Sports for Future Network Meeting 2023

Even two weeks later, we are still under the impression of our 3rd Sports for Future Network Meeting! We had the pleasure of welcoming around 80 participants on Friday and Saturday (June 16/17, 2023) at the new DFB Campus in Frankfurt. The result: A wonderful group with diverse backgrounds and intelligent, creative individuals advocating for sustainability came together, listened to various presentations, and engaged in discussions. We take exciting content from these days with us.

The Friday started with a panel talk featuring Michaela Röhrbein, board member of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB), Stefanie Schulte, Head of Department for Social Responsibility and Fan Affairs at the German Football Association (DFB), and Prof. Dr. Torsten Weber, Sustainability Consultant for the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL). The discussion focused on the question "How can we implement sustainability through appropriate framework conditions?"

Then, some news from the network was presented. Alexander Nolte (Guppyfriend), Prof. Dr. Eckehard "Fozzy" Moritz (Innovation Hub Elite Sports), and Günther Bachmann (German Sustainability Award) provided brief insights into their projects. The evening concluded with a tour of the DFB Campus and engaging and enlightening discussions among the participants.

On Saturday morning, it started with two short presentations by Prof. Dr. Peter Kuhn (sportainable) and Julian Schlüter / Rene Knorr (Forest Green Allgäu) before Tanja Ferkau (Impct GmbH) and Stefan Wagner (Sports for Future) provided an introduction to the subsequent workshop. The highlight of the day was the Future Workshop "High Hanging Fruits – Co-Creative Workshop for a Climate-Positive, Transformed Sport by 2035" with Friederike Riemer and Felix M Wieduwilt from "The Future Game."

Together with them, we "stretched our future muscles" and let our thoughts and ideas flow freely. In small groups, we brainstormed about organizing a "society-positive matchday in 2035" and explored solutions to achieve the SDGs in sports.

Thank you to the DFB represented by Steffi Schulte, Leonie Mäder, and Luisa Schwermer for the fantastic support and hospitality at the DFB-CAMPUS.