Sport ecology at a crossroads: From awareness to climate action

This paper reviews the development of sport ecology research and examines how sport organizations, researchers, and stakeholders can better respond to climate change through environmental impact reduction, climate adaptation, and meaningful stakeholder engagement. Climate change increasingly threatens the future of sport through rising temperatures, extreme weather events, poor air quality, and changing environmental conditions, while sport itself contributes to environmental degradation through travel, infrastructure, and consumption. The paper synthesizes emerging sport ecology research and proposes future directions for understanding the bidirectional relationship between sport and the natural environment.

The paper argues that sport organizations must simultaneously address two major challenges: reducing their environmental impacts and adapting to the consequences of climate change already affecting sport participation and event operations. The review highlights that Scope 3 emissions, particularly spectator travel, remain the dominant source of sport-related emissions, while emerging pressures from fans, sponsors, and stakeholders are pushing sport organizations toward a “fourth wave” of environmentalism focused on aligning organizational values with concrete environmental action. The article also emphasizes that climate adaptation strategies can create unintended consequences related to accessibility, inequality, commercialization, and athlete wellbeing.

Sport organizations must move beyond symbolic sustainability initiatives by adopting evidence-based environmental strategies, integrating climate adaptation into long-term planning, and engaging fans in meaningful pro-environmental behaviour change. The author calls for more interdisciplinary and globally inclusive sport ecology research, particularly involving environmental justice perspectives and regions most vulnerable to climate change impacts.

CITE: McCullough, B. P. (2023). Advancing sport ecology research on sport and the natural environment. Sport Management Review, 26(5), 813-833. DOI: 10.1080/14413523.2023.2260078