Green Goals 2026 Conference 

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​Manchester Conference Centre.  2nd July 2026

Sustainability, Healthier Lives and the Future of Sport and Physical Activity.

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Following the success of the 2025 event, the Green Goals Conference 2026 returns with a sharper and more urgent focus.

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This is not simply a conversation about environmental targets. It is a conversation about the kind of places we create, the lives communities are able to lead, and the role sport and physical activity can play in building a healthier future.

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Climate change is already affecting the sector. Extreme weather is disrupting participation and events. Rising energy costs are placing pressure on facilities and organisations. Expectations are growing around carbon reduction, environmental responsibility and sustainable delivery. At the same time, there is a major opportunity for the sport, leisure and physical activity sector to lead with greater purpose — helping to create healthier, more active and more resilient communities.

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The environments people live, work and play in have a direct influence on health and wellbeing. Access to green space, welcoming leisure facilities, active travel routes, safe public spaces and thoughtfully designed communities can all help make physical activity easier, more visible and more achievable. That is why sustainability matters so deeply to this sector. This is not only about protecting the climate. It is about improving lives.

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As organisations across sport and physical activity respond to growing environmental expectations, including the direction set by Sport England’s Every Move strategy, Green Goals 2026 will focus on how sustainability ambition can translate into real outcomes for communities — healthier places, stronger wellbeing, lower inactivity and a better future for the nation.

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Bringing together leaders from sport, leisure, health, local government, planning, the environment and the private sector, the conference will explore how sustainability is being embedded across the industry — from facilities, design and infrastructure to community engagement, active environments and place-based change.

Most importantly, the day will move beyond jargon and focus on what meaningful action looks like in practice.

How do we create spaces that make healthier choices easier?

How do we ensure environmental ambition leads to stronger communities?
How do we protect the places where people move, play and connect?
How do we turn strategy into action that people can see and feel?

The answers will require leadership, collaboration and a shared commitment to change.

The Green Goals Conference 2026 is where those conversations come together — where sustainability meets health, where environmental ambition meets community impact, and where the sector can move from intention to action.

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If we are serious about protecting the climate, improving public health and creating places that support active, healthy lives, this is a conversation we must have together.

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Join the leaders shaping a greener, healthier future for sport and physical activity.

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