Tom Campbell: Climate change already having effect on community sport. Clubs can do their part

Since the beginning of AFL Players for Climate Action late last year, former player and co-founder Jasper Pittard and I have been fortunate enough to engage with AFL mens and womens players from all walks of life about what concerns them the most when it comes to climate change.

Some are worried about the legacy they are leaving for their kids. Some have a connection to country and care deeply about protecting the land. Some are fed up with the lack of action from successive governments. And most are concerned about extreme weather events happening right now, calling for greater urgency and real action so we can reduce the impacts of climate change.

Central to our discussions, we found players share a deep concern for the grassroots of our game.

The future of local clubs and communities weighs heavily on the minds of some of the sport's most prominent players.

Climate-fuelled events like bushfire, extreme heat, drought and floods have already struck at the heart of our game, affecting grassroots local and regional clubs and our communities.

AFL Players for Climate Action started in the Queensland hub in the COVID-affected 2020 season, borne out of conversations that were happening in locker rooms around the AFLM and AFLW during the Black Summer bushfires of 2019 and 2020.

We decided the stories, the connections and the memories our players have of their local club could help to safeguard the future.

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Some clubs are already making leaps towards climate action, and, in turn, protecting the future of community football (as well as saving big bucks on their energy bills). These are the stories we want to share. And that's how the idea for Our Local was born.

In the making of Our Local we visited three local footy clubs, reconnecting past and present AFL players with their junior clubs in Melbourne, in Hamilton in regional Victoria, and in Adelaide in South Australia.

The documentary shows how installing solar panels and batteries can protect the environment by reducing carbon emissions, and also be good for footy club funds. Saving thousands of dollars on electricity bills that can be reinvested back into clubs and the future of the game.

This is just the start of what we hope will be a much bigger initiative, driven by AFL players and their clubs. Something that creates real change by demonstrating what can be achieved when we work together.

We know we need urgent action, and AFL Players for Climate Action is really proud to be part of a movement of players and clubs who want to play their part. This is good for footy, good for our communities and good for the climate. Good for Our Local.