TOKYO: Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB), the global governing body of volleyball has been declared as one of the official supporters of the ‘Clean Seas’ initiative of the United Nations in partnership with the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
FIVB will be extending its hand in the initiative through its flagship CSR project ‘Good Net’, which was launched recently with the aim to recover discarded fishing nets from the world’s oceans. Many of them will be recycled into volleyball nets for local community use around the world.
The IOC will also be supported by the hosts of the Olympic 2020 Games surfing competition, Ichinomiya which has pledged to promote the use of eco-bags among its students; provide lectures on the effects of microplastics on the environment; organise Ichinomiya beach clean-ups; and provide recycled draining nets to improve the water quality of Ichinomiya river.
Launched by UN Environment in January 2017, the Clean Seas initiative aims to increase global awareness of the marine litter issue, and address gaps in waste management. The IOC signed up for the initiative in June 2018.
As the leader of the Olympic Movement, the IOC has been working closely with other International Sports Federations (IFs), National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and athletes as well, to encourage them to also come on board. Eleven IFs, four NOCs, and three IOC commercial partners (TOPs) namely Coca Cola, Dow Chemicals and Procter & Gamble have joined the initiative so far, thanks to the IOC’s support.
The IOC’s involvement in the Clean Seas initiative stems from the organisation’s commitment to sustainability, which is one of the three pillars of Olympic Agenda 2020, the strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic Movement.
