adidas has announced the return of Move For The Planet, its global initiative harnessing collective movement to create collective impact. adidas is calling on all athletes at every level across the world to track their physical activity across a variety of sports to raise money for projects in areas impacted by heat waves, flooding and other extreme weather conditions.
Extreme weather conditions are having an increasing impact on the places people play and practice sport, says adidas, from the neighbourhood pitches to global sports venues.
Statistics reveal that by 2050, almost one-fourth of the English football league team's stadiums (23 out of 92) are projected to be partially or completely flooded every year.
Further research by the United Nations states that approximately half of former Winter Olympic host cities will likely be unable to host future games in the same timeframe.
In 2023, over a million people took part in the first year of Move For The Planet, with the leading activities for minutes recorded including running (63.1%), walking (17.9%) and cycling (9.2%). In 2024, adidas has expanded the initiative to include over 100 sports, including:
- Football
- Kayaking
- Jump Rope, and
- Powerlifting.
In 2024, for every 10 minutes of movement logged on the adidas Running App between Friday, 10 May and Wednesday, 22 May adidas will donate €1 up to a total of €1.5-million.
According to the brand, these funds will be used to help create real-world change through education on sustainability and the enhancement of facilities to make them more resilient against extreme weather conditions.
Ashley Czarnowski, senior director of global purpose marketing at adidas, says, "We're excited to build on the success of the first year of Move for The Planet, which brought together a community of over one million people across the world."
"This year, people can record movement in over 100 sports and we are expanding the impact of the programme to include a new set of projects and initiatives. Whether it's taking part at the grassroots or competing at the highest level, we all have a deep connection to the places we play," adds Czarnowski.
"Together, we can unite as a global sporting community to help some of those places, by making sports facilities more resilient to extreme weather conditions and providing education on sustainability," Czarnowski says.
Common Goal is a global impact movement that aims to shift society towards a more sustainable and equitable future through sport, uniting community organisations, athletes, clubs, brands and other stakeholders to collaborate towards the wellbeing of our people and planet.
Olivia Baston-Pitt, senior impact sponsorship manager at Common Goal, says, "We're thrilled that the Move For The Planet initiative is back for a second year. The success of last year meant we were able to increase the accessibility of sport for individuals who haven’t always had that privilege."
Alongside Common Goal, adidas will also be supporting UN Climate Change — Sports for Climate Action to develop a series of training modules for sports and NGOs operating in the nexus of sport and development.
The UN Climate Change is the United Nations entity tasked with supporting the global response to the threat of climate change. The partnership is centered on using sport to educate and engage communities on climate-related topics and sustainable practices, according to adidas.
The funds created by Move For The Planet will go towards creating publicly accessible training materials, as well as the hosting of training sessions with networks of NGOs and other organisations to enable them to transform communities in the service of the future for sport on a thriving planet, adidas concludes.
For more information, visit www.adidas.co.za. You can also follow adidas on Facebook or on Instagram.
*Image courtesy of contributor