Sports have the power to bring people together across cultures, languages, and borders in a way few other forces can. What if that same influence could help tackle one of the most urgent challenges of our time—climate change?
That was the question at the heart of Playing for the Planet: How Sports Can Champion Conservation and Climate Action, a Climate Week NYC event co-hosted by Columbia University School of Professional Studies (SPS). In his opening remarks, Dr. Brendan Buckley, Lamont Research Professor and co-director of the M.S. in Sustainability Science program, framed the potential of this unlikely alliance: “Sports, in its totality, can inspire action in ways that science alone cannot.”
Moderated by Chandler Precht, lecturer in professional studies and director of external affairs and communications for the M.S. in Sustainability Management and M.S. in Sustainability Science programs, the panel brought together athletes, entrepreneurs, and sustainability leaders to show how the culture of sports can serve as a powerful platform for conservation, advocacy, and systemic change.
Sports as a Platform for Environmental Advocacy
Precht set the tone by connecting Climate Week NYC’s theme to the night’s discussion: “In sports, the ‘power on’ moment is when the stadium lights go up, the scoreboard starts to glow, and when we really lock in. In sustainability, the ‘power on’ is a call to action—a call for urgency, creativity, and resiliency to combat the world’s most pressing issues.” The conversation began with panelists reflecting on their “power on” moments—the experiences that inspired their environmental journeys.
For Lady Merle Liivand, an Estonian open-water swimming champion known as the “Modern Life Mermaid,” the turning point came during the Rio Olympics. Watching trash wash ashore during a race made her realize the scale of marine pollution. Her subsequent world-record swims, completed in a mermaid tail while collecting trash, have since become symbols of ocean advocacy.
(l to r): Lady Merle Liivand, Lew Blaustein, and Mackenzie Feldman. [Photo credit: Steve Myaskovsky]
Lew Blaustein, founder and CEO of the nonprofit EcoAthletes, described how 9/11 and a Tom Friedman op-ed connected his passions for sports and the environment. “I came to this from a patriotic impulse … but realized the best way forward was through green sports,” Blaustein said. Today, EcoAthletes trains more than 200 athletes to use their influence for climate action.
Re:wild Your Campus founder and co-director Mackenzie Feldman recalled turning a toxic herbicide incident on her UC Berkeley beach volleyball court into a movement that made the campus fully organic. “It’s so easy to get things done when you’re not just complaining about a problem, but coming up with the solution,” she said. And Zach Ruiz, sustainability manager for the Miami Heat’s Kaseya Center, cited the 2018 Super Bowl, which was designed as a zero-waste initiative and which achieved a 91% recycling rate, as his wake-up call.
Athletes as Influencers and Policy Drivers
Athletes may seem like an unusual fit for environmental advocacy. But for these panelists and many others, the urgency of the issue led them to put their cultural power toward the cause.
“Athletes are the most influential humans on the planet,” Blaustein said during the discussion, citing data that shows their reach surpasses politicians, entertainers, and even scientists.
Yet many athletes still hesitate to speak out, he noted. Some fear the issue is too political or too technical. Others worry about hypocrisy given their travel-related carbon emissions. EcoAthletes provides training to help them overcome these barriers, encouraging athletes to be advocates without needing to be scientists.
And this advocacy work can pay off. Liivand shared how she has used her unconventional platform to influence policymakers. Her work helped push Nicaragua to adopt a “mermaid law” banning plastic straws and destructive fishing practices. By blending sport, spectacle, and storytelling, she was able to transform athletic achievement into a vehicle for policy change.
“I’m not here to talk as a human, I’m here to represent 72% of the planet—the ocean,” Liivand said.
Venues as Catalysts for Sustainability
While athletes can inspire, venues can operationalize change. Ruiz described his work at the Miami Heat’s arena, where he views sustainability not as an add-on but as central to operations.
Under Ruiz’s leadership, the Heat received 35 GOAL Medals this year for achievements in waste reduction, water efficiency, and community engagement. Old suite furniture was redistributed to public schools and local universities, diverting more than 13,000 pounds from landfills. A new program donates proceeds from recycled glass and aluminum to nonprofits like Rescue a Reef, which restores coral ecosystems off Miami’s coast.
The venue also invites fans into the process. Composting activations and water-from-air technology demonstrate sustainability in action. Ruiz stressed that engaging fans directly is essential, asking: “How can we make it simple for our fans, so they don’t have to do too much thinking, but they can bring these habits home with them?”
Lessons from Sports for the Climate Movement
In their closing reflections, panelists considered what the climate movement could learn from sports culture.
Feldman highlighted the value of community, suggesting: “People want to be part of a team. We’re missing that in the environmental movement.” She suggested that, by framing environmental action as collective and empowering rather than isolating or pessimistic, advocates can build momentum.
Sustainability can be embedded into the fan experience, suggested Ruiz. From compostable concessions to energy-efficient lighting, every detail can communicate environmental values. Blaustein, meanwhile, called on athletes to become the “Billie Jean Kings and Muhammad Alis” of climate—leaders whose cultural influence drives lasting change.
In the face of fear and not knowing whether all of this hard work will pay off, Liivand stressed resilience. Training, she explained, means showing up at 3 a.m. not knowing if a medal awaits.
“That’s the same with climate. We don’t know if we’ll inspire people, but we show up anyway.”
(l to r): Chandler Precht, Lady Merle Liivand, Lew Blaustein, Mackenzie Feldman, and Zach Ruiz. [Photo credit: Steve Myaskovsky]
About the Sustainability Science Program
The Columbia University M.S. in Sustainability Science program, offered by the School of Professional Studies in partnership with the Climate School, prepares students for management and leadership positions in which they help organizations address environmental impacts. Students learn strategies to respond to the ever-changing environment and predict future environmental changes—and the impact on corporations, not-for-profits, and the public.
Designed by research faculty at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in collaboration with Columbia’s Earth Institute, the program develops a new generation of scientific leaders through a cutting-edge curriculum led by the world’s top sustainability scientists, the majority of whom are Lamont Research Professors. Graduates are well prepared for management and leadership positions, armed with the scientific expertise to drive meaningful environmental change and lead organizations in a rapidly evolving sustainability landscape. With the flexibility to choose from a variety of courses, students can tailor their education to career goals, while New York City serves as a living laboratory for sustainability innovations and connects them with employers actively seeking program graduates.
The spring 2026 application deadline for the M.S. in Sustainability Science program is November 1. Learn more about the program here.
About the Sustainability Management Program
The Columbia University M.S. in Sustainability Management program, offered by the School of Professional Studies in partnership with the Climate School, provides students with cutting-edge policy and management tools to help public and private organizations and governments address environmental impacts and risks, pollution control, and remediation to achieve sustainability. The program is customized for working professionals and is offered as a full-time and part-time course of study.
The program fosters creativity and adaptability by equipping students with the skills to tackle real-world sustainability challenges through an interdisciplinary approach from the world’s premier sustainability academics, researchers, and practitioners. The up-to-the-minute curriculum and flexibility prepare graduates for careers in the dynamic and rapidly changing field of sustainability.
The spring 2026 application deadline for the M.S. in Sustainability Management program is November 1. Learn more about the program here.
