The visit to the community football and water festival – which formed part of the Club’s global Trophy Tour – took place at Shanghai Pudong Special School in partnership with Global Water Technology Partner, Xylem, and Cityzens Giving charity partner Special Olympics East Asia.
Held on 22 March every year since 1993, World Water Day celebrates water and raises awareness of the 2 billion people living without access to safe water.
In Shanghai, Young Leaders from the Xylem Water Heroes Academy network are providing water sustainability education for all, with a focus on children with intellectual disabilities.
The celebrations in Shanghai were part of wider World Water Day celebrations taking place at ten Water Heroes Academy projects across the world. Young Leaders in São Paulo, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, New York City, Cape Town, Cape Coast, Mumbai, Kuala Lumpur, Melbourne and Shanghai developed and led football and water education activities, collectively engaging over 2,000 young people in a coordinated global week of action.
Around 150 people attended the event in Shanghai, including Young Leaders, programme participants and senior representatives from City Football Group, Xylem and Special Olympics.
Activities included sessions from the football and water curriculum, a unified football match – bringing people with and without intellectual disabilities together – and an interactive art and water workshop.
Speaking about the programme, Ms. Cherry Ye, Director of Marketing and Development of Special Olympics East Asia said, “Led by Young Leaders, this programme innovatively integrates football and water, teaching children concepts of water conservation and clean water through football skills.
“The programme has been running for nearly two years, and thousands of children have gained happiness and knowledge from participating.”
Ms. Shuping Lu, CEO of Xylem China added, “I hope that this project will continue to grow in the future, from school to home, from home to community, through the organic combination of football and water to promote the creation of a more inclusive society!”
Launched in March 2021, Xylem Water Heroes Academy is a unique collaboration between Xylem and Cityzens Giving, empowering young leaders in 10 cities around the world to solve local water challenges using the power of football.
Learn about Xylem’s clean water call for change on waterheroes.com.
