After some paucity of activity due to the Covid-19 pandemic, PlayGreen is now back to action! On 28 November, a “Green Day” was organised by PlayGreen Malta under the auspices of the Malta Football Association. The PlayGreen volunteer staff joined forces with four other organisations, namely the European Student Network; INSITE, a journalist student organisation; the Malta Surf School and the Young European Federalists, to deliver a truly sustainable event. The day sought to increase young people’s awareness about the environment through football. During the event, volunteers and members of PlayGreen Malta collected waste – mostly microplastics –, and cigarettes from the Ghajn Tuffieha Beach, one of the most beautiful beaches in Malta. To adhere to Covid-19 regulations, participants were encouraged to register as a group of six. The event was well-attended with 44 participants (all between 18-29 years of age) along with staff members of PlayGreen and the other participating organisations. After 2 hours of waste-collection, all participants enjoyed a beach football match. Green Day participants in action. Browse through the gallery by clicking on the arrows. Phil Richards, Chief Executive Officer of TAPP Water Malta also visited the event and provided some information on the use of plastic bottles for drinking water, which leads to an enormous amount of plastic waste. This is a big issue in Malta since tap water is not drinkable. Mr Richards provided the participants with a free TAPP Water Filter to encourage them to eliminate the use of plastic bottles. By using filtered tap water, it is easy to make a positive sustainable change to protect the environment. Currently, the PlayGreen consortium is working on finalising the Intellectual Outputs of the project, organising the multiplier events and the closing event. The final conference is scheduled to take place in March 2021. Learn more about PlayGreen on our website, Facebook page, Twitter and Instagram accounts.

On 29-30 October, an Erasmus+ Sport collaborative partnership project, led by Associació Ecoserveis (Spain) in partnership with the football federations of Malta, Estonia, the flemish Region of Belgium and ENGSO as partners, PlayGreen, had its second meeting in Tallinn, Estonia, hosted by the Estonian Football Association. The meeting was also attended by six international volunteers from the newly formed 'Green Team'. Thanks to an ice-breaking activity both the partners and Green Team members got to know each other and their interests. Then, the Green Team members were introduced to the aims of the project as well as and the tasks they needed to fulfill in their countries to support the mission to lower the environmental impact of sports competitions and make them greener and more sustainable. The meeting agenda also included a workshops to prepare a communication campaign to help the Green Team to bring more volunteers into the project’s cause and raise awareness about the project aims through various communication channels. Partners were also mentored and on how to engage their Green Team volunteers, who will later be tasked to develop a ‘Green Football League’ in their respective countries. On the partner’s side, a great discussion took place on how to engage and mentor volunteers. In addition, thanks to the PlayGreen tool created under the project scope,  the Green Team and project partners explored the potential impacts that sports events have on the environment, and brainstormed ideas on how to reduce such impacts. Partners also agreed on the way the mentoring would be done which will follow the same logic as the green tool and be divided in four phases: analysis, planning, implementation and evaluation. In each phase partners will develop at least one workshop and one meeting with the Green Team. this was key since it is going to be the basis of the methodology to be used and transferred to other sport organizations.The team was also given the opportunity to play walking football, one of the most popular forms of football in Estonia and get to know each other in an active and fun way. Browse through the gallery by clicking on the arrows. (Photo credits: Gertrud Alatare) The second day kicked off with a creative task. PlayGreeners developed a video to launch the Green Team communication campaign and raise awareness about the project-. The idea of the workshop was to cooperate as a team and all the members contributed to create a video between all partners. This showed all of us that having teams from different countries does enreach the project. Green Team members then had a tour around Tallinn, while partners continued their work going through each work package and discussing tasks and how to move forward with the project outputs that will benefit any sport organization willing to create sustainable sport events. The next project meeting will take place in mid 2020. Until then, the football association project partners and their Green Teams will be busy with organising their Green Football Leagues. Ecoserveis and ENGSO will also provide mentoring and support throughout the next few months, so that our Green Team members feel empowered and confident in undertaking climate actions through sports. For more information about PlayGreen and for joining our efforts to establish a network of sports organisations that are interested in environmental sustainability, visit the PlayGreen website. Authors: Niki Koutrou/Dirk Falken Edit: Mariann Bardocz-Bencsik/Cristina Bajet

How can the environment be utilised to promote active citizenship and attract new volunteers into sport? PlayGreen, an Erasmus+ Sport project, aims to answer this question. PlayGreen’s successful kick-off meeting was held in Malta on 27-28 of March 2019. The project aims to create volunteering opportunities for young people focused on sport and the environment through the development of an innovative volunteering format. To achieve this, PlayGreen hopes to create a methodology for greener sport events and develop a European network of organisations that will be able to enhance sustainability in grassroots sports through volunteering programmes and sharing of good practices. The project includes six partners, which will work together to provide mentoring opportunities for young volunteers to empower them in their journey of raising environmental awareness through sports and in the process become active citizens. The project partners are: Ecoserveis - Project Leader (Spain), ENGSO- the European Sport NGO (Pan-European/Sweden), Malta Football Association-1900 (Malta), Futbols (Latvia), Eesti Jalgpall (Estonia), Voetbal Vlaanderen (Belgium) The activities of the project will not only be done on European level and on the level of football, but extending its scope beyond football to any other sport in Europe and beyond. To date, most sport volunteering programmes in Europe have been focused on social inclusion, equality, intercultural exchange or other social-based approaches. On the other hand, the topic of protecting the environment through sports has not yet been tackled in depth. Nonetheless, volunteering programmes based on the environment have been proven as a great tool to enhance citizenship commitment to tackling social challenges and has been a key driver to behavioural changes. For example, the effects of climate change increasingly influence people to become more aware of the need to act and to engage in actions towards environmental protection and sustainable lifestyles. Therefore, considering how climate change awareness has been proven a powerful motivation to change people’s behaviour, we believe that creating volunteering opportunities based on the environmental impact of sports could attract new target groups that may not yet be deeply involved in sports, but could integrate them in their daily life as another dimension of living a sustainable life. Similarly, sport clubs and organisations in Europe suffer from a general decrease of their volunteers, who are the backbone for their sustainability. Generally, volunteers devote their time in something they believe in. Thus, PlayGreen could provide a new pathway for individuals to volunteer and participate in sport by contributing to the civil society movement raising environmental awareness. The project partners will work together to attract, involve and motivate volunteers to develop a ‘green’ football league, as a pilot case to test a new volunteering format based on the environment that will be then adapted to other sports. As four out of the six partners work directly with football clubs, the project will offer opportunities to: 1) explore ways to involve a new group of people into volunteering and participating in sports, 2) increase environmental awareness in sport at grassroots level and 3) promote the development of green and leadership skills of volunteers that will be useful in their personal and professional life in the future. The project’s kick-off meeting was hosted by the Malta Football Association. The meeting included a visit to the Malta-Spain UEFA Euro 2020 qualifier, which was kindly organised by the hosts. The first day of the kick-off was dedicated for the partners to get to know each other, to discuss their organisations’ best practices in attracting, motivating and empowering volunteers in sports and the environment, to create mutual understanding about the project and the roles of each partner in its delivery. The day continued with workshops on sports volunteering that ENGSO has prepared and delivered and on environmental volunteering delivered by Ecoserveis. The seminar materials will then be used to develop a mentoring toolkit for the young volunteers of the project. The second day commenced with a presentation and discussion about the communication and dissemination plan for the project that ENGSO is leading as well as a planning session for the first year of the project. Throughout this first year, the partners with the support of ENGSO will launch a campaign to attract volunteers in each partner country who will then be tasked with the goal of developing a ‘green league’ and attract an additional number of volunteers to participate in the league and their environmental campaign. A guide on environmental volunteering in sports, a research study, strategies, best practices and videos on engaging volunteers and greening sports events - which will disseminate the project and its findings - will be produced. An informal lunch for the partners at the premises of the Malta Football Association concluded a successful and productive kick-off meeting. The next PlayGreen meeting will take place in Estonia in October 2019, at which some of the project’s young volunteers from each country will be invited to attend and take part in a mentoring programme. Until then, all partners will be busy in developing their communication campaigns in attracting volunteers and strategies to bridge sports and the environment to develop skilled and active young Europeans. To keep updated on the project, follow our Facebook page and Twitter account.

For a sustainable future in sport Start here > Your content has been submitted 01 BREAKING NEWS! Our Intellectual Outputs are online! Guide on Environmental Volunteering in Sports A Guide will be produced on sport & volunteering in Europe with a focus on how to incorporate the protection of the environment as a means to engage environmental volunteers to doing sports, and volunteer to create sustainable sport events. 02 A study on environmental volunteering in sports as a tool to tackle climate change The objective of this study is to establish a research framework for anyone willing to exploit the outputs of the PlayGreen project regarding the skills development in the volunteers and the impacts of such scheme in the sports’ facilities, the audiences and the players. Two surveys will be performed. 03 Pedagogical material on how to green sport events The current partners of PlayGreen will be trained on key aspects of environmental and volunteering applied to sports in seminars carried out during the project meetings. Subsequently pedagogical material on how to green sport events will be developed for other organisations to use. Download them here The Play Green project is a UEFA-endorsed initiative dedicated to ensure a sustainable future in sport in Europe. With the support of the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union, six organisations have partnered up to raise awareness and build capacities about environmental sustainability in sport all across Europe. As key outcomes the project will be a study on volunteering, a pan-European volunteering concept as well as a mentoring toolkit about sustainable volunteering in sport, free to use for everyone. Find out more information about our aims below. More about the project > About Play Green Estonian Football Federation ​ Malta Football Association ENGSO - The European Sport NGO Associació Ecoserveis Voetball Flanderen Lithuanian grassroots football Association Local multiplier events The Lithuanian grassroots Football Association is the newest member on board of the Play Green consortium! Welcome MaFA! Thanks to our great volunteers and Malta Football Association, the beaches in Malta look like brand new! Despite Covid-19, Estonia FA managed to organize a green tournament! Spains multiplier event has been a major success as well. Clean the beach and play! See what Play Green means for our partners! EJLTV Play Video All Videos What's new? Read our blog Work before pleasure: Malta FA and volunteers clean up the beach prior to a truly green match! PlayGreen is featured by the leading hub for sport and development: Sportanddev! Check out our channel Play Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied

About PlayGreen is about a future in which we can play and execute sport in a sustainable way with and in nature. Find out below, why we believe that volunteers play an essential part in this and what we seek to achieve with the project: > Brief summary The Play Green project is an UEFA endorsed initiative dedicated to ensure a sustainable future in sport in Europe. With the support of the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, six organisations have partnered up to raise awareness and build capacities about environmental sustainability in sport all across Europe. ​ More specifically Play Green follows two specific objectives: ​ 1. Create volunteering opportunities focused on sport and environment for young people to engage in sport, by testing and promoting a new volunteering format. 2. Create a European network of organisations enhancing sustainability in grassroots sports through volunteering programs and sharing of good practices. ​ Below you will find a timeline of the project, as well as a brief description of our key-outcomes: a study on-volunteering in Europe, a pan-European volunteering concept as well as a mentoring toolkit about sustainable volunteering in sport. These outputs will be free to use and distribute for everyone as they seek to contribute to an ecologically sustainable grassroots sport in Europe as tools for sport organisations to build capacities among young people in regards to this. ​ Read more details below. > 01 BREAKING NEWS! Our Intellectual Outputs are online! 02 A study on environmental volunteering in sports as a tool to tackle climate change The objective of this study is to establish a research framework for anyone willing to exploit the outputs of the PlayGreen project regarding the skills development in the volunteers and the impacts of such scheme in the sports’ facilities, the audiences and the players. Two surveys will be performed. 03 Pedagogical material on how to green sport events The current partners of PlayGreen will be trained on key aspects of environmental and volunteering applied to sports in seminars carried out during the project meetings. Subsequently pedagogical material on how to green sport events will be developed for other organisations to use. Guide on Environmental Volunteering in Sports A Guide will be produced on sport & volunteering in Europe with a focus on how to incorporate the protection of the environment as a means to engage environmental volunteers to doing sports, and volunteer to create sustainable sport events. 04 Multiplier events with other sports representatives The Play Green Volunteers Tallinn, Estonia Malta, Malta Brussels, Belgium Click here for more information > Vilnius, Lithuania Our Play Green volunteers are in close collaboration with the national federations/organisations involved in the project. Together, they will develop, implement and evaluate the national multiplier events. In particular, there are two types of volunteers involved in the project. ​ Our Green Team are the core group of volunteers that will design the activities to green sport events, help to create an environmental campaign to make sport events more sustainable and involve the participants volunteers in the process. The overarching goal is to identify opportunities to make a local football tournament more sustainable and reduce the environmental impact prior, during and after the football tournament. This organised event will be targeted at the Volunteers Green Participant Volunteers. ​ Our Green Participant are young people that will participate in the national multiplier events, will help to distribute the project goals and will benefit from the actions prepared by the GreenTeam Volunteers. More information about how to be involved as Green Volunteers Participant Volunteer following at a later stage of the project. ​ ​ A national multiplier event will be organised in each one of the pilot countries and Spain to present the first three key outputs to several stakeholders and especially to other sports’ representatives. The final international multiplier event will be in Brussels, Belgium with representatives of international organisations in which also the International Award Ceremony and the dissemination of the project results at international level will take place. European Union The Play Green project is supported by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union ​ The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsi­ble for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. ​ The contents of these pages are the sole responsibility of the publishers and do not represent the views of the European Commission. ​ >

Voetball Flanderen Malta Football Association Estonian Football Federation ​ Lithuanian grassroots football association ENGSO - The European Sport NGO Ecoserveis For more information click on the logos above > Meet ​ Volunteers 04 The Play Green Volunteers Our Play Green volunteers are in close collaboration with the national federations/organisations involved in the project. Together, they will develop, implement and evaluate the national multiplier events (more details about the events in the "About" section of this homepage. In particular, there are two types of volunteers involved in the project. ​ Our Green Team are the core group of volunteers that will, in collaboration with the national federation, design the activities to green sport events, help to create an environmental campaign to make sport events more sustainable and involve the participants volunteers in the process. Volunteers ​ Our Green Participant are young people that will participate in the national multiplier events, will help to distribute the project goals and will benefit from the actions prepared by the GreenTeam Volunteers. Volunteers ​ >