El Rio Foundation is a community-based organization working in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia—an ecologically critical region often referred to by the Kogi Indigenous people as the “Heart of the World.” Through its project Protecting the Heart of the World, the Foundation delivers climate action by combining environmental conservation, education, sport, and Indigenous knowledge systems. El Río Foundation works with rural and indigenous communities facing climate vulnerability (flooding, pollution, diversion of water sources), social vulnerability (armed conflict), and economic vulnerability (low income). 

Collaborative approach 

In collaboration with the community, El Rio Foundation developed a holistic and engaging program for climate action that integrates four key components: 

• Community Engagement through Sport 
  Sport—such as football and group games—is used as a tool to build trust and engage young people. Activities transition from play to environmental learning, creating a dynamic and inclusive learning environment. 
• Environmental Education and Field Learning activities 
  Ecosystem exploration (rivers, mangroves, wetlands), identification of pollution sources, and hands-on conservation actions such as clean-ups and planting. 
• Integration of Science and Indigenous Knowledge 
  The program combines scientific expertise (e.g., biodiversity identification, birdwatching) 

and ancestral knowledge from Indigenous leaders. This dual approach fosters a deeper, context-specific understanding of climate change and ecosystem dynamics. 

• Creative Reflection through Art 
  Participants engage in artistic expression—drawing, storytelling, and performances—to reflect on their experiences and reinforce environmental awareness. 

Community Partnerships  

The project relies on strong partnerships to deliver activities and engage the community. The main partner for this project is the Santuario Playa Bonita who are the first regenerative collective movement in Colombia using hospitality as a tool to raise awareness and restore land. They are based in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. The partnership understands a shared commitment to the ecosystem and facilitates greater community engagement as well as providing an ideal setting for environmental education so that the participants in the program can learn about how wetland protection is key to climate action and building climate resilience. The Kogui Indigenous Community and local scientists are also key partners in delivering this program. 

Community impact 

The initiative has generated several positive outcomes already, including: 

• Increased environmental awareness among children and youth 
• Improved ability to identify local species and ecosystems 
• Greater participation in conservation activities 
• Behavioral shifts toward environmental stewardship 
• Importantly, the program also addresses social challenges, including reducing exposure to violence by providing constructive, community-based engagement for young people. 

Key Learning 

This case highlights the importance of creating climate action that is grounded in local context and Indigenous knowledge. It also showcases that strong community partnerships can lead to programs that engage community members and can contribute to building community resilience and taking climate action as a community. In 2025–26, the Protecting the Heart of the World project was made possible thanks to the support of adidas and Common Goal through the Move For The Planet initiative — a global climate‑action movement that mobilizes people through sport to fund environmental resilience. By transforming collective physical activity into climate impact, the initiative invested in education, adaptation, and community‑led solutions in regions most affected by extreme weather. 

Girls United is an organization that uses football to empower girls by building life skills such as confidence, leadership, and teamwork. In Bacalar, Mexico—home to a critical freshwater lagoon ecosystem—the organization has developed an integrated program combining safe spaces for girls, environmental education, and community-driven climate action. 

The community of Bacalar faces intertwined environmental and social challenges. The lagoon ecosystem is increasingly threatened by extreme weather, pollution, and broader climate impacts, while gender inequalities and gender norms in football limit girls’ access to safe recreational spaces. At the same time, the community lacks sufficient sports infrastructure, even as demand for shared spaces continues to grow. Although Girls United had already established a girls’ football program in the area, issues of safety, access, and social norms restricted its reach and impact. 

Approach 

In response, Girls United worked in consultation and partnership with the community to design a program that places climate justice at its core—recognizing that environmental vulnerability and gender inequality are closely linked, and that solutions must address both. Central to this effort was the transformation of an unused and unsafe field into a climate-resilient, inclusive football space. Built with recycled and low-impact materials, the space incorporates climate-sensitive design features such as improved drainage, shaded areas, and extended play hours to accommodate rising temperatures. A rainwater capture and filtration system provides safe drinking water, reinforcing the connection between environmental stewardship and everyday well-being. This space has become more than a football field; it is a shared community asset and a symbol of equitable access. 

Through this space, Girls United integrates environmental education directly into sport. In collaboration with Agua Clara, a local environmental organization, the program introduces girls to key climate and ecological concepts through play-based learning. Football training sessions are paired with interactive activities that explore water systems, aquifers, waste management, and ways to reduce carbon footprints. By linking these concepts to tangible experiences, the program makes climate education accessible and actionable, especially for girls who are often excluded from such opportunities. 

This approach extends beyond the pitch and into daily life. The initiative encourages practical, community-driven climate action, including waste separation, composting, home gardening, and water-saving practices. These efforts are intentionally designed to be achievable and locally relevant, evolving over time in response to community feedback. In doing so, the program highlights an essential principle of climate justice: solutions must be rooted in local realities and led by those most affected. 

Partnerships  

Partnerships have been central to the project’s success. Girls United has worked closely with Agua Clara to ensure strong environmental expertise and curriculum design, while local authorities have supported infrastructure and long-term maintenance. Schools, families, and community members play an active role in implementing and sustaining activities, and local leaders and youth groups contribute to managing the space. This collaborative approach not only strengthens technical outcomes but also fosters a sense of shared ownership and accountability. 

Impact  

The impact of the initiative is both social and environmental. The creation of a safe, inclusive sports space has allowed more girls to participate in football, challenging long-standing norms about gender and public space. At the same time, the program has increased environmental awareness and encouraged practical climate action among young people and their families. Sustainable behaviors are now more visible at the household level, and the shared management of the space has strengthened community cohesion. Importantly, by centering girls in climate action, the initiative underscores their role as agents of change rather than passive beneficiaries. 

Key Learnings  

The process has not been without challenges. Resistance from some community members, particularly regarding access to the space, required ongoing dialogue and negotiation. Initial plans, such as large-scale composting systems, proved overly ambitious and had to be adapted into more manageable solutions. Coordinating multiple stakeholders also added complexity. However, these challenges led to important learning: 

• the value of co-creation,  
• the importance of flexibility, and  
• the need to prioritize scalable, community-driven approaches. 

To ensure long-term sustainability, a 10-year agreement secures access to the site, while local government support helps maintain operations. Revenue generated from recycling initiatives contributes to upkeep, and continuous monitoring tracks environmental, social, and behavioral outcomes. These measures help embed the project within the community, ensuring that its benefits extend well beyond its initial implementation. 

Girls United’s work in Bacalar demonstrates how sport can serve as a powerful entry point for climate justice. By creating spaces where girls can safely play, learn, and lead, the program addresses immediate inequalities while building resilience to longer-term environmental challenges. It shows that when climate action is inclusive, locally rooted, and community-driven, it can transform not only ecosystems but also the opportunities available to those who depend on them most. 

ISF Cambodia is a locally led NGO that combines education, sport, and community development to support disadvantaged youth. Cambodia faces significant climate impacts such as rising temperatures with prolonged periods of extreme heat, high flood risk, which leads to damaged homes, schools, and infrastructure and increased health and sanitation issues, especially for vulnerable communities. 

In response to increasing climate risks in Cambodia—including extreme heat and frequent flooding—the organization has integrated environmental action across all its programmes. 

Approach  

In order to take action and raise awareness in the community about climate change, ISF Cambodia has integrated environmental education and action into their program model. Through working with local partners, ISF Cambodia has been able to deliver various activities: 

• Sustainable Practices: Plastic-free initiatives, recycling, composting, eco-friendly supplies, and renewable energy solutions 
• Environmental Education: Awareness sessions for students, families, and communities on waste reduction and sustainability 
• Football for Social Impact: Sport-based curriculum that teaches environmental topics through play 
• Youth Leadership: Secondary students take active roles in leading climate action initiatives 
• Community Engagement: Clean-up campaigns and local environmental activities involving families and residents 

These activities have resulted in: 

• Climate-resilient upgrades to sports facilities (including solar lighting) 
• Training of over 1,800 players and coaches in environmental and social impact approaches 
• Environmental education for hundreds of students and families 
• Engagement of over 1,900 players in sustainability-focused football activities 
• Identification of community sustainability role models and strong youth participation, including girls’ leadership events  

Prioritizing climate action 

In 2025, ISF Cambodia participated in the UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action course for grassroots organizations. As a result of their engagement in the course they have created an internal environmental committee within the organization so that they can embed and prioritize climate action going forward.  

ISF Cambodia’s work demonstrates how sport can be a powerful platform for climate education and for community engagement to take climate action. By embedding environmental action into its education and football programmes, the organization is not only raising awareness of climate challenges but also equipping young people and their communities with knowledge and skills. By internally forming an environmental committee, the organizations is committing to prioritizing climate in work going forward. ISF Cambodia is helping build more climate resilient communities through sport in Cambodia. 

The Johan Cruyff Foundation is committed to improving the lives of young people through sport. Recognizing the strong influence sport has on behavior, the organization has begun integrating sustainability into its educational programs with the aim at creating long-term environmental impact in the communities it works with. The Foundation wanted to translate sustainability ambitions into practical, everyday actions that align with its core activities—working with youth and coaches. A key challenge was embedding environmental awareness into sports programs in a way that is both engaging and accessible, and they have addressed this by creating content for coaches and players to learn about sustainability in their local context.  

Approach and actions 

After participating in the UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action course for grassroots organizations, the Foundation established a Sustainability Working Group consisting of a manager, a staff member who is responsible for “software” (the experiential and behavioral part of the programs) and a staff member focused on “hardware” the physical and structural assets of the programs. The group focused particularly on “software”—meaning behavioral change and programmatic interventions—because of the Foundation’s unique position to influence young people and coaches.  

In addition to work that they foundation has already done to make their football pitches more sustainable, they took new initiative to develop sustainable lesson cards based on Johan Cruyff’s “14 Rules” that would integrate sustainability and climate lessons into the sports training sessions and serve as practical tools for coaches. These lesson cards serve as a simple but scalable way to embed environmental awareness into everyday sports activities. The aim of these lesson cards is to: 

• Provides coaches with valuable lessons about the basics of climate change and sustainability 
• Gives coaches a tool and framework for sharing this information with young people during sport sessions 
• Creates potential for youth to engage on sustainability at the local level  

Next steps 

As next steps, the Foundation plans to refine the materials into a recognizable “Cruyff style” design, translate content for broader reach, launch a pilot phase to test and improve the approach.

Moving the Goalposts (MTG) in Kilifi, Kenya is a community-based organization that uses football to empower adolescent girls and young women across Kenya’s coastal region. With over two decades of experience in sport for development, MTG has traditionally focused on gender equality, education, health, and livelihoods. More recently, following participation in the UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action (S4CA) course for grassroots organizations in 2025, the organization has taken steps to embed sustainability and climate action into both its programming and long-term strategy.

Operating in climate vulnerable communities, MTG recognized that environmental challenges such as drought, water scarcity, and ecosystem degradation disproportionately affect the girls and young women they serve. In response, the organization adopted a more intentional and structured approach to sustainability. Climate action is now integrated into its 2023–2027 strategic plan and supported by a dedicated climate change policy, aligning its work with global frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals.

Approach

MTG’s approach combines community engagement, youth leadership, and organizational change. A key focus has been empowering young people as climate leaders. The organization trains adolescent girls as “Climate Action Champions,” equipping them to lead awareness, advocacy, and local environmental initiatives. This reflects MTG’s broader model of using sport not just as an activity, but as a platform for behavioral change and community mobilization.

Alongside education and leadership, MTG has implemented practical, community-based climate solutions. These include tree planting, mangrove restoration, and soil conservation efforts, contributing to biodiversity protection and carbon reduction. The organization has also supported climate adaptation measures such as installing community water tanks in drought-prone areas. These initiatives are designed not only to restore ecosystems but to strengthen resilience among local communities.

Organizational level climate action

At the organizational level, MTG has begun to measure and manage its environmental footprint. The organization established baselines for energy use and greenhouse gas emissions and has committed to reducing these over time through improved efficiency and a transition to renewable energy. Investments in solar infrastructure and plans to adopt energy-efficient systems demonstrate a shift toward more sustainable operations.

Overall, MTG’s work illustrates how a sport for development organization can evolve into a driver of climate action. By integrating environmental sustainability into its strategy, operations, and community programs, MTG is building a model that connects youth empowerment with climate resilience.

Founded in 2001, Youth Football Club (YFC) Rurka Kalan began as a grassroots initiative in rural Punjab, India, using sport to address challenges such as drug abuse and social exclusion among young people. Over time, as climate change increasingly affected the communities it served, the organization expanded its mission to include environmental sustainability. Today, YFC reaches more than 30,000 underprivileged children each year, combining sport with education, health, gender equality, and climate action. 

Punjab has been experiencing severe environmental stress, with extreme heatwaves, erratic rainfall, flooding, and groundwater depletion disrupting both livelihoods and daily life. These challenges directly affect young people’s wellbeing and opportunities, prompting YFC to act. Rather than treating climate change as a separate issue, the organization integrated it into its existing programs, combining education with practical, community-led solutions. 

Climate education approach 

A key focus has been climate education. YFC developed a tailored curriculum and delivered sessions to more than 3,000 students, engaging teachers and parents as well. This led to a marked increase in awareness and encouraged many families to adopt more sustainable practices, such as conserving water, managing waste, and planting trees. 

Community actions 

Alongside education, YFC implemented practical interventions to address local environmental challenges. It revived village ponds, introduced greywater recycling, and installed rainwater harvesting systems, significantly improving water availability and conservation. Investments in solar energy and climate-resilient infrastructure further reduced reliance on traditional resources and strengthened agricultural resilience. Efforts in afforestation and waste management complemented this work, helping restore local ecosystems and encourage responsible community practices. 

These combined initiatives have had a tangible impact, improving water security, increasing environmental awareness, and strengthening community resilience. Some of YFC’s approaches have even been adopted more widely, demonstrating their scalability. Recognized with awards such as the Nirmal Jal Award and the Punjab State Environment Award, YFC’s work highlights how sport can be a powerful catalyst for community-led climate action, creating lasting environmental and social change.