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- UNICEF’s climate programmes, as part of the Safe and Healthy Environment Fund, target those most affected by and at risk to climate change impacts
- Programmes include training, education and initiatives that ensure services such as schools, health centres, water and sanitation facilities are resilient to climate and environmental shocks.
Riyadh, Dubai, London: Formula E and UNICEF yesterday announced their ground breaking partnership has benefitted more than 2.5 million children and young people globally since the partnership began in 2021.
Formula E, the world’s first sport to be certified net zero carbon since inception, was the first international sports organisation to partner with UNICEF to tackle climate change.
Through investment in UNICEF’s climate programmes as part of the Safe and Healthy Environment Fund, the collaboration focuses on helping to create a planet where every child can live in a safe, clean and sustainable environment.
This is achieved by ensuring the services children rely on - such as education and healthcare - are resilient and that young people are empowered through knowledge and skills building to take climate action.
Examples of localised initiatives funded by the partnership include bespoke climate change education training in the Caribbean for more than 50,000 people as well as rainwater capture and purification systems in schools across three Mexican states positively impacting more than 17,000 students and their local villages.
More than 1.8 million children and young people were positively impacted by UNICEF’s Safe and Healthy Environment Fund in the first full year of the partnership with Formula E in 2022.
Formula E and UNICEF’s partnership contributes towards UNICEF’s climate work for children and supports holistic climate programmes around the world. Funding from Formula E contributes to UNICEF’s global climate programmes which include innovative programmes ranging from those that turn plastic waste into schools; instaling solar panels at places such as schools; and training local manufacturers to make eco-cooking stoves.
Julia Pallé, Director of Sustainability, Formula E said:
“We are proud to see our partnership with UNICEF is having a powerful and meaningful impact on children and young people all around the world. As a leader in sustainability, it’s not just the planet that we look to protect but its people too. With one billion children already at extreme risk from the impacts of climate change, we need to ensure they have the best support possible as well as the right education as they grow up. They will be the ones inheriting the world and influencing change so we’re pleased to be involved in their education and investing in their communities.”
Gautam Narasimhan, Global Lead for Climate, Energy, & Environment at UNICEF said:
“Children are bearing the brunt of the impacts of climate change – and children living in fragile countries and vulnerable communities are being hit the hardest. Today, one billion children are already at extremely high risk from the impacts of climate change.
“As the first global sport organisation to support UNICEF’s climate programmes, Formula E continues to help us raise awareness and provides vital funds for children around the world, helping transform the lives of children and their families
“Thank you, Formula E, for supporting our work towards a world in which every child, no matter how hard to reach, survives and thrives in a safe, clean and nurturing environment.”
The most dramatic Formula E season yet reaches its climax at the 2023 Hankook London E-Prix on Saturday, 29 July and Sunday, 30 July. Rounds 15 and 16 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship are the finale of Season 9 and conclude the first competitive season of the GEN3 – the fastest, lightest, most powerful and efficient electric race car ever built.
In 2020, Formula E became the first sport in the world to be certified with a net zero carbon footprint since its inception (According to the 2020 definition) and to join the Science Based Targets initiative, committing to further reducing the championship’s emissions by 45% by 2030.
Since Season 5 Formula E has championed the FIA’s grassroots programme Girls on Track, that promotes greater female participation in motorsport, directly hosting and engaging more than 2,100 young women in educational workshops at track.
In 2017 Formula E partnered with the United National Environment Programme (UNEP) and its #BeatAirPollution campaign back in which was renewed in April 2020, while also becoming a founding member and signatory of the UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action Framework to advance and educate sustainability in and through sports.
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About UNICEF:
UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. Across more than 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, to build a better world for everyone.
The UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK) raises funds for UNICEF’s emergency and development work for children. We also promote and protect children’s rights in the UK and internationally. We are a UK charity, entirely funded by supporters.
United Kingdom Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK), Registered Charity No. 1072612 (England & Wales), SC043677 (Scotland).
For more information visit unicef.org.uk. Follow UNICEF UK on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube.
About Formula E and the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship:
As the world’s first all-electric FIA World Championship and the only sport certified net zero carbon since inception, the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship brings dramatic racing to the heart of some of the world’s most iconic cities providing an elite motorsport platform for the world’s leading automotive manufacturers to accelerate electric vehicle innovation.
The Formula E network of teams, manufacturers, partners, broadcasters, and host cities are united by a passion for the sport and belief in its potential to accelerate sustainable human progress and create a better future for people and planet.
About ABB:
ABB is a technology leader in electrification and automation, enabling a more sustainable and resource-efficient future. The company’s solutions connect engineering know-how and software to optimize how things are manufactured, moved, powered and operated. Building on more than 130 years of excellence, ABB’s ~105,000 employees are committed to driving innovations that accelerate industrial transformation. www.abb.com
