ThinkSport’s Innovation Booster programme continues to tackle key challenges in the sports industry, with a particular focus on three impactful themes: The future of Volunteering in Sports Events, Youth Sports Safety, and Web3 in Sports. Each theme brings unique opportunities for engagement and collaboration, from volunteer recruitment strategies to safeguarding youth athletes and exploring digital transformation. Through targeted actions, these Boosters aim to create a lasting impact. We are pleased to provide you with an update on these themes and encourage you to join us in the Volunteering Booster.
Innovation Booster Future of Volunteering in Sport Event
ThinkSport, Swiss Volunteers, and Swiss Olympic invite anyone passionate about sports, community building, or volunteer management to join the “Future of Volunteering in Sport Events” Challenge on 12 and 19 November in Bern.
Volunteering is an indispensable component of Swiss sports events, forming the foundation that sustains a wide range of programs, from local gatherings to major international competitions. With a long-standing tradition of volunteerism, approximately one in five Swiss adults regularly contributes time, donations, and personal networks to support sports events. Volunteers are essential to the functioning of over 19,000 sports organisations, ensuring the smooth execution of large-scale and local events. Beyond logistics, volunteering fosters a sense of community spirit and personal development.
However, recent studies have highlighted a noticeable decline in volunteer engagement at sports events, posing a challenge to the sustainability of this tradition.
The focus of the next session is: How can we attract and retain volunteers of all ages for sports events, by creating memorable volunteering experiences and by fostering a strong sense of community?
We will explore the unique needs of both next-gen and golden-ager volunteers, aiming to create fulfilling experiences for all age groups at sports events. By considering intergenerational dynamics, we wish to discover new approaches to enhance volunteer engagement and build lasting community connections within sports events.
To register, click here: https://register.event-works.com/thinksport/Booster_Sport/e/lo/g/94560/k/
Innovation Booster Youth Sport Safety
An inspiring ideation session took place on 12.09 as part of the Innovation Booster Sport & Physical Activity initiative powered by Innosuisse, led by the Terre des hommes Foundation on the critical theme of Youth Sports Safety.
We gathered at Gotham Coworking Lausanne Gare with around 20 dedicated participants from various backgrounds to address key questions such as:
– How can we meaningfully engage young athletes to keep them safe in sports?
– What levels of engagement empower youth to become agents of change?
– How do we move from policy to action in engaging young athletes?
– How can governing bodies (sport federations) better protect children and young athletes?
A pre-test session on 07.10.24 defined which idea to test and how, and the selected ones were the creation of a “Child Advisory Board” and a “Label for Children and Youth safety in sport clubs”. More info to come on the advancement in the following months!
Booster on Web3 launch in 2023 is coming to an end but the team is continuing the Work on Web3 in Sports
The Web3 Innovation Booster may be concluding, but the journey is just beginning! This initiative has laid strong foundations by producing a white paper and developing a demo in partnership with Swiss Running, showcasing Web3’s potential in sports.
Now, it’s time for sports organisations and enthusiasts to build on this momentum. Join Thomas Wüthrich and others in advancing this movement and exploring new applications for Web3 technology in sports. This is just the start—let’s deliver a preferred future together! Don’t hesitate to contact Thomas at twuethrich@biznet.ch !