Story | 06 Apr, 2023

Celebrating the power of sports and new commitments to nature

In celebration of the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) today, the Sports for Nature initiative would like to recognise sports organisations that are using their unique influence and impact to advance positive action for people and the planet.

Photo: Sails of Change

“Sport is a great equaliser, but in ways that unite people. Such unity is instrumental in taking collective action on shared concerns, like the global biodiversity crisis,” said Radhika Murti, IUCN’s Director of the Centre for Society and Governance. “This year’s IDSDP theme, Scoring a goal for the planet, is welcomed by IUCN as it strongly aligns with our work on Sports for Nature. We look forward to working with the sports community to drive greater understanding of the biodiversity crisis and enable nature-positive actions across the sporting community. We call on sports organisations to join us.”

The Sports for Nature initiative plans to help drive transformative action for nature across sports by 2030 and beyond. The Sports for Nature Framework, launched at the Convention on Biological Diversity Conference of the Parties in December 2022, has four key principles:

Protect nature and avoid damage to natural habitats and species;
Restore and regenerate nature wherever possible;
Understand and reduce risks to nature in your supply chains; and
Educate and inspire positive action for nature across and beyond sport.

This past week, the Ecuador Surf Federation and San Cristobal Surf Club signed the Framework, pledging to deliver on new commitments to nature and contribute to local and global biodiversity goals. The national federation and local club joined four other recent signatories that have committed to take action under the Framework - the International Floorball Federation (IFF), International Powerboating Union (UIM), the Jadir Taekwondo Association (AJTKD), and UltraSwim 33.3.

See the full list of signatories here.

IUCN, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), together with the Sails of Change Foundation, are supporting the uptake of the Framework with sports organisations around the world, and co-developing tools and training to help them advance their nature journey.

For more information, please contact sportsfornature@iucn.org