In It to Win It: Sports and the Climate Crisis

by Erin Silver, Pui Yan Fong (Illustrator)

Overview

A stats and sports-packed book about how organizations, players and fans around the world are tackling the climate crisis.

Playing and watching sports can have a big impact on the environment. From skiing and sailing to baseball and basketball—sports are contributing to the climate crisis. Thankfully, sports organizations, athletes and fans around the world are stepping up and playing a role in raising awareness, taking action and changing the rules of the game to help the planet.

From innovative stadium design and zero-waste sporting events to recycling tennis balls and getting to practices and games using sustainable transportation, athletes and fans are taking action to ensure everyone can enjoy their favorite games for years to come. Whether you’re a future professional athlete or a sports fan watching from the sidelines, we can all help play for the planet!

The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781459837263
Publisher:	Orca Book Publishers
Publication date:	05/14/2024
Series:	Orca Think , #15
Pages:	96
Sales rank:	424,529
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.44(d)
Lexile:	1110L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Erin Silver is an award-winning children’s author. Her books include Just Watch Me (Crystal Kite Award nominee), What Kids Did: Stories of Kindness and Invention in the Time of COVID-19 (Hackmatack Award nominee), Proud to Play: Canadian LGBTQ+ Athletes Who Made History, Rush Hour: Navigating Our Global Traffic Jam (Blueberry Award winner), Sitting Shiva (OLA Best Bets, Vine Award finalist, TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award finalist) and Good Food, Bad Waste: Let’s Eat for the Planet (2024 American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Books finalist). Erin was chosen to tour during Canadian Children’s Book Week in 2023 and is a sought-after speaker at schools, libraries and conferences. She has an MFA in creative nonfiction and a postgraduate journalism degree. Erin lives in Toronto.

Pui Yan Fong is a Toronto-based illustrator. Originally from Hong Kong, she grew up in Toronto and studied illustration at Ringling College of Art and Design. She spends most of the day on her laptop, working on illustrations, reading or gaming. She is also a huge sports fan.

Editorial Reviews

An inspiring addition to the Orca Think series by an award-winning freelance and children’s author. This is an original exploration into the multi-billion dollar sporting industry and the impact that sport has on climate change and sustainable living…Highly recommended.”

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

Author Erin Silver has fit an amazing amount of information into this book. In addition to defining issues around the climate crisis, she illustrates many of the solutions that teams, stadiums, and various sports leagues are engaging in to address the problem...Covering just about every imaginable sport, this book is a goldmine for anyone interested in projects about climate change.”

BC Books for Schools

An interesting and informative twist on the issue of climate change…The ideas presented are innovative and hopeful, and often feature kid activists.”

Booklist

12/06/2024

Gr 4–7—In this wide-ranging overview, Silver describes how sports contribute to the global climate crisis. For example, as teams and fans travel, harmful carbon dioxide emissions are added to the atmosphere. Large and small sports venues create waste; and even clothes and equipment can have a negative impact. Meanwhile, pollution and rising temperatures create health issues for athletes and threaten the future of winter sports. This fast-moving, fact-filled account is supplemented by cartoon illustrations and color photos, maps, graphs, and text boxes. There are interviews with athletes turned activists, innovative ideas, and tips on how to recognize signs of heat exhaustion and heatstroke. Stadiums are adding solar panels, eliminating single-use plastics, and using sheep to trim their grass. Two teen brothers started Balls4Eyeballs, which recycles tennis balls and funds research into eye disease. Silver's tone is upbeat throughout, urging young athletes be part of the "winning team" by making small but impactful changes such as donating used equipment and uniforms. The book concludes with a glossary and additional resources. VERDICT Primarily for browsers; but offers plentiful food for thought on this critical topic.—Marilyn Taniguchi

School Library Journal