Kick for Planet 2026: Using Football to Create Climate Awareness and Inspire Climate Action

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Kick for Planet 2026: Using Football to Create Climate Awareness and Inspire Climate Action

Climate change continues to pose significant environmental, social, and economic challenges globally, with Nigeria increasingly experiencing rising temperatures, erratic rainfall patterns, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and land degradation. While young people are among those who will be most affected by these challenges, opportunities for them to actively participate in practical climate action remain limited.

To address this gap, Triple Green Environmental Development (TGED) Foundation, through its Greener Minds Club, a school-based environmental education and leadership initiative that equips students with the knowledge, skills, and opportunities to champion sustainability, implemented Kick for Planet 2026, an innovative Climate Awareness Charity Football Match that used sport as a platform to engage young people in climate action, environmental responsibility, and youth leadership.

The programme also launched the Foundation’s 250 Tree Planting Initiative, a long-term campaign aimed at increasing tree cover, strengthening climate resilience, and creating greener learning environments across selected schools in Ekiti State. In addition, the event marked the expansion of the Greener Minds Club to another school, extending opportunities for environmental education and student-led climate action to more young people in the state.

Held on 9 June 2026 at Florence Court International School, Ado-Ekiti, the programme brought together students, teachers, parents, government agencies, environmental institutions, development partners, civil society organizations, volunteers, and community members in a collaborative effort to promote youth-led climate action. Activities included a charity football match, student-led climate awareness talks, environmental drama, cheerleading performances, goodwill messages, recognition of outstanding student environmental champions, and the official launch of the Foundation’s tree seedling distribution exercise.

Implemented in partnership with schools, government institutions, environmental stakeholders, and development partners, Kick for Planet 2026 demonstrated that combining sport, environmental education, school greening, and youth leadership provides an innovative and practical model for inspiring climate action while strengthening environmental stewardship within schools and communities.

KEY OUTPUTS

The programme recorded several measurable achievements, including:

• Launch of TGED Foundation’s 250 Tree Planting Initiative.
• 113 tree seedlings were distributed during the first phase to 7 secondary schools and 1 primary school, representing almost 45% of the Foundation’s 250-tree target. The seedlings distributed includes Parkia biglobosa, Gmelina arborea, Terminalia ivorensis, Magnifera indica, Artocarpus heterophyllus
• Eight (8) Tree Planting Agreements signed with beneficiary schools to ensure post-planting monitoring, accountability, and sustainability.
• Approximately 262 participants directly engaged, including students, educators, parents, government representatives, environmental agencies, development partners, and community members.
• Four outstanding Greener Minds Club members received special recognition awards and medals for their exceptional service and dedication to environmental advocacy.
• Award presented to the pioneer president of the Greener Minds Club
• 1 certificate of appreciation was given to the club coordinator for her mentorship and support in nurturing young environmental leaders.
• 38 certificates, medals, and recognition awards presented to students, volunteers, club members, and coordinators in recognition of outstanding environmental leadership and participation.

EARLY OUTCOMES

• Successful commemoration of World Environment Day 2026.
• Increased environmental awareness among participating students.
• Strengthened youth participation in climate action.
• Enhanced visibility of Greener Minds Club initiatives.
• Recognition and motivation of outstanding student environmental leaders.
• Strengthened partnerships between schools, government agencies, and environmental stakeholders.
• The event successfully communicated climate and sustainability messages across generations by engaging students, parents, teachers, government officials, environmental stakeholders, sports enthusiasts, and community members, demonstrating that climate action is a shared responsibility that extends beyond the environmental sector.
• Increased commitment by schools to environmental stewardship and tree monitoring.

SUSTAINABILITY AND EARLY PROGRESS

The impact of the initiative extends beyond the event itself.

Following the programme, beneficiary schools signed formal commitments to plant, nurture, monitor, and report on the distributed seedlings. TGED Foundation has commenced a structured post-planting monitoring process, while several schools have already planted their seedlings and submitted photographic progress reports, demonstrating encouraging levels of ownership and commitment toward achieving the Foundation’s broader 250 Tree Planting Initiative.

CHALLENGES

The programme also provided valuable implementation lessons. 

• Majority of the parents were absent from the event
• Limited Funding Due to Low Response from Potential Sponsors  

These experiences have informed improvements in stakeholder engagement, resource mobilization, event planning, and participant mobilization strategies for future editions.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. A more intentional parent engagement strategy should be adopted. This should include sending invitations earlier through schools, issuing reminder messages before the event, and clearly communicating the value of parents’ participation in supporting youth-led environmental initiatives. Schools should also be encouraged to actively mobilize parents for future programmes. 

2. Sponsorship engagement should commence much earlier, with structured follow-up meetings and regular communication with prospective sponsors. In addition to corporate organizations, future resource mobilization efforts should target foundations, development partners, alumni associations, philanthropists, and local businesses to diversify funding sources and reduce reliance on a few sponsors.

LOOKING AHEAD

Kick for Planet 2026 has demonstrated that combining sport with environmental education provides an effective and engaging approach to youth-led climate action.

Building on the success of the pilot, TGED Foundation is strengthening its monitoring of the planted trees, assessing beneficiary schools for future Greener Minds Club expansion, and documenting environmental outcomes to inform evidence-based programming. The Foundation is also developing an expanded edition of Kick for Planet that will adopt a knockout competition format, engage more schools across Ekiti State, significantly increase youth participation, strengthen partnerships, and accelerate progress towards large-scale school greening and climate resilience.The Foundation remains committed to empowering young environmental leaders and delivering innovative, community-driven solutions that translate climate awareness into lasting environmental impact.