Raising awareness about using sport to protect the ocean

How ocean literacy and environmental awareness can be promoted in youth through sport? That was the question raised last week in Barcelona by Sport and Citizenship the European OSES project partners. Feedback on these two days: 8 and 9 April. On the programme: workshop, presentation of a resource aimed at sport supervisors for raising awareness about the environment and the planned kit for doing this.

Using sport to preserve the ocean

“Oceans are faced with a multitude of threats which endanger both nature and humans”[1] according to the United Nations Regional Information Centre (UNRIC). The ocean are the main reservoir of biodiversity and help regulate the climate.

Faced with the current problems in the ocean, from the acidification of waters to pollution, increased levels of awareness are essential to their preservation. This is the context for the OSES project – Ocean Sustainability through Education and Sport.

The aim:
– To use sport as a means of raising awareness and teaching ocean literacy from an early age.
– To involve the sports movement as a key mover in teaching young people about protecting their planet and its natural resources.

Raising awareness through sporting activities

On the first morning, organised by Surfrider España, the partner presented the methodology for teaching and raising awareness about the environment.

This resource will help instructors to increase their knowledge of the different themes covered during the project:
– Marine pollution
– Biodiversity
– Climate change in the ocean
– Coastal protection and management

Adapted to the project, this methodology is based on various tools which have already been tried out by some partners. This resource will then be tested at the local level. During these operations, four project partner water sports organisations will carry out real activities on the spot with the aim of getting young people committed:
– Dan Europe in Malta (June)
– La Ligue de Voile de Normandie (Sailing) in France (July)
– Begi Bistan in Spain
– Green Coast in Portugal

They will invite the teenagers to use a kit (thermometer etc.) to measure oceanic variables (water temperature, dissolved substances and so on) in order to learn more about their local environment. The aim is to raise their awareness using sporting activities and tools for protecting marine ecosystems, and to encourage them to change their behaviour.

Inspiring projects and initiatives

Another rewarding part of this day was the workshop organised by the Universitat of Barcelona dealing with using sport to teach young people about protecting the ocean. Most of the time was spent sharing initiatives and projects such as:

– A project for monitoring and preserving gorgonian communities in Barcelona underwater forests by Janire Salazar from ICM-CSIC and diver Manel Salvador from FECDAS.

– The “Surfing for Science” project from Oriol Uviedo and June Amorrortu from the University of Barcelona. A citizen science initiative to help understand and analyse pollution by microplastics by paddle surfing.

– The presentation by Laura Figuerola, on the conservation of Mediterranean corals.

– Feedback from Aurora Requena, from Plàncton, Divulgació i Serveis marins and Rosa Llop, a teacher at Gabriel Ferrater I Soler School, on the activities carried out with the students to develop their environmental awareness by practising snorkel.

– The solo Atlantic adventure “22 days in 22 feet”, organised by the “Barcelona Capital Naùtica” foundation and the Barcelona Maritime Museum and shared by sailor Josep Costa and by teacher Marta Ros from Sagrat Cor-Diputació.

These speakers helped towards a better knowledge and understanding of the ocean and its ecosystems through the practice of water sports, important notions for better preserving the environment.

An event dedicated to the ocean

The second day was devoted to the satellite event of the “Ocean Decade Conference 2024”. Jointly organised by UNESCO’s International Oceanographic Commission (IOC/UNESCO), this global conference brings together the ocean community. Its aim: “to take stock of the progress of the UN Decade of Ocean Science and to announce new initiatives”[2].

The project partners were very pleased to take part in the conference on global and local ocean knowledge as well as the exhibition of the projects. It was the opportunity for Anna Sanchez Vidal from the University of Barcelona to present the OSES project.

What is the next step?

The methodology including the kit will be used at the first pilot event in Malta in June. This resource will soon be available on the project website: https://oses-project.org/.

To find out more:

• OSES Good Practices Handbook, compiling educational tools and environmental activities to raise environmental awareness and educate about ocean protection. Find it on https://oses-project.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/oses-handbook.pdf.
• Sport and Citizenship Revue n°53, Sport and the Sustainable Development Goals. An interview for our revue n° 53 with Catherine Chabaud, yachtswoman and journalist, who talks about sport and sustainable development. “In sailing, for example, more needs to be done with specifications for races and boats. Even with sailing, the boat construction, the materials used, and the way races are organised are still important. In our sport, which has a “clean” image, greater sobriety would be necessary to be fully in tune with our values.

This article was published in our weekly “Hebdo Sport et Société” which appears every Friday. Sign up to our newsletter to receive the next article in your e-mails.

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