts comprises individuals who have been at the forefront of the purpose revolution in sports and business for the last 15 years.
To find out how 17 Sport can help you activate your purpose through sports to help address the climate crisis, reach out to info@17-sport.com for a one on one consultation with one of our experts.