"Public administration has the capacity to generate and encourage change"

"We are facing a critical moment, we must take action," said Eloi Burriel, founder and coordinator of the consulting firm specialized in innovation, ecology and communication, L'Origen. Burriel was also one of the speakers at the third panel discussion as part of the conference "Sport, sustainability and climate emergency", organized by the Master in Sports Management at the UPF Barcelona School of Management.

The debate "Generating knowledge, encouraging and communicating" also included the participation of Helena Berlanga, from Sports Services of the Barcelona Provincial Council; Josep Lluís Bruna, representative of the Spanish Sports Association; and Lluís Pernas, president of the COE's Sports and Environment Commission, who moderated the event.

During the session, the three panelists presented the actions carried out by their respective organizations in the fight against the climate emergency, alongside sport. "The public administration has the capacity to generate and encourage change," reflected Burriel, who showed how the consulting firm he coordinates leads by example."We must influence society," he insisted as he recounted the experience of the six editions of the RE-M Energy Marathon. "In six Februaries we have joined 19 towns, 12 departments of the Catalan Government and we have raised more than half a million euros," he explained, satisfied. He admitted that the best thing, "is to have collected a volume of energy similar to 15 Olympic swimming pools to distribute it among those who need it most".

An awareness-raising task

"The awareness of users is paramount," said Berlanga. Thus, the representative of the Sports Service of the supramunicipal entity has highlighted its involvement with environmental criteria and the values of sport - "always aligned with the SDGs", she has clarified- and has exposed the different tasks carried out by the Barcelona Provincial Council. From the review and technical and architectural analysis of sports facilities to the construction of new spaces with sustainability criteria or the promotion of renewable energies such as photovoltaic panels.

However, the representative of the Spanish Sports Association, Josep Lluís Bruna, has shown another vision. "I think it is more realistic to talk about saving ourselves," he said, referring to the human species, since, he added, "when we have become extinct, the planet will still exist".

In any case, Bruna has joined the call to take care of the Planet and to generate a "balance between the living beings that share the same ecosystem". "If we do not preserve this balance, we will destroy our habitat," he complained, and concluded that "sport is a magnificent factor of social cohesion to carry it out, it is an influencer".