How to deliver social action through sport

Paris 2024 delivered another incredible Paralympics with athletes from across the world delivering performances that thrilled the planet, including 2.5m paying spectators and in the UK an estimated 20m tuned into the Channel 4 coverage.

As well as world class sport, the Paralympics have been a positive force for change in society, challenging stereotypes around disabled people. They show what disabled people can achieve and bring into the mainstream conversation, changing society perceptions and highlighting issues faced by disabled people. Sport is, and can be, a brilliant catalyst for change.

So, it was an appropriate backdrop for Planet Earth Games to have a role at the Paris Paralympics, where thanks to our work with Association of Colleges Sport, we were invited to present at a sport innovator conference hosted by the Dutch Olympic Committee. Our further education programme was one of three chosen to represent Sport England alongside other innovative projects from Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands and Spain to share ideas and best practice on harnessing sport for social action.

In our programme, the focus is on inspiring young people towards social action on environmental sustainability through the power of sport and physical activity.

According to a YouGov poll, one in three young people in Britain are scared (33%), sad (34%) or pessimistic (34%) about climate change, with 28% feeling “overwhelmed.” Eco anxiety is a growing phenomenon that is impacting thousands of young people as climate change becomes a more prominent issue now and into the future. By empowering young people to take climate action through Planet Earth Games, we can support not only their mental wellbeing, but their physical wellbeing too, through activities such as litter picking, cycling to college and nature walks.

Planet Earth Games also offers each participating college the opportunity to support the UK Government’s Sustainability and Climate Change strategy, helping the transition to net zero and preparing young people by developing green leadership skills so critical for the future. So far, the collaboration between Planet Earth Games and Association of Colleges Sport has been responsible for around 25,000 sustainable acts across the UK’s further education network.

The programme has evolved each year, and our model of an annual competition between January and Earth Day (22 April) enables colleges and students to drive immediate action on campuses and communities, inspire long-term sustainable legacy projects, and foster green leadership skills for the future.

With the ability to create their own student-led challenges, it has unleashed innovation in participating colleges with students motivated and inspired by activities that are relevant to them and their immediate environment. As organisers, we have been consistently amazed by some of the activities that Planet Earth Games has prompted.

At Broadstairs College, for example, an outdoor Jungle Gym project has created an outdoors fitness space from materials upcycled, natural, or recycled resources, while at Bradford College students have seized the opportunity to tackle climate change to engage students for whom English is a second language. At Leeds City College, an Eco Gym workout has been developed, using cardio equipment in the college fitness space to generate clean energy, and the Heart of Worcestershire College has embraced the Planet Earth Games to reduce their carbon footprint by 50% before 2030.

To maintain the year-on-year improvement, we are recruiting an organising committee to enable the continued development of the programme. If you are interested, sign up here . You can sign up your college for the 2024/25 competition by creating a team for the FE programme here. AoC and Planet Earth Games will also be hosting an information seminar on 12 November, please book in here

Chris Broadbent is the Chief Executive of Planet Earth Games.