AGF Aarhus has become the first Danish football club to sign up to the UN Sports for Climate Action framework, an initiative bringing together clubs, federations and athletes to join the fight against climate change.
AGF joins the likes of Liverpool, Juventus, Tottenham Hotspur, Paris Saint-Germain and VfL Wolfsburg in supporting the initiative, which has also been backed by FIFA, UEFA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The framework is linked to the Paris Agreement and its five main principles are: to undertake systematic efforts to promote greater environmental responsibility; reduce overall climate impact; educate for climate action; promote sustainable and responsible consumption; and advocate for climate action through communication.
Anne Jensen, AGF’s director of sustainability, said: “Sport has a huge impact on a global level – and especially football can bring people together both locally and across the world. We believe that we as a football club have a unique position, touching and inspiring so many people, and therefore we also have a special responsibility to use this position to create positive change. We are proud to be the first football club in Denmark to sign the framework.”
Lindita Xhaferi-Salihu, Sports for Climate Action lead at the UN Climate Change, added: “We welcome AGF’s commitment to UNFCCC Sport for Climate Action. No club can solve problems of the scale of climate change by itself, but to achieve global climate goals, we all must do our part to create a net zero future. By joining Sports for Climate Action, AGF commit to doing its part and we hope that many other football clubs in Denmark will follow suit.”
The UN Sports for Climate Action Framework was launched by the global sports community and the UN Climate Change Initiative (UNFCCC) at the COP24 conference in Katowice in December 2018.
Image: AGF Aarhus
