EuropeActive has recently been invited by the European Commission to be an observer of the Expert Group on Green Sport. This group is formed by both representatives of the European sport movement and representatives from the EU Member States.
In addition to understanding the “green sports” landscape in the EU and mapping existing projects, initiatives and practices, the ambition of the Expert Group on Green Sport is to draft a “common framework for sustainable sport”, including a series of recommendation in the 5 following areas:
- Sustainable sport infrastructures (construction; maintenance; use of materials; impact of climate change on sport infrastructure...)
- Sustainable sport events (especially for smaller-scale events)
- Innovative cross-sectorial solutions (to mitigate the impact of climate change and to limit the negative impact of sport on the climate and the environment)
- Education about and promotion of sustainable sport practices
- and the sport movement’s contribution to the European Climate Pact.
EuropeActive will particularly engage in the third and fourth areas, contributing with best practices and innovative examples coming from the Fitness and Physical Activity Sector.
This involvement in the Expert Group on Green Sport comes at the right moment for EuropeActive, which is increasingly engaged in these areas, and recently published a new information paper, highlighting how the European Green Deal and its ambition to make Europe “a climate neutral continent by 2050” is pushing the sports industry to adopt more environmentally friendly governance and regulations, and influencing the European Fitness and Physical Activity Sector to take responsibility in green and sustainable issues.