Desertification and land degradation characterize a significant problem for the worldwide sporting neighborhood. Sports activities pitches are immediately affected by these phenomena. Drought and excessive temperatures make taking part in surfaces tougher and extra brittle, growing the danger of harm for athletes. As well as, frequent heatwaves imply sporting occasions have to be rescheduled, disrupting athletes’ preparation and efficiency.
Based on a current survey, 75 per cent of athletes understand a unfavourable impression on their well being and efficiency due to local weather change. Along with the direct results on athletes, world warming reduces alternatives for neighborhood and youth actions, notably affecting marginalized teams.
Wholesome land not solely gives us with nearly 95 per cent of our meals however a lot extra: it garments and shelters us, gives us with jobs and livelihoods and protects us from worsening droughts, floods and forest fires. On the identical time, inhabitants progress and unsustainable manufacturing and consumption patterns gasoline demand for pure assets. By 2050, 10 billion individuals will share our planet and rely upon wholesome land for his or her livelihoods.
To deal with these points, the United Nations Conference to Fight Desertification (UNCCD) is organizing a ‘Desertification Day’ on 31 July 2024 on the Africa Station of the Olympic Video games on Ile-Saint-Denis. The purpose of the occasion is to lift consciousness and get the sporting neighborhood concerned in land points forward of UNCCD COP16, the UN’s greatest convention on land points, in December 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
In partnership with the Mairie de l’île-Saint-Denis and the Affiliation d’Esprit d’Ebène, the UNCCD is providing thrilling actions equivalent to a desertification fresco, an oasis of options, a desertification quiz with prizes to be gained, and a screening of the movie ‘The Great Green Wall’ by Inna Modja, the UNCCD’s Goodwill Ambassador.
To mark the thirtieth anniversary of the UNCCD, a debate shall be organized with athletes and personalities from the world of sport to show the hyperlinks between desertification and sport.
Among the many individuals are:
- Merem Tahar, Particular Envoy on Youth of the President of UNCCDCOP15, Chad/France
- Naomi Akakpo, Olympic Athlete (hurdler), Togo/France
- Mustapha Berraf, First Vice-President of the Affiliation of Nationwide Olympic Committees of Africa, Algeria
- Vladyslava Kravchenk, Para Swimming Athlete and member of the Worldwide Paralympic Committee’s Athletes’ Council, Malta
The day can even see the launch of the UNCCD’s ‘Sports4Land’ marketing campaign, which goals to get sports activities personalities concerned in defending the land: #United4Land for a affluent future.
Restoring land is an efficient methodology of selling a greater high quality of life, making certain meals safety and sustainable progress.
A wholesome playground begins with a wholesome planet. Let’s decide to preserving our land in the identical means we decide to our favourite sport!
