Urgent action is needed by all of society, including the sports community, to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity and the damage to the natural world on which we all depend to sustain our health and well-being, and provide clean air, fresh water and food. By protecting and restoring nature, sports organisations can play a vital role in climate mitigation and adaptation both in the outdoor and indoor environments where they play and through their enormous influence with the wider public.

Sports for Nature is a joint initiative of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), International Olympic Committee (IOC), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and Sails of Change. It aims to deliver transformative action for nature across sports, by 2030 and beyond, enabling sports to champion nature and contribute to its protection and restoration. It provides a game plan for sports — at all levels — to accelerate and inspire others to take action for nature.

By acting for nature, sports can:

• Contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and its 2030 Agenda.
• Advance the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework.
• Accelerate climate mitigation and adaptation efforts by protecting and restoring nature.

Through a collaborative partnership with Sails of Change, IUCN is supporting the uptake of the Sports for Nature Framework, providing customised training and tools to sports, and developing a global campaign that will target the broader sporting community.

In addition, the IOC is supporting IUCN to coordinate the roll-out of Sports for Nature Framework, and working within the Olympic movement to drive action.