The planet is facing unprecedented issues. Weather patterns are changing and are becoming more extreme, natural systems, and the ecosystem services they support, are breaking down and waste materials and chemicals are accumulating in rivers, lochs and oceans and in the air that we breathe. International bodies like the United Nations, National Governments and civil society organisations are recognising that the triple threat of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution is threatening natural systems and human society.
The impacts of climate change will affect sport in many ways. For individuals, we may be playing or training in unpredictable extreme heat, in heavy rain or with poor air quality. For clubs, more powerful storms may cause damage to facilities, preventing play and requiring expensive repairs. Meanwhile, major events may be impacted by extreme weather and league competitions may be disrupted with matches postponed, causing fixture chaos and incomplete seasons. Over time the way certain sports are played may change because of changing environmental conditions.
We know that many of the changes that are happening are because of the way human beings behave. Climate change is being caused mostly by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from burning fossil fuels, construction and agriculture. Biodiversity loss is caused by direct persecution of animals and destruction of habitats and is also increased by climate change. Waste and pollutants, that can not be broken down naturally, accumulate in the environment and reach levels that may be toxic to life.
Many people are passionate about sport as a participant or as a fan. We often keep sport separate from other aspects of our lives, but sport will be impacted by climate change, directly or indirectly. The fact that these problems are caused by our actions means that we have an opportunity to change to reduce these impacts. Sport can contribute by adapting the ways that we manage and organise sport. Where sport is different to other sectors is that we have an opportunity to influence how people behave by putting these actions into a sporting context.
The purpose of this document is to provide Scottish governing bodies of sport with clear information on the links between sustainability issues and sport and step-by-step guidance on how you can make your organisation and your sport more sustainable, with a particular emphasis on climate change and climate action. It will provide a framework to assess current strengths and weaknesses, guidance on how to reduce your impacts and a process to estimate your current carbon footprint.
The sportscotland Climate Action Framework
The sportscotland Climate Action Framework combines the five United Nations Sport for Climate Action (UNS4CA) framework action points and the BASIS 12 Principles to guide management actions and policy making around climate change and sustainability and show how you can reduce your impacts.
The UNS4CA principle are used to guide an ordered series of steps to be taken to implement your sustainability action plan. The BASIS 12 Principles show the operational areas where you can take action and defines targets and opportunities for action.
The sportscotland Climate Action Self-Assessment
This section provides a series of questions for SGBs and their sports to assess their current level of engagement around managing and reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. The questions closely follow the ten-point framework presented in section 2 and the responses will provide a gap analysis of opportunities for future actions. The SGB should go through the questions responding according to their current activity, noting where there are omissions and consider how action can be taken to improve performance.
sportscotland Sport and Climate Change Framework and Self-Assessment
BASIS (the British Association for Sustainable Sport) has provided expert help to sports clubs, venues, and governing bodies for over a decade – helping them to understand their impacts, set targets and implement processes to improve their environmental performance.
There vision is to harness the power of sport to build a sustainable future and our mission is to empower sport in the UK to become a world leader in sustainability with the urgency dictated by science.
BASIS recognises the positive role sport plays in promoting healthy lifestyles and building communities. We also recognise the opportunity to leverage the power of elite sport to guide society towards social and environmental sustainability.
BASIS were commissioned by sportscotland to support the development of the sportscotland Sport and Climate Change Framework and Self-Assessment.
Contact us
For more information please contact Megan Griffiths Megan.Griffiths@sportscotland.org.uk or Graham Finnie Graham.Finnie@sportscotland.org.uk