European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) of the European Commission recently published the results of the 2023 call of the Sport Pilot Projects and Preparatory Actions (PPPA). We are happy to announce EUSA's project proposal is one of the selected ones!

Out of 142 proposals submitted, EACEA awarded 11 grants for the implementations of Pilot Projects and Preparatory Actions in the field of Sport. The projects were selected following two open calls for proposals: the Pilot Projects People and Planet – a new approach on sustainability through sport in Europe and Emergency-Youth – emergency sport actions for youth. Pilot projects and preparatory actions are experimental initiatives designed to test the feasibility of new actions and prepare new programmes, and are a welcome addition to the Erasmus+ funding opportunities.

EUSA Institute as the applicant, together with projec partners Holztechnikum Kuchl (AUT), University of Ljubljana (SLO), InnovationsManufaktur (GER), NYSA Sweden (SWE) and Latvian University Sports Federation (LAT) will in the next 18 months focus on the project Fit For Green (Fit4Green).

With the general objective of raising environmental awareness with the help of sport and physical activity, the Fit4Green project brings together university sports organisations’ aspirations for more sustainable sport events and educational institutions’ need to fight unsustainable consumption practices at campuses. Led by EUSA Institute, a balanced partnership of six organisations, in terms geographical coverage, transnational and local experience and expertise from sports, education and sustainability, implements the 18-month project. Specifically, Fit4Green engages young people to actively participate in sustainable measures using sport events by the planning and execution of “green campus sport events” and preceding campaigns and activations in three countries (Austria, Latvia, and Slovenia). The green campus sport event is meant to be a not-for-profit, non-competitive, youth-led sport event that is conducted in an environmentally responsible manner with the aim of promoting participation in physical activity and sports. The innovative approach to increase the environmental awareness and sustainability competence of young people through their active involvement in the planning and execution will be summarised in a Green Campus Sport Event Concept Catalogue with environmentally sustainable solutions for grassroots sport events. Thanks to people-centred project management methodology focusing on target groups as well as the co-creation and "Learning by Doing" methods in the implementation, the project is expected to change behaviours towards healthy- and eco-conscious lifestyles and serve as a good practice example for environmental transformation through sport for campuses, educational institutions, and youth and sport organisations in European and non-EU countries and around the world.

FitGreen is Co-Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

More information about the 2023 PPPA calls and results: https://www.eacea.ec.europa.eu/news-events/news/results-sport-pilot-projects-and-preparatory-actions-selection-are-out-2024-04-19_en