Czechia’s Sara Kouskova is of four Ladies European Tour (LET) players who is an EcoAthlete and championing sustainability in sports.
October is the inaugural Green Sports Month which is being by supported by EcoAthletes and is rallying sports fans to take positive climate action.
Kouskova spoke to the LET about her goals for this month.
Why is sustainability important to you?
I think about sustainability in a very much wider perspective. To me it’s not only a term that is tied to climate action but to my whole life in general. I see it as thinking in consequences and having knowledge about the natural world and ourselves within it, so it then comes very naturally to me that I care about the environment and the social structure we live in. In the end, it all comes down to CARE as the pillar for everything else.
I am trying to be mindful about the food I eat, the things I buy, the trash I create and cut it down to minimum; I reuse, upcycle, donate or recycle in the end. I use public transport – I love trains. Obviously as a professional athlete I fly a lot, but in order to do my job and use my voice, I need to get to further places sometimes. When I do, I am trying to be as efficient as possible. I was able to offset my travels thanks to GEO foundation and their projects in my whole 2024 season. I love working with people and brands who care about the sustainable approach like I do. I like supporting projects that really help and show others how to get involved too. One of my favourite parts of travelling is getting to know the local communities, their way of living and their habitats, and then sharing the stories and innovative ideas they have.
What will you be doing during Green Sports Month?
With my fellow LET players and friends who are also part of the EcoAthletes community, we will be mostly trying to share our stories and views on the matter and hopefully inspire others to have a think. On Thursdays during the whole month of October, we all be wearing a green shirt on the course to promote more awareness even visually, and we prepare more content at the tournaments during October especially the Hero Women’s Indian Open.
How can athletes/fans get involved?
Join us! Wear green on Thursdays to support the talk and perhaps share what you think with your friends and families. Tap into your life where you can find your mindful decisions and have fun with it. I know that sustainable actions many times come with access. For instance, even though I bring my own bottle wherever I can, there are still tournaments where there is no other option to drink on the course than to grab a plastic bottle. That’s usually my opportunity to speak up to the promoting team and perhaps suggest a larger tank option to cut the waste and change the access pattern.
What is your goal with sustainability?
My goal is to help people understand how vital, yet amazing sustainability is. That it comes with responsibilities like many things in life but it’s incredible what it offers you back and that our cultures did a lot of the things and practices before that today would be considered super ecological, but it was normal then. For example, using the same shopping bag all the time when going for groceries or knowing how to preserve food to avoid food waste. As I said above, it is not rocket science in real life, it’s the small mindful actions that add up to the whole picture of life decisions and move us forward.
How do you champion sustainability while playing on the LET?
I am trying to speak up about it, join projects, share my views at panels, write reviews to tournaments and provide feedback from a sustainable point of view. Learning about the natural cycles and practices happening on the golf courses and just staying curious in general. I travel with my own cup for coffee, a water bottle and some cutlery. I am staying at Airbnb’s a lot with my friends, sharing cars, opting out from cleaning every day when in a hotel. I plan my travels efficiently, pick up trash on the course… I am fortunate to have partners on my side who participate in carbon positive activities, and I love to join them in person when I can, like planting trees with one of my sponsors. You cannot be perfect and that’s not the goal, but I am trying to help put a hand in whenever I can.
Find out more about EcoAthletes and Green Sports Month here.
Keep up with all the action on our socials – @LETgolf on Instagram and X and Ladies European Tour on Facebook and YouTube.
