WBSC and Alibaba Cloud Team Up for Sustainability
The upcoming WBSC Youth Baseball5 World Cup, scheduled to be held in Türkiye from October 10th to 15th, is set to make history as the first event to incorporate Alibaba Cloud's groundbreaking sustainability initiatives.
The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), the international governing body overseeing baseball and softball, has officially selected Alibaba Cloud, the digital technology and intelligence arm of Alibaba Group, as its exclusive sustainability partner for Baseball5.
Under this strategic collaboration, both entities will join forces to create customised sustainable products, services, and solutions with the ultimate goal of making WBSC events more environmentally conscious.
This partnership aligns seamlessly with the WBSC's ongoing commitment to achieve its sustainability objectives, a core pillar of the Confederation's Strategic Plan 2022-2028, which envisions leveraging baseball/softball to drive sustainability and social progress.
The WBSC Youth Baseball5 World Cup, set to unfold in Türkiye from October 10th to 15th, will be at the forefront of implementing Alibaba Cloud's groundbreaking sustainability endeavours.
These initiatives will encompass the measurement of the carbon footprint originating from various sources, including venue operations, temporary infrastructure materials, lodging and catering services, participants' air travel, local transportation, as well as the logistics of sports equipment and materials.
The computation of this carbon footprint, powered by Alibaba Cloud's AI-driven sustainability solution known as Energy Expert, will yield invaluable insights to optimise the operations of WBSC events, commencing with the WBSC Youth Baseball5 World Cup. Possible actions include an increased reliance on various forms of renewable energy and a reduction in energy consumption during venue construction and event preparation phases.
Marco Ienna, Chief Operating Officer of WBSC, expressed, "The WBSC, as the global governing body for baseball and softball, takes pride in its evolution towards a more sustainable future for our events and organisation. We are delighted to partner with an innovative and dynamic company such as Alibaba Cloud to advance our sustainability goals, ensuring that our ever-expanding global fan base continues to savour our beloved sport across the world."
Selina Yuan, President of International Business at Alibaba Cloud Intelligence Group, remarked, "We are excited to collaborate with WBSC, applying our cloud-based, AI-driven sustainability solutions to their sporting events. As sustainability gains increasing importance within the global sports industry, we are dedicated to providing sports organisations like WBSC with timely data, actionable insights, and optimisation recommendations. Together, we can create significant and positive impacts on the worldwide sports community and nurture a more sustainable future for sports."
In 2021, WBSC joined the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), answering the call for sports organisations to play a role in combating climate change. Since then, the Confederation has been actively working to minimise the carbon footprint of its operations and events, advocating sustainable and responsible consumption, and championing climate action within the sports community.
Alibaba Cloud's Energy Expert platform has previously been employed to enhance the sustainability of major global events, including the Hangzhou Asian Games and the Olympic Esports Week in Singapore. Approximately 3,000 organisations worldwide have harnessed this platform to measure and mitigate their business activities' carbon footprint, helping them meet their sustainability targets.
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Source: WBSC
