Beyond Sport Global Awards: A 10th anniversary look back
For 10 years, the Beyond Sport Global Awards have celebrated, supported and raised awareness and funding for organizations that are using sport to make positive social change in communities around the world. With a little over a month until the 2018 ceremony, we caught up with some of our past winners to hear what being part of the Beyond Sport network has meant for their projects, to get their thoughts on partnering with the next generation and ask what going beyond sport means to them. Read on for what they had to say!
After hearing from these inspirational leaders, please share with us on social what going beyond sport means to you using #BeyondSport10.
2009 BEST NEW PROJECT AWARD: ‘HAT TRICK INITIATIVES', COACHES ACROSS CONTINENTS (TANZANIA)
Nick Gates, Founder
Winning the Beyond Sport Best New Project in our first year was one of the most important moments for Coaches Across Continents. It gave us the confidence to build and develop our unique concept. Since then we have grown from one country to more than 50 countries. Winning the award opened up a network of incredible organizations and people that allowed CAC to share ideas and learn from best practises. We share our ten year anniversary with Beyond Sport. Happy Birthday!
Businesses have an incredible opportunity to use their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Cause Marketing to engage with the next generation. We are fortunate to work with pro-active corporations like Nike and Chevrolet to help them implement their initiatives. In the next decade, more corporations need to move away from 'one off' event-based CSR to sustainable, locally owned social impact that will capture the imagination of the next generation. For me, going beyond sport means engaging the hearts, minds and imagination of young people and communities around the world.
2015 SPORT FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION: ‘BREAKING THE SILENCE USING FOOTBALL’, HORN OF AFRICA DEVELOPMENT INITAITVE - HODI (KENYA)
Fatuma A. Adan, Executive Director
For HODI, winning the award was a game changer. Being highlighted as an organisation that uses football for social change raised our profile and opened doors for us as an organisation. It created a visibility beyond our small village and country to the global stage. The financial support was crucial in scaling our projects and ensuring sustainability. It also provided an opportunity to network and partner with some of the Beyond Sport family and beyond. I personally felt like a lone soldier fighting my own battles in the past. After winning, it was a teary moment for me as a person. I knew then that I would never walk alone; instead I’d be walking with brothers and sisters using sport for social change from all over the world. We have gathered more courage to fight for our place as an organisation and for the women and girls we work with in HODI.
At HODI we believe we have to start engaging today for a better tomorrow. Businesses have to start the conversation now with the young generation and together we can build a sustainable community. We always talk of young leaders and giving the young people a chance to lead. For example, we had a young man who champions the cause of girls and women receive the award for us.
To me, going beyond sport means Building Resilient Communities through the Power of Sports. We celebrate the Beyond Sport network and look forward to continuing to being part of this amazing family -- together pushing to build bridges where none existed through sports.
2015 SPORT FOR EDUCATION AWARD: ‘ICE: I CAN EXCEL AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAM & SUMMER DREAMS CAMP’, FIGURE SKATING IN HARLEM (USA)
Sharon Cohen, Founder
Being a part of the Beyond Sport family has been a game-changer. Since winning the Sport for Education award, we have not only expanded our STEM education program, we have opened up our first Chapter in a new city – Detroit (Michigan) – in an effort to impact many more girls’ lives and transform into a national organization.
For young people, businesses can play a crucial role in leveraging awareness, providing volunteer opportunities and financial support to causes that our meaningful to the next generation. Corporations can be outstanding partners to millennials who are socially conscious and align with the missions and goals of Sport for Good organizations.
For me, going beyond sport means that we can change the world. Sport can inspire and teach lifetime lessons that transform lives.
2015 SPORT FOR HEALTH AWARD: WAVES OF CHANGE – ISIQALO FOUNDATION (SOUTH AFRICA)
Tim Conibear - Founding Director
Being part of the Beyond Sport network has been invaluable in creating awareness of Waves for Change (W4C). It's helped us connect with other organisations with whom we've shared our methodology and helped us to win new grant funding. Since 2015, we've been able to talk to partners who have helped us grow our programme across South Africa and into West Africa. Winning a Beyond Sport award helped spark these conversations. Today, W4C reaches over 1,500 children (up from 250 when we won our award) and we’ve opened our first international programmes in West Africa.
Many Sport for Development programmes offer services to individuals who cannot pay and are often beyond the healthcare sector. I think we can change the language away from donations towards investment to reframe the conversation around supporting Sport for Development NGOs. It's possible to invest in NGOs if you're looking for a social return. Connecting them to a sport and health service is an investment in their personal health. The corporate sector also has fantastic training in the project management space. NGOs often draw passionate individuals and operate on limited budgets. Linking corporate training to partner NGOs would be a big step towards making the NGO sector faster.
For me, going beyond sport means finding ways we can use sport to address our big social challenges.
2016 LEADERSHIP IN SPORT AWARD, SUPPORTED BY MISCHON DE REYA: PERES CENTER FOR PEACE (ISRAEL)
Tamar Hay-Sagiv, Director – Peace Education Department
Following 16 years of working in the peace education through the sport realm, the Peres Center knows first hand the power of sport to change mindsets and build bridges. Being a part of the Beyond Sport family is important to us, as we create a network and community of organizations with shared goals. By sharing best practices and supporting one another, together we can advance prosperity in our region and around the world through the international language of sport.
Since being shortlisted for the "Best Project for Peace and Reconciliation" award in 2009, shortlisted for the "Sport for Conflict Resolution" award in 2015, and winning in 2016, the Peres Center has continued to lead the way in peace education through sport programs in Israel and our region, reaching around 950 Arab and Jewish, Israeli and Palestinian boys and girls annually. This year we led a joint delegation of Israelis and Palestinians to the FIFA Foundation festival in Moscow, Russia, during the World Cup. We were the only delegation to include either Israelis or Palestinians, and our joint presence sent an important message of peace and shared-living. In addition, the Peres Center's sports programs received significant international recognition when the Duke of Cambridge met with participants from the program on the soccer pitch in June 2018.
We strongly believe in the ability of business to be engaged with social responsibility and to advance positive change. Entrepreneurs, small and medium businesses, multinational corporations and start-ups are uniquely positioned to influence society for the better – from mentoring, to promising diversity and sustainability in their work, to financial support of impactful initiatives. Among the Peres Center's diverse programs are several that engage business professionals, both those already established as well as those at the start of their careers. Going beyond sport means utilizing sport as a tool to empower people to become positive agents of change.
2017 SPORT FOR QUALITY EDUCATION & EMPLOYMENT: ALIVE & KICKING (GHANA, ZAMBIA, KENYA)
Ben Sadler, CEO
We manufacture and sell sports balls to create fairly paid, ethical employment in Africa. Since winning the award last year, we have been able to grow our brand, widen our network and support our sub-Saharan centres to strengthen their sustainability. The support has allowed us to diversify our income streams and increase the sales of our locally made sports balls, allowing us to increase the reach of our health programmes and the number of balls we can donate. This year, we have already reached over 135,000 young people through ball donations and have two full time country programmes that focus on malaria and HIV education. Beyond Sport has been key in helping us reach this point.
Through our education programmes we train up teachers and sports coaches to deliver to young people. Businesses have huge potential to make a positive social impact across the globe. It is important they work with their own staff to identify how best they can support and add value in the sector. That way they can partner with organisations that take full advantage of their skills, expertise and resources in order to maximise impact. As part of this, businesses should build their own social strategies so they are able to focus their work, measure their impact and ensure their input is sustainable. Going beyond sport means giving everyone access to the physical, social and mental benefits of sport.
These are just a few of the amazing organizations who are leading the charge around the world to address social issues. Since 2009, Beyond Sport has received 2800+ entries across 150+ countries from nearly 2700 organizations. Congratulations to all our shortlisters and winners from the last decade and to come! We’re honored to have you as partners.
On September 12, we’ll hold our 2018 Beyond Sport Global Awards at the stunning One World Observatory in New York City. Join us to hear directly from more organizations who are using sport to drive social change in communities across the globe. We’ll be awarding over $350,000 to the most innovative projects using sports to address the UN SDGs, so don’t miss your chance to see who wins this year’s awards! Make sure to secure your spot today!