Content
Workshop 4 Programme:
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Session 1 – Developing a sustainable international sports federation
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Session 2 – The power of the athlete’s voice. Athlete’s empowering sustainability through sport
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Session 3 – Merchandising and Sustainability – a conflict of interest or an opportunity for a circular future?
Workshop 3 will start at 11:00 BST and will last for 2 hours and 30 minutes
Session 1 – Developing a sustainable international sports federation
Karine Teow, Head of Sustainability for the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), and Ramon (Moncho) Ortgea Montes, Health Impact Manager at the ITTF Foundation talk abut their respective roles within the ITTF group and how the federation is embedding sustainability in every aspect of the federation under the guidance of their president, Petra Sörling.
Session 2 – The power of the athlete’s voice. Athlete’s empowering sustainability through sport
In this workshop three athletes will talk about the ways in which they are helping raise awareness of the social and environmental challenges that we are facing today and how they are using their platforms to engage fans, athletes and children to take action and create a more sustainable future.
Theresa Zabell is a Double Olympic Champion and Founder and Executive President of Ecomar. She will talk about her journey since retiring from sport over 40 years ago. She has worked with a variety of international organisations, including the European Parliament and UNESCO. She will talk about the Ecomar Foundation, which she founded over 25 years ago which has been educating and raising awareness, especially with children and young people, to achieve a healthier and more balanced planet. Over 2.4 million people have participated in the Ecomar programme during that time.
Hugo Inglis is a Triple Olympic Champion and will compete in Paris 2024 this summer. He is co-founder of High Impact Athletes, an organisation created by athletes for athletes to drive real change. Hugo will talk about his work at HIA donating athlete’s income, including his own, to the world’s most effective charities, and assembling a global team of change-makers to join this journey.
Ukaleq Slettemark is a 22-year-old biathlete from Nuuk, Greenland who is at the start of her sporting career. She has competed in the Arctic Winter Games for Greenland and in the Beijing Olympics in 2022 for Denmark. Ukaleq will talk about her own sustainability journey and her role as an IBU sustainability ambassador.
Session 3 – Merchandising and Sustainability – a conflict of interest or an opportunity for a circular future?
Merchandising and licensing programmes should include elements of uniqueness, collectability, brand-building, physical & digital experiences and CSR with the potential to reach fans one to one and stay engaged with them. Carefully conceived event merchandise, retail activation and licensed products and experiences both physical & digital are ongoing touchpoints for fans.
However, traditionally products have been made for a linear business model of take-make-waste, often designed to promote and last for only one event or season. The environmental impact of the volume of branded merchandise is becoming an increasing concern.
In this workshop, Joanna Czutkowna and Simon Gresswell discuss the conflict of interest between the environmental and economic sustainability of merchandise and if it is possible to transition towards a commercially viable circular model.