The World Surf League (WSL), in partnership with the Surfrider Foundation, has launched a new global cause campaign – #StopTrashingOurWaves – that aims to inspire, educate and empower surf fans and ocean lovers by raising awareness of ocean ecology and addressing critical environmental issues as they apply to the WSL Championship Tour and to Big Wave Tour events.
This rights-holder and charity initiative revolves around three key objectives: becoming carbon neutral globally by the end of 2019, eliminating all single-serve plastics by the end of 2019 and leaving each WSL Championship Tour and Big Wave Tour stop better than it was found.
The programme builds on and runs in parallel to the WSL’s existing ocean conservation efforts: including the WSL PURE – a non-profit arm which stands for ‘Protecting Understanding and Respecting the Environment’.
This initiative and commitment is promoted through a global, integrated marketing campaign which states its aims and invites all members of the ocean community to make the PURE pledge to ‘Stop Trashing Waves’.
The campaign is led by a global mass participation event in partnership with the Surfrider Foundation (a grassroots, non-profit environmental organization founded in the USA in 1984 to protect and preserve the world’s oceans, waves and beaches): a worldwide ‘paddle out’ on 15 June in honour of International Surfing Day.
The ‘Stop Trashing Waves’ creative features pro surfers interviewed
What does the ocean mean to you? Take the pledge to #StopTrashingWaves at https://t.co/4ysT4aty93. #wslpure @kellyslater @acebuchan @kanoaigarashi @SilvanaLimaSurf pic.twitter.com/z40z9v9iOF
— World Surf League (@wsl) June 5, 2019
and fronting their own personal vidoes such as those by Conner Coffin,
Filipe Toledo, Carissa Moore, Coco Ho, Tatiana Weston Webb, Paige Alms, Greg Long, Kai Lenny, and Bianca Valenti.
The pro surfer supporters are also amplifying the initiative across their own social media platforms.
A lead animated spot called ‘Let’s Step Up Our Game to Protect The Ocean’,
is supported by a series of additional online videos adopting the same animated approachable creative style including ‘Restoring Our Coasts’,
‘Becoming Carbon Neutral’,
and ‘Cutting Out Single-Serve Plastic’
all of which aim to drive viewers online to make the pledge at https://www.worldsurfleague.com/pure.
“The WSL is incredibly proud to break new ground in sports in the urgent battle against climate change and ocean pollution,” said WSL CEO Sophie Goldschmidt.
“We believe it’s our responsibility to be ‘all in’ with our efforts to protect the ocean and beaches amid the devastating climate crisis we all face. We invite everyone who cares about the ocean to join us.”
Comment:
This WSL initiative was launched in the same week as a ‘Road To Hawai’ campaign by the rights-owners primary partner Jeep which aims to get more Australian out into the waves through emotional content and practical, weather-related geolocated content on Spotify Dynamic (see case study).
The WSL ocean ecology programme also coincide with several other sports environmental venture announcements.
5 June also saw The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) become the latest major sporting body to commit to the United Nations’ Sports for Climate Action Framework.
By joining UNFCCC, the AELTC pledges to implement the principles enshrined in the Sports for Climate Action Framework and commits to working collaboratively with its peers and relevant stakeholders to develop, implement and enhance the climate action agenda within the sport industry.
The AELTC will drive by using the strength of the Wimbledon brand to advocate for the message that concerted collaborative action is needed.
AELTC pledges commitment to United Nations' Sport for Climate Framework: https://t.co/17aKUpP8Bi#Wimbledon #WorldEnvironmentDay @UNFCCC pic.twitter.com/UbmFr97ZAm
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 5, 2019
Richard Lewis, Chief Executive of the AELTC, said: “We believe that Wimbledon, along with other major events, has a vital role to play in helping to protect the environment, today and for the future, and we are proud to be a signatory to the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework. We will play our part not just through our actions on our grounds, both year-round and during The Championships, but in the way we collaborate with our partners, and the way we can use the reach of Wimbledon to help support this important cause.”
This move follows the 2018 AELTC announcement that protecting the environment was a significant focus as part of the development of its sustainability goals and objectives. This saw it make a series of moves such as sourcing of renewable electricity, the removal of unnecessary plastic from its operation such as plastic straws and plastic bags for racket stringing, the launch of a new 100% recycled, recyclable water bottle in partnership with Evian, the use of recycled plastic for furniture, trialling electric cars in its courtesy car fleet, and the launch of an educational activation area for the public to highlight the possibilities of a greener future.
Other notable sports signatories to the framework thus far range from the IOC, Roland-Garros, Tokyo 2020, to Paris 2024, FIFA, Formula E, MLB, Real Betis, the USTA and the International Volleyball Federation’s recent partnership with Dutch NGO Ghost Fishing on the ‘Good Net’ project which re-purposes discarded fishing nets into volleyball nets.
Links:
WSL
http://www.worldsurfleague.com/
https://www.instagram.com/wsl/
Surfrider Foundation
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