Elite athletes step up to combat climate change

A SPORTS marketing agency which prides itself on its ethical approach will be giving its athletes an added incentive – the opportunity to help combat climate change.

The Athlete Media Group represents 18 sports men and women at the top of their game, who compete in everything from boxing to rowing to triathlon – World Cup winners, Team GB Olympic Gold medallists, world champions, world record holders and more.

And as part of its commitment to recognising and supporting a range of good causes, AMG has now partnered with JUST ONE Tree (sic), which works towards repairing the world’s damaged ecosystems.

The agency has put in place a sliding scale of financial rewards which will see them make a donation to JUST ONE Tree throughout 2021 and 2022 every time one of their athletes wins a competition or makes it to the podium.

All the money will then be used by JUST ONE Tree to plant trees around the globe along with mangrove and kelp in the oceans, which reflects the environments that AMG’s athletes perform in.

Sophie Caldwell, Team GB triathlete who works with AMG, believes this is an important initiative – so much so that she and some of her fellow athletes will be matching the agency’s pledge personally.

“I am proud to use my athlete platform and performances to help combat climate change in such a fun and creative way,” she said.

“I love that I can do my bit for the planet through my passion for triathlon and can’t wait to get racing again.”

JUST ONE Tree is a non-profit initiative committed to removing CO2 from the atmosphere and reversing biodiversity loss through global reforestation and its CEO and Founder, Amanda Bronkhorst, praised AMG for its commitment.

“Athlete Media Group has pledged to embrace sustainability at every level and I’m delighted they’ve chosen JUST ONE Tree as their partner on that journey,” she said.

“Working with land- and water-based athletes really helps emphasise all the ways planting trees can help regenerate our planet and create a greener future for us all.”

Mark Middlemas, CEO and Founder of AMG, said this partnership typified the ethos at the agency.

“This is what AMG is all about – doing good, pushing boundaries and having fun,” he said.

“It’s about athletes doing what they do best – competing, scoring and winning – and out of that we can help in some small way to help create a positive future for our planet.”