Not too long before her World Cup Debut, our Team player Diane Caldwell took part in the Sky Sports’ Future of Football project. This is a mini docuseries that explores the initiatives from individuals and clubs in the UK who are playing an active role in speeding up the green shift through the power of football.
Diane plays for Reading FC, a club in the women’s WSL who have gotten notoriety for visually bridging the gap between climate and football thanks to using the Climate Stripes on their home kit as of the start of the 2022 season.
The climate stripes are a simple, yet profound way to show the progressive heating of our planet via vertical colored bars colored from blue to red. Reading FC has formed a relationship with the University of Reading, where climate Scientist and professor, Ed Hawkins, created the “Climate Stripes” in 2018. On their home kits, Reading FC Men and Women’s teams have “bar-coded Stripes on their sleeve to remind people of the pressing issue of global warming.
Sitting down with TV presenter and fellow environmentalist, David Garrido, Diane explains what she does as an individual to make a difference, as well as the reasoning behind her joining We Play Green
“I try to reduce, reuse, recycle, the three basic Rs. I’m starting to shift to a more plant-based diet now, too, and it’s just little things like trying to not use single-use plastics and, when I need a taxi, I try to use an e-car company, an electric-car company.
“When you cement all those up together, then they’ll have a meaningful impact, and it’s just getting that message through to everyone, that no matter how small you start, you can play your part and really reduce your carbon footprint.
“Football reflects society in many ways, and we need to talk about it more, we need to increase the engagement, we need to increase the awareness and bridge that gap in knowledge and use our platforms to try and create that awareness.”
We are proud to have Diane represent a dedicated footballer both on and off the pitch!
If you want to hear more about what Diane thinks about the power of football as well as other great initiatives going on in the UK, check out the series on,
YouTube Or the Sky Sports Website
