“We cannot live in a fossil fuel world, we need to rip the ban-aid off to be honest.” – SailGP Chief Purpose Officer, Fiona Morgan
With COP28 winding down, SailGP – the global sailing championship that positions itself as a global leader in purpose-driven and sustainable sport – held its sixth race of the season, the Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix. This Grand Prix was no ordinary race, it formed part of SailGP’s Race For The Future COP28 takeover event, aimed at highlighting the sailing championship’s commitment to climate action.
The conversation around COP28 has focused on its location and chairman, the 2,500 fossil fuel lobbyists who have attended, the potential – and ultimate collapse – of a fossil fuel phase out plan, and methane emission reductions. The conference is coming to a disappointing end, with no fossil fuel reduction plan in sight. One of the few encouraging outcomes of the global climate change conference has been the sport sector’s increased participation in, and influence on climate conversations.
Throughout the 13-day conference, SailGP, the FIA, Formula E, Liverpool Football Club and other sports organizations have participated in presentations, roundtables, interviews and events. Sail GP Chief Purpose Officer, Fiona Morgan, spoke in several roundtable discussions, including one on December 6th with Rockwool and Project Everyone. The objective of this one was to “show sport’s amazing power,” and to demonstrate how sports organizations can work with cities, supply chains and fans to influence positive and sustainable change.
Fiona – who has been at SailGP since its inception (3 years) – is an optimist, and she believes sport’s role is to generate further optimism and engagement and bring climate science to the public. She has set out to change the face of sailing and make SailGP the most environmentally friendly and technologically innovative sport in the world. She understands the best way to further public engagement with climate causes is by using athletes. According to an MIT study done in tandem with Pantheon, 55% of the public trust athletes and will follow their actions (only 1% trust scientists). Fiona wants to leverage athlete influence to combat climate, noting “one of our biggest powers is our athletes.”
Getting athletes to engage with controversial issues can be a delicate matter, but SailGP has found a way to bring environmental sustainability to the forefront of its athlete’s minds. It is the first organization to create an Impact League, which tracks actions taken by each of the SailGP teams to reduce carbon footprint and accelerate inclusivity. Crucially it is adjudicated by specialists, with all actions verified. It is also worth noting that each team is linked to a purpose partner – ex: Parley, Ocean Wise, One Ocean, etc. – and the winning team’s cash prize is donated to their partner’s cause. At the time of writing Australia and its purpose partner Parley for the Oceans lead the Impact League with 203 points.
Of equal importance to Fiona is that her athletes learn and create positive impact with their spotlight. She says “athletes don’t have to change the world or know every answer [about climate change], but they have a voice and they should use it.” During her three plus years at SailGP she has worked hard to embed sustainability within the ethos of championship, which has meant redefining performance, and expecting athletes to be good not only at sailing, but at sustainability.
She admits that she has encountered sailors who have not seen climate change as a problem, or who have thought that shifting focus onto a non-race related issue could hinder performance. At the same time, she has says the Impact League has become extremely competitive, with teams protesting when others were awarded points. It is now a source of pride for all the teams, and it relies on transparency with every team able to see each others’ audit sheet. Most importantly, the athletes have begun to change their behavior, with 80% of them reporting a change in mindset since participating in the league.
The optimism, education and behavioral change SailGP is generating are exactly what is needed across the sports sector and society as a whole. However, collaboration and action require knowledge, persistence and bravery, elements that have been lacking from certain governments and industries at this year’s COP.
SailGP’s pre-COP manifesto stated that COP28 is “perhaps the final opportunity to scale up action to protect our planet for future generations.” Fiona, when asked what she hoped for from this year’s conference said “we need action,” but most importantly that “we cannot live in a fossil fuel world.” In an attempt to change mindsets and demonstrate that authentic climate action is possible in sports, SailGP organized its first Race For The Future event on December 9th and 10th.
The race weekend was promoted with yellow signage, a color that is tied to hope and optimism. But more importantly, it was the most sustainable racing weekend ever, with 4 tonnes of CO2 emissions saved thanks to the removal of chase boats. A further 64 tonnes of potential emissions were eliminated by the largest temporary array of solar energy, which spanned the length of six basketball courts. Moreover, remote broadcasting and umpiring reduced fleet size by 36%, limiting transportation and event carbon footprint, while the fleet that did travel used “renewable gasoline.”
A source of particular pride for Fiona was the all-female training camp put on to increase female participation in sailing. The social sustainability initiative afforded women – who suffer a 15-year experience gap in sailing – an all day training session on the fastest catamarans in the world. This was no publicity stunt, in two seasons the sailing championship hopes to have a female driver, and it hopes to inspire 25,000 young people to take up sailing through its wider racing programs.
The weekend culminated with an exciting photo finish win by team New Zealand. But the Race For The Future continues. SailGP will put on future events which highlight its commitment to climate action and spread much-needed climate information and best practices. Meanwhile, humanity must continue to find ways to eliminate emissions and reduce environmental impact to maintain a livable planet.
At the time of writing, the final text of the first global stocktake under the Paris Agreement is being prepared for signature on the last day of the COP28 climate summit. All information suggests that the language “phasing out fossil fuels,” will be replaced with a watered down version of commitments that delegates have called “grossly insufficient” in humanity’s fight to prevent climate breakdown. Former US Vice President Al Gore has said “COP28 is now on the verge of complete failure.” And yet, SailGP continues to show that sports have an incredible capacity to positively influence climate action, collaborate with other sectors and create real change. The sailing championship’s innovative approach must be replicated across other sports and sectors. In the words of Fiona Morgan, “if you think differently, impossible is just mindset.”