Team Forca Goa, now in New York, USA to participate in the Global Goals World Cup Finals, have
won the best action towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Team Forca Goa
had left for The Big Apple with a team headed by team manager Ishita Godinho
along with players Simone Lalwani, Avia Vas, Yadnya Parwar, Valenie Fernandes,
Sneha Fernandes and Joyvi Fernandes.
This very young squad that came together after the Mumbai leg of
the event are part of the FC Goa women’s team, which is the sister concern of
Forca Goa Foundation. There was no formal selection process as Ishita Godinho
revealed but it was a case of young Goan women footballers who were passionate
about the game but were also very interested in ensuring the sustainable goals
were achieved.
The Forca Goa Foundation were crowned winners of the India leg
of the tournament in Mumbai and got the opportunity to represent India in the
finals. The Global Goals World Cup is an all-women’s competition held at the
backdrop of the UN General Assembly week in New York City.
The Global Goals World Cup events leverage the power of football
to drive awareness about the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and
empower young girls and women around the world to take action. The competition
is not just about scoring goals in the game but also about how the SDGs are
being actioned by the teams and their sponsors – reflecting the many ways
everyone can play for a better world. Ishita said, “The girls will play in the
5 versus 5 tournament but the girls are aware that they are a part of this for
more than just a football tournament. The goals and ambitions are much bigger.
They are aware that they are in New York and are ambassadors and inspiration
for little girls everywhere. The point is, everyone can do their little bit to
help achieve the goals.”
The competition is pretty intense and many teams have players
with considerable experience and focus on accomplishing the sustainable
development goals. Ishita said there were several players with considerable
experience in the sport. They however were not cowed down by the competition
but were confident and proud of the work they were doing in Goa and hopefully
soon in the rest of the country. There are sixteen teams in the tournament and
the first team Forca Goa Foundation faced a team from Saudi Arabia and lost.
The team from KSA were focussed on the sustainable goal of life on land that
does a lot of work on waste management and plastic management.
The Forca Goa Foundation is focussed on advocating three
Sustainable Development Goals – good health and well-being (SDG 3), gender
equality (SDG 5) and responsible consumption and production (SDG 12). Through
this global tournament, the Foundation is raising awareness about these
Sustainable Development Goals and hopes to gain support for its projects across
the state.
The Foundation is championing good health by organising football
for thousands of children across the state who also participate in workshops on
nutrition and mental health. The Foundation takes gender imbalance in the sport
seriously and are taking steps through football festivals, women coaches who
inspire young footballers and an exclusive U12 girls league. The Foundation
began its journey of focusing on responsible consumption by becoming the first
organisation in the country to take the pledge to source Fairtrade Footballs.
Through the Fairtrade certified footballs, the team, coaches and children are
increasingly aware of the journey of the products that they consume.
To
help them reach New York, Jump Networks Limited (JUMPNET), come on board as the
principal sponsor for the team. As a company that aligns with the Foundation’s
mission and community-based approach JUMPNET made it possible for the girls
from Goa to experience this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and represent the
country.
