ZERO Project kicks off

In early April 2023 the new ERASMUS+ ZERO project kicked off. The World Snowboard Federation (WSF) and the partner organizations gathered in Innsbruck, Austria, to officially kick off the new Erasmus+ Sport funded project Zero Emission Riders Project.

ZERO – Zero Emission Riders Objectives is a 36-month project involving research, advocacy and sport professionals from 11 partner organizations and from 9 different countries:

• World Snowboard Federation
• Protect our Winters Europe (POW)
• Sport and Sustainability International (SandSi)
• Magyar Snowboard Szövetség / Hungarian Snowboard Federation
• Federação de Desportos de Inverno de Portugal
• Snowboard Verband Deutschland e.V.
• Sneeuwsport Vlaanderen
• Nederlandse Ski Vereniging
• SUOMEN LUMILAUTALIITTO
• SWISS-SKI SCHWEIZERISCHER SKIVERBAND
• Deutsche Sporthochschule Köln, Institut für Outdoor Sport und Umweltforschung / Institute of Outdoor Sports and Environmental Science

The project will develop innovative practices of grassroot snowboarding to increase accessibility and participation of young people in sport activities while empowering them in the fight against climate change toward ‘zero emission rides’. Through the 15 outputs developed, Sport Federations and umbrella sport organizations will be equipped with resources and knowledge on how to develop and expand the practices of snowboarding to make them accessible in a larger diversity of environments, allowing more young people to engage in physical activity at their local level. The project consortium will also propose an innovative and sustainable form of snowboarding event that will contribute to drastical reduction of travel and transportation of riders across Europe while increasing their participation in leisure / grassroot competitive snowboarding. Moreover, the project aims to foster a strong and digitally active snowboarding community to encourage changes in the sport practices coming from the grassroot level, voicing their concerns and answering the environmental problems of new and future generations of riders.

The project should also open and encourage the dialogue between the snowboarding community and external stakeholders and raise awareness among grassroot young riders and their families on the concrete actions they can undertake to reduce the negative impact on their environment.

The partners will be meeting at the end of the year for their next meeting. Till then, an intensive time to research and develop education materials lies ahead.

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