Cool Down - The Sport for Climate Action Network

So many outstanding- (-ly bad) contenders to choose from (e.g. British Cycling - sponsored by Shell Oil) Hope you will enjoy making a few quick nominations.

'Why it's so hard to kick fossil fuels out of sport' - a piece I have written for The Conversation UK. A huge thank you to my supervisor, Madeleine Orr for the guidance with this. Check it out below ⬇️ Sport Positive, Fossil Free Football, Cool Down - The Sport for Climate Action Network, New Weather Institute

The Green Runners are backing the Bad Sport Awards 2024's Running on Fumes Award, the most outrageous examples of sportswashing/greenwashing in running. Who will you vote for?!

🌍 As #COP29 approaches, the SUS-POL Research Programme has published a briefing exploring some of the emerging trends and dynamics in global supply-side climate policy. In just two weeks, global leaders will gather in Baku with hopes of making real progress on fossil fuel phase-out. Despite record-high fossil fuel emissions in 2023 and clear evidence on the need for a rapid phase-out, many countries’ production plans—especially the wealthy ones—remain completely incompatible with the goals of Paris Agreement. The briefing highlights key areas for fossil fuel phase-outs ahead of #COP29: 1️⃣ Government Policies: Some nations, like the UK, are curbing new fossil fuel licenses due to climate and economic priorities. 2️⃣ Legal Challenges: Climate litigation is rising, potentially demanding stricter assessments for fossil projects and landing incumbents in hot water. 3️⃣ Financing Shifts: While private finance flows to fossil fuels persist, public finance has slowed significantly. The Clean Energy Transition Partnership (CETP) cut public fossil financing by two-thirds in 2023 (!!!) 4️⃣ Investor-State Disputes: Treaties like the Energy Charter Treaty pose vast challenges to the phase-out, prompting states to reconsider or withdraw from them. However, this is far more easy. 5️⃣ Global Alliances: Initiatives like the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative and Beyond Oil & Gas Alliance are gaining momentum and could see new developments at COP29. We may also see new initiatives launched 👀 📈 Yet, resistance remains strong, fuelled by energy security concerns, pro-fossil populism, and political shifts. Locking-in robust, long-term policies and well-resourced institutions is essential to maintaining progress despite these challenges. 🔗 Read the full briefing: https://bit.ly/COP29suspol

A new round-up of football and climate change developments is out and includes an occasional sprinkling of opinion along the way. There's a wide range of action and analysis summarised here for you to catch up on, that will hopefully spark further thoughts, plans and action. https://lnkd.in/eCe7TNhg

Last week, one of the most absurd cases of sportswashing took place to deafening silence in the media. Ineos, a major petrochemical company, sponsored Britain’s team in the prestigious America’s Cup sailing competition. On one hand, the race represents the pinnacle of sailing, a sport rooted in a deep respect for the sea. On the other hand, Ineos has built its fortune by producing huge quantities of plastic that pollute the world's oceans. Ineos and sailing clearly make strange bedfellows - but that's precisely the point. Sportswashing, at its core, thrives on creating and nurturing cognitive dissonance. By inviting us to embrace conflicting values, our sense of right and wrong becomes blurred over time, as does a clear path forward. In the midst of a worsening climate and ecological crisis, this tactic is particularly dangerous. By investing £110 million into Britain’s sailing team, Ineos looks to disrupt what would otherwise be a common sense view in the sailing community: the plastic industry should be condemned for destroying the environment on which our sport depends. Fortunately, there are athletes who refuse to let these contradictions go unnoticed. In my latest piece for Cool Down - The Sport for Climate Action Network, Olympians Fynn Sterritt and Laura Baldwin OLY draw attention to sportswashing in sailing. Full piece: https://lnkd.in/eJmvniyE

Humanity is way off the mark in addressing a worsening climate crisis. Happy Friday! The new UN Environment Programme Emissions Gap 2024 report is probably the worst thing you can read before starting your weekend. ⬆️ Global emissions continue to reach record highs, with GHGs 1.3% higher in 2023. 📈 As a result, the emissions gap has grown as policy ambition and action have stalled, while emissions have continued to climb. 🌬️ The report authors warn of a "massive gap between rhetoric and reality" and call for "no more hot air". 🦘 The upcoming Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), due in Feb 2025, must deliver "a quantum leap in ambition in tandem with accelerated mitigation action in this decade”. ❌ Without ramping up ambition and action, pathways to 1.5°C without overshoot become "impossible" and holding 2°C will become much more challenging. Thankfully, the report highlights areas of the global economy where deep and rapid emissions cuts are possible by 2030 and 2035 (see image below). Full report: https://lnkd.in/eKp7eTFT Carbon Brief summary: https://lnkd.in/eDv_wjer Lead author's thread on X: https://lnkd.in/egFF--JA

Such a huge intervention for football today, with over 100 professional women footballers calling on FIFA to drop Saudi Aramco as their major global sponsorship partner. "Fifa always shout that they want the game to be inclusive, and they want the game to lead by example. Well, if so, then make sure that you align with sponsorships that are leading by example." 🔥 "We would like FIFA to replace Saudi Aramco with other sponsors whose values align more with with gender equality, human rights and a safe planet for everyone." 💚 I am sure this is only the beginning of the backlash against those polluting the beautiful game... https://lnkd.in/ejqCV4sq

It is that time of the year again: nominations for the Bad Sport Awards 2024 are now open! The Badvertising campaign is back with another round of awards calling out the most egregious examples of greenwash and sportswash from across global sport. This year there are six categories this year: 🏅 The Bad Sport of the Year 2024 Award: the overall winner for the most egregious examples of greenwash and sportswash.  ⛷️ The ‘Thin Ice’ Award (in collaboration with Save Our Snow): the most self-defeating high-carbon sponsorship deal or commercial partnership in winter sports. 🏃♀️ The ‘Running on Fumes’ Award (in collaboration with The Green Runners): the most outrageous examples of sportswash or greenwashing in running, across elite running events to trail and ultramarathons.  ⚽ The ‘Own Goal’ Award (in collaboration with Fossil Free Football): the football organisation or club that makes an own goal that could make us lose the match against climate breakdown.  🚲 The ‘Taking People for a Ride’ Award: for the sport, club or organisation that through inappropriate advertising or sponsorship deals most betrays or alienates its members and supporters. 🎰 The ‘Bad Bet’ Award: this award highlights the sports organisations that have made a commercial decision that could become a thorn in the side of their sustainability initiatives. Get your nominations in here: https://lnkd.in/edcx_D8S

'Why it's so hard to kick fossil fuels out of sport' - a piece I have written for The Conversation UK. A huge thank you to my supervisor, Madeleine Orr for the guidance with this. Check it out below ⬇️ Sport Positive, Fossil Free Football, Cool Down - The Sport for Climate Action Network, New Weather Institute