Photo Credit: Augusta National Golf Club
Editor’s Note: Our website https://ourplanetearth.eco encourages all children of God to act with “Care for Our Common Home. It’s also a resource on https://laudatosiactionplatform.org/ and https://ourcommonhome.org/
Our Planet Earth
Introduction
Pope Leo XIV offered, in June 2026 a prayer intention, “For the values of sports.” His message centers on recognizing sports as an analogy for life, aiming for it to serve as a school of fraternity and a universal language that builds peace and bridges cultures. He emphasizes that sports should foster encounters and teamwork, rather than empty rivalry and exclusion. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is leading global sports in its mission to combat climate change.
Sports are important for athletes to build character, strengthen muscles, and form relationships, some of which last a lifetime. For millions of fans, they look forward to watching their favorite athletes. In the Olympics, the IOC encourages a truce from wars during the games. Also, the Summer and Winter Olympics bring together thousands of athletes from hundreds of nations, which highlights inclusion and shared humanity. It also breaks barriers and occasionally paves the way for diplomacy by opening dialogue and other lines of communication. Sports in the USA are important, too, with many fans watching and some participating in baseball, football, basketball, golf, volleyball, soccer, gymnastics, track and field, tennis, skiing, skating, and so many others. Will climate change affect these sports to the point where we may not have them? Climate change and environmental degradation are increasingly affecting the conditions under which sports take place. From extreme heat, flooding, droughts, wildfires, and changing weather patterns to the physical pressures placed upon natural environments, the effects on sports are clearly seen. On World Environment Day (June 5, 2026), these challenges served as a reminder of how a healthy environment and the future of sports are interrelated in issues that affect us all.
What people learn in sports is universal and carries over into all of our relationships. Sports teach athletes how to win, lose, and they give them the fundamentals to follow to be successful. Many people take pride in doing well in sports, and some love watching sports. Just look at how many people attend golf courses, gyms, and stadiums. Also, look at how the Federation International de Football Associations (FIFA) is bringing people together, and has recently banned their soccer players from playing on artificial turf for health reasons.
What Can You Do?
We can manage our time between people, sports, and the environment by building more friendships and relationships, getting ourselves more involved in our children’s and grandchildren’s sports, and by keeping the air, water, and land clean of pollution. Ecological restoration and regenerative measures are key ways to combat climate change. They are systematic, nature-based interventions designed to halt environmental degradation and actively rebuild resilient ecosystems. By recovering biodiversity and natural processes, these practices provide critical ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration, water filtration, and climate resilience. A CEO from a major biotechnology and environmental remediation company once said, “We need to improve the quality of water even if it may require paying more.” “We need to go beyond where we are now.” This water effort should also include air and land quality measures by keeping farmland green, forests green, and other ecosystems green.
YouTube on Sports and Climate Change:
Quote:
"Sport is the canary in the coal mine for climate change. Whether it's the lack of snow for winter events, extreme heat threatening summer athletes, or smoke-filled air canceling games, the places where we play are disappearing." - Dr. Madeleine Orr in Warming Up: How Climate Change Is Changing Sports
Tom Cervone, Deacon and PhD, is the founder, and Michael Cervone, B.S., is the programmer and designer of the “Our Planet Earth” website. We also thank others for their earlier help in developing this website.
Comments may be directed to ourplanetearth.eco@gmail.com Thank you!