NEW DELHI: Rajasthan Royals have joined hands with The Great People’s Forest of the Eastern Himalayas in a major partnership which will see the inaugural IPL winners backing one of the most significant conservation efforts in the history of South Asia in order to #ManifestTheChange. The association means this is one of the most innovative partnerships between a world-leading sporting franchise and a major environmental initiative ever undertaken.
The Great People’s Forest is a ground-breaking initiative from Conservation International and the Balipara Foundation of Assam, India which seeks to raise $1 billion, plant 1 billion trees, and restore and protect 1 million hectares of forest across the Eastern Himalayas from the mountains to the mangroves, upon which 1 billion people rely. This ground-breaking partnership will see the team help support and promote the efforts of The Great People’s Forest partners and communities across the North East of India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan who are working to protect and restore forests for the benefit of local livelihoods and the planet. The team’s huge international profile will further help efforts to place this connected ecosystem, which is home to one billion people and one twelfth of the world’s biodiversity, on the global agenda as an urgent conservation priority.
Sport as a medium is fundamental to the economy, society and the environment, and with the vision of ‘transforming society through cricket’, the Royals have been committed to fostering a positive change in the country by batting for women-led climate equity and action through their social equity arm – the Royal Rajasthan Foundation. With India’s vision of One Earth, One Goal, One Family, and keeping in mind the ability of sport to positively impact the local, national and global value chain, the franchise aims to continue batting for the adoption of sustainable measures to bring their manifestation of a cleaner, greener and eco-friendly environment to life using sports as a medium by participating in this initiative.
The Rajasthan Royals have pledged vital financial support for this ground-breaking effort, announced today as part of India’s G20 Presidency in New Delhi. As The Great People’s Forest’s founding Outreach Partners, the team and its players will also use their respective platforms to raise awareness of this historic conservation effort with the campaign #ManifestTheChange.
The Royal Rajasthan Foundation is committed to conservation which supports sustainable livelihoods, preserves culture and traditions, and leads to enabling empowerment of the community to provide local means of income. Support of this programme also further deepens the Royals connection to the North East after they announced the Barsapara Stadium, Guwahati, as their second home, and hosted the region’s first ever IPL games there earlier this year.
