THE 6th OUTDOOR SPORTS EURO’MEET GREEN SPORTS FOR A GREENER AND HEALTHIER EUROPE
From the 13th to the 16th September 2022 the European Network of Outdoor Sports were delighted to bring together over 100 delegates from across Europe at the 6th Outdoor Sports Euro’meet held in Silkeborg, the Outdoor Capital of Denmark.
The Outdoor Sports Euro’meet is a biennial professional conference, open to all and with a strong focus on sustainability.
The 2022 conference marked the first Euro’meet since the pandemic, bringing together key stakeholders from outdoor sports, tourism, the environment, local and EU development sectors and policy and decision-makers to discuss and share knowledge on the strategic development of outdoor sports.
This year the conference focused on the overall theme Green sports for a greener and healthier Europe.
The three key topics explored included;
- Green Sports for a Green Europe: Climate Change and Biodiversity
- Be Active, Be Outdoors – Increasing Participation
- Power of the Outdoors to Improve Welfare
Over the three days, delegates worked collaboratively through a series of workshops to develop the Strategic Priorities for the outdoor sports sector to be proactively involved in the transition to a greener and healthier Europe to showcase the value and the power of outdoor sports to society.
Opening the 2022 Euro’meet, Hans Bruyninckx, Executive Director of the European Environment Agency , gave a clear message for the sector “We’re living in times of urgency, we need to move from weak to strong sustainability and restoration of the environment. But it should be more than words, we need actions and a systemic change.”
Day two saw an open by Micheal Serneels, Policy Officer, EU Sport Unit. Micheal explored EU Sport Policy, priorities and funding opportunities and the connection with other EU priorities that outdoor sports can contribute to.
Day three of the Outdoor Sports Euro’meet in Silkeborg kicked off with a presentation by Johan Faskunger, Analyst of Svenskt Friluftsliv, showcasing the power of outdoor sports when promoted well. He highlighted the major return on investment in community sports and outdoor recreation programmes but more needs to be done to communicate this to policy and decision makers.
The Conference also saw the Annual General Meeting of the European Network of Outdoor Sports which announced new members of the voluntary Management Committee.
In his closing speech, ENOS President, Mike McClure, announced that the candidacy to host the Euro’Meet 2024 is now open. He thanked the events team of the municipality of Silkeborg for delivering such a fantastic event and providing great inspiration on how to become a true capital of outdoor sports.
