Barça Legends played a fund raising game in Curitiba, Brazil last November with the help of the Instituto de Pesquisa Pelé Pequeno Príncipe to raise money for research into paediatric illnesses. Part of the initiative has involved planting 10 trees in the area of Pequeno Príncipe Norte in Curitiba as part of a project to offset carbon emissions and to consolidate the Club's role as a leader in climate issues and sustainable practices in sport. 

The Instituto de Pesquisa Pelé Pequeno Príncipe was created to help bring down infant and child mortality via research into illness and disease which affect the people in the area, and with the aim of finding new, more economical methods of diagnosis and more positive forms of treatment for these illnesses. For their part the Barça Foundation, whose mission is to improve the quality of life of vulnerable youngsters, donated their share of the proceeds from the game to the Institute to contribute to the reduction of infant and child mortality in Brazil. 

Edmílson and Adriano Correia, present

At the planting of the trees, Barça Legends players Adriano and José Edmilson were present as well Ricardinho from the Pelé Pequeno Príncipe Legends, their coach Carlinhos Neves, Flávia Kurtz Arantes do Nascimiento, daughter of Pelé, climatologist Carlos Nobres and Roberto Klabin, businessman and Brazilian ecologist. 

Emissions 

To measure the carbon footprint caused by an international football match, CO₂ emissions caused by air travel, energy consumption, water treatment and the burning of fossil fuels have to be calculated. In the case of the Barça Legends game, using the methodology based on the GHG protocol, the main standard used internationally to measure the emission of greenhouse gases. The measurements and evaluation were carried out by a team from the Federal Technical University of Paraná (UTFPR). 

Aside from the offsetting of carbon emissions, the initiative marks a step in the adoption of environmental and social forms of government (ESG).  Pequeno Príncipe did not only set up an historic game of football but also a model of how sporting events should be held in line with sustainable practices which impact positively on the environment, society and local communities. 

Força Barça