A recent newsletter explored the idea that athlete investors – those backing climate tech and renewables – might ultimately hold more sway in the sustainability space than athlete advocates. But this follow-up podcast conversation with US rower Christine Cavallo serves as a powerful reminder that influence comes in many forms. Even without financial investment, athletes who are knowledgeable and committed can play a crucial role in the climate transition. Christine brings a unique perspective, h...
Jun 26, 2025•50 min
Sport-related travel may only account for an estimated 1.5% of global carbon emissions, but its impact is significant – particularly in regions already affected by mass tourism and environmental stress. In this episode, we explore how sports organisations can engage with regenerative tourism, a model focused on restoring ecosystems, supporting local communities and improving resilience. Our guest is Ana Agostinho, sustainability lead at Westbrook Racing, part of the E1 electric powerboat series....
Jun 12, 2025•43 min•Ep. 100
In this podcast episode, Eve Joseph, head of social impact and sustainability and a former Microsoft leader, shares insights on what sport can learn from the tech industry’s approach to sustainability. The conversation delves into the transformative role of data, highlighting why democratising access to information is essential for understanding and mitigating the environmental risks faced by athletes, event hosts and the wider sports ecosystem. Eve also discusses the mission and achievements of...
Dec 05, 2024•50 min•Ep. 99
When we think about the climate risks and consequences facing sport, we often think about elite sporting competition? But what about sport for good organisations and grassroots sport clubs? There’s not much of a focus on them even though, in most cases, they are even more vulnerable. However, Football For Future and Common Goal have teamed up to develop the Fields of Change Handbook, an environmental sustainability resource for sport for good organisations. In this episode, we speak Elliot Arthu...
Nov 21, 2024•57 min•Ep. 98
Sustainability, in some quarters of the sports industry, is viewed as a cost rather than investment. But what if climate action could actually be an opportunity to diversity income streams for sports organisations? That's a concept put forward by Jamie Farndale in this episode of the podcast, where he reflects on his research that suggests affinity with sport can support the take-up of low-carbon technologies and behaviours. The former captain of the Scotland rugby sevens team and current GM of ...
Nov 18, 2024•47 min•Ep. 97
How can a “non-essential” sector like sport justify its existence on a planet with finite resources? It was a question posed by Damian Foxall, sustainability manager of the 11th Hour Racing Team, during episode 96 of the podcast that we try to unpack. Foxall reflects on a successful 2023, in which his team was crowned champions of The Ocean Race. At the end of the season, it also produced a sustainability report full of achievements and case studies. In addition, Kristen Fulmer, head of sustaina...
Dec 23, 2023•49 min•Ep. 96
As we head into another COP, two major things remain unclear for our industry: on a macro level, what climate trajectory will we find ourselves on once all is said and done in two weeks? And, at a sector level, what role is sport expected to play to keep this trajectory as low as possible? COP28 is a key talking point in episode 95 of the podcast as we talk to SailGP’s Fiona Morgan about its Race for the Future takeover in Dubai. Russell Seymour of BASIS talks about the new Game Changer II repor...
Nov 30, 2023•48 min•Ep. 95
Collectively, more than three-quarters of the fans of Bohemian FC, Club Brugge KV, FC St Pauli, FC Twente, Ferencvárosi TC, Real Betis and SV Werder Bremen believe their clubs and football in general need to do more to support and accelerate the shift to a lower carbon society. But how can football clubs position themselves as the drivers of this transition – and crucially, how can they ensure that transition is just and beneficial for their local communities. That’s what we try to unpack in thi...
Nov 10, 2023•42 min•Ep. 94
A week after the Sport Positive Summit, Kate Chapman (London Marathon Events), Sara Kassam (UK Sport) and Rikke Rønholt Albertsen (Danish Olympic Committee) help us unpick some of the key talking points. Can growth and sustainability coexist in sport? How can sport wean itself off of fossil fuel sponsorship? What does the sports industry collectively need to say when we reconvene again in 12 months time? We cover it all.
Oct 12, 2023•41 min•Ep. 93
Protecting humans, animals and plants. That’s what climate justice boils down to, says Jessica Murfree. In this edition of the podcast, Murfree (sport ecologist and assistant professor at the University of Cincinati) and Claire Poole look ahead to the Sport Positive Summit, exploring how the industry can position itself best to promote climate action and justice through thoughtful discourse. The episode focuses on the importance of diverse perspectives, risk management and using nuance language ...
Sep 28, 2023•42 min•Ep. 92
In this podcast episode, we delve into the nuanced approach sports should take towards carbon emissions and question whether current best practices in carbon measurement and reduction are fit-for-purpose for an industry with such distinctive challenges. In the company of Nicola Barr, the decarbonising sport lead at FrontRunners, and a current player for the Greater Western Sydney Giants, and Alice Ashpitel, head of sustainability at Mercedes F1, we explore the practicalities of investing in sust...
Sep 22, 2023•49 min•Ep. 91
Dr. Maddy Orr, Bob Ramsak and Dr. Sheila Nguyen were the three guests as The Sustainability Report Podcast came back after a six month rest. While Ramsak (head of sustainability for World Athletics) and Nguyen (head of sustainability for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia New Zealand 2023) spoke about managing the environmental impact of two of the year’s biggest sporting events, Orr discussed the disruption sport had experienced as a result to extreme weather in recent months. All three guest...
Sep 14, 2023•46 min•Ep. 90
Sport in Africa has huge cultural significance – and every single nation in the vast continent is impacted by significant environmental and social challenges. Sustainable Sport Africa, established by Rachel Aron and Tristan Niesslein, aims to position sport as a medium to address some of these challenges, which, in turn, should make African sports properties more appealing to potential investors. In this episode of the podcast, Aron and Niesslein discuss the launch of the organisation and some o...
Mar 30, 2023•42 min•Ep. 89
Football fans are often treated as a problem. But, actually, when it comes to throwing their weight behind large societal issues – such as anti-racism and refugee support – they can be a significant part of the solution. That’s according to Jenny Amann and Mark Doidge, doctoral researcher and senior research fellow respectively at the University of Brighton. Their latest piece of research, titled ‘Mobilising Football Fans on Climate Change’, explores how this diverse group of people, brought tog...
Feb 24, 2023•48 min•Ep. 88
Calling the Wolverhampton Wanderers sustainability strategy ‘One Pack, One Planet’ was always going to be a winner with fans. But beyond the clever branding – and the launch of the strategy during a really successful Green Football Weekend – One Pack, One Planet was built on solid foundations of robust impact assessments, clear communications with club staff and giving departments the agency to develop their own action plans to achieve targets in four main areas: carbon, waste, nature and cultur...
Feb 09, 2023•28 min•Ep. 87
A focus on purpose and sustainability is shifting sports partnerships from traditional transactional deals to deeper, strategic, holistic relationships. That’s according to Mya Doelling, the global partnerships manager for the International Olympic Committee (IOC). And in this episode of the podcast, she explains how purposeful partnerships are gaining traction in sport, using the IOC’s Climate Action Awards partnership with Airbnb, Deloitte and P&G as cases in point. Together with her colle...
Feb 02, 2023•34 min•Ep. 86
When Lorenzo Sacchetti was asked to embark on a project to increase biodiversity at a motorsports track by his Copenhagen Business School tutor Rikke Albertsen and project manager at the Dansk Automobil Sports Union (DASU), Michella Skov, he was a little surprised. How does nature conservation and motorsport – an unsustainable activity in Lorenzo’s mind – fit together? Alongside Albertsen, Skov and his friend and biodiversity expert Matilde Montagna, Sacchetti tried to find out by developing a b...
Jan 18, 2023•39 min•Ep. 85
“Part of the feast – not a spectator in it.” Using the words of the renowned Australian environmental philosopher and writer, Val Plumwood, Rebecca Olive reflects on the vulnerability she felt when swimming in the ocean, a few hundred metres away from the shore, with no one close enough to save her if something unexpected occurred. During episode 84 of The Sustainability Report Podcast, the senior research fellow at RMIT University talks about her research, which investigates the relationship be...
Jan 12, 2023•37 min•Ep. 84
Forest fires, melting ice caps, extreme storms. It’s easy to perceive climate change as an ‘environmental problem’, external from the everyday lives of humans, particularly for those of us who live in parts of the world where climate impacts aren’t quite so stark yet. But climate change is a human problem, with people’s health, jobs, security and recreation impacted. Some people are affected more than others. In general terms, people who are poorer economically, who come from certain ethnic back...
Jul 08, 2022•49 min•Ep. 82
Support and practical help, or lack of, is often the number one reason for inaction when it comes to sustainability. The will is there, but the fear persists that it won’t be done right, leading to a number of negative consequences. In episode #81 of the podcast, we explore the ASAP (As Sustainable As Possible) project, in which three National Olympic Committees (NOCs) with relatively mature approaches to sustainability (Finnish, Danish, German) support three mentee NOCs who want to reach a simi...
Jun 30, 2022•37 min•Ep. 81
Becoming a sustainability leader has been earmarked as a way to differentiate and attract new fans and partners for emerging sports. In this episode of the podcast, we discover how the sport of floorball is making environmental responsibility a key part of its growth strategy, principally through one of its key events: the Men’s World Floorball Championships in Zürich later this year. Daniel Kasser (Zürich 2022 organising committee), Kai Rassmus Landwehr (MyClimate) and Tero Kalsta (Internationa...
Jun 23, 2022•44 min•Ep. 80
Instigating a large mangrove planting project. Free-diving to collect trash from lakes and ocean. Collecting unwanted table tennis equipment and giving it a new life. These are just some of the endeavours being undertaken by world-class, Olympic-competing athletes who also care strongly about the planet. In an effort to get more athletes to get behind the environmental cause, the IOC has told these stories and paired them with practical advice in its latest guide, ‘How to be a sustainable champi...
Jun 16, 2022•27 min•Ep. 79
Around 80% of Winter Olympic sports and 50% of Summer Olympic sports use carbon fibre in their equipment. Indeed, according to Dan Reading, sport is the industry that uses the third-largest amount of carbon fibre for high performance equipment. The problem is that carbon fibre is very difficult to repurpose when equipment is broken or no longer fit for purpose. But as part of the Carbon Fibre Circular Alliance, Reading has helped to accelerate a method to extract material from unwanted products ...
Jun 09, 2022•36 min•Ep. 78
Olympic medal-winning racewalker Evan Dunfee started getting politically active around climate change when the Covid-19 pandemic put his competitions on ice. Jules Burnotte, the Canadian biathlete, has been a lover of the natural environment, and politically active to protect it, for as long as he can remember. Two athletes, two experiences. But both intent on using their influence to make a positive environmental impact. In this episode of the podcast, Dunfee and Burnotte detail their unique jo...
Jun 02, 2022•50 min•Ep. 77
The Ocean Race is among the most progressive sports events when it comes to environmental sustainability, with its scientific microplastics analysis project from the 2017/18 winning several plaudits, and its Ocean Race Summits convening some of the foremost experts in environmental science and ocean protection. But a World Sailing Trust report in 2019 highlighted room for improvement across the whole sailing industry when it comes to inclusion for women and girls. In this week’s episode, Anne-Cé...
May 26, 2022•44 min•Ep. 76
Diversity of experience and opinion is crucial to effective dialogue and finding solutions. At Global Sports Week in Paris, key actors from the world of motorsport, major events, suppliers, and representing Africa, Europe and the Middle East, explored the question: can major sports events be compatible with sustainable development? The quality of discussion was so good (including the input of the Global Sports Week Young Sports Makers), that we decided to capture the best parts in this week’s po...
May 19, 2022•46 min•Ep. 75
All industries need new, fresh ideas, particularly when it comes to balancing out core business objectives and social and environmental impact. Sport is no different. That’s why students who spend time and effort producing research that goes some way to addressing this fundamental issue are so important. Karina Mukanovo, a PhD student at the University of Paris-Saclay, is one such individual, and on this week’s podcast she explores how major sports events could improve their sustainable impact. ...
May 05, 2022•32 min•Ep. 74
We often talk about sport’s cultural significance and its ability to influence a vast number of people, but how can we put this into practice when it comes to sustainable behaviours? For this edition of the podcast, T he Sustainability Report sits down with Galen Trail and Brian McCullough to explore their research which applies a traditional sports marketing model to sustainability campaigns and messaging. How can sports organisations segment their fan audience and create sustainability message...
Apr 14, 2022•52 min•Ep. 73
A mountain with a smile on its face will potentially go down as one of the most distinctive crests in the world of football. But it’s what sits behind the crest that is really remarkable. Vermont Green FC, a fledgling football (soccer) team about to make its debut in the USL League 2, will attempt to redefine what it means to be a football club with purpose, shaping its whole ethos and operations around climate and environmental justice. In this week’s podcast, The Sustainability Report sits dow...
Apr 07, 2022•50 min•Ep. 72
About a year ago, Kenneth P. Pucker’s article in Harvard Business Review suggested that the role of sustainability report was potentially being oversold, and that even though the number of companies disclosing and producing such documents had increased significantly over the last decade, so had carbon emissions. In this week’s podcasts, in the company of Rikke Rønholt Albertsen, the co-founder of the Global Goals World Cup and former elite athlete, we explore this gap between sustainability obje...
Mar 31, 2022•56 min•Ep. 71
