Ipswich makes the switch

Team scores with ‘energy pledges’

Ipswich Town may not have made it up to the premier league, but they have given themselves the title of first carbon neutral football club.

The team launched Save Your Energy for the Blues last October to encourage fans to make enough energy pledges at home to ‘offset’ the 3,200 tonnes of carbon dioxide the club emits over the course of a season. Offering signed shirts and energy-efficient goods as prizes, and the ultimate goal of a five-figure donation to the manager’s transfer budget from sponsor E.ON if they hit their target, the club persuaded 3,000 people to make nearly 14,000 pledges.

Some simple actions like installing low-energy bulbs, turning electrical equipment off standby and not overfilling the kettle. Others took on the challenge by travelling to matches on public transport. The project finally reached its target with one fan’s bold decision to change his wheels and buy a hybrid car. Now all they have to do is keep honouring those pledges…

The Blues, too, did their bit by switching to a green energy tariff, fitting low-energy lightbulbs around the stadium and emptying and turning off fridges between fixtures. Matthew Ling of Ipswich Borough Council described the scheme as “a fun and innovative way of engaging people with a difficult and complex area”. Climate change and environment minister Ian Pearson added his own commentary: “The fight against climate change isn’t a game of two halves. We all need to take action now, not sit back and wait for the right moment to strike.” - Hannah Bullock

24 June 2007

Hannah Bullock