Jessica Süßenbach wants to bring more environmental protection into sport

Jessica Süßbach is convinced that "most people view sports positively." That's why she thinks that sporting events are a wonderful opportunity to raise practical questions of sustainability in a casual way. “For example, by not offering disposable cups at competitions, but instead working with a deposit system. Because that reduces waste,” explains the Professor for Sport Pedagogy and Sport Science at Leuphana University of Lüneburg. She is now contributing her expertise in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in sport to the “Advisory Council for Sport and the Environment”. The advisory council supports the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Protection, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN) in its work.

Sports and the environment – not many people put these areas together. For the sports scientist, the connection is obvious: since 2023, she has been conducting research under the title “CIRCULAR EURO 2024” on the communication and dissemination of practical sustainability issues at the 2024 Men's European Football Championship. “We were responsible for training volunteers and special green volunteers in advance and also developed the educational materials for this,” says Jessica Süßenbach, adding: “The dialogue with the local organizers and UEFA as the umbrella organization was part of a complex and not always uncontroversial process on the way to make a major sporting event as sustainable as possible.” The goal behind this was for volunteers not only to pass on their knowledge of sustainability issues to fans, but also to ensure that it was implemented during EURO 2024. “The plan was for them to pass on their knowledge to their local clubs after the championship,” says the researcher, emphasizing the multiplier effect.

Afterwards, she conducted a scientific evaluation of the project, which also involved the Öko-Institut Freiburg and the agency brinkertlück Creatives. It was advertised and financed by the Federal Ministry for the Environment. “The project once again highlighted the diverse potential of sport for ESD – and the ministry has consequently taken the educational perspective for sustainable sport into account in the new appointment of the ‘Sport and Environment’ advisory board,” says Jessica Süßenbach, referring to her own appointment as member of the advisory board. She emphasizes: "We have extensive knowledge about how to protect our environment. However, this knowledge must also be communicated and implemented as practically as possible."

The advisory board is not composed exclusively of scientists. “I work on the advisory board with stakeholders from various industries to advise policymakers on a joint position,” explains Jessica Süßenbach. These include, for example, the sustainability manager of a sporting goods manufacturer, representatives from the Federal Association of the German Sporting Goods Industry, sports organizations, and the German Association of Cities. This ensures that a variety of perspectives are taken into account in the advisory board's discussions and assessments.

At its constituent meeting in November 2025, the advisory board members discussed and adopted their work program in the presence of Federal Environment Minister Carsten Schneider. “We will continue to develop the position paper ‘Sustainable Sport 2030. Responsibility for Nature, the Environment, and Society,’ which was developed by the advisory board during the previous legislative period,” explains Jessica Süßenbach. In the future, the members will meet twice a year with the entire Advisory Council. “And in between, there will be meetings with the working groups,” adds Jessica Süßenbach, who will remain on the Advisory Council until the end of the current legislative period in 2029.

She is looking forward to the collaboration, which will extend beyond the advisory board: “At the very first meeting, I was able to identify thematic overlaps (e.g., full-day schooling and diversity) with new stakeholders, which we will also develop outside of the advisory board,” says the researcher, who can integrate such contacts into her academic work at Leuphana.