Sports for Nature ®

A Second Option for going to Costa Rica!

2012-01-10T07:56:00.000-08:00

Sports for Nature’s weekly trips to The Westin Resort & Spa Playa Conchal continue, but we now offer an additional option to experience the "Pura Vida" lifestyle of Costa Rica at a lower cost!

All of us at Sports for Nature have received numerous requests from sports enthusiasts asking us to also provide a budget friendly option to play tennis, golf, soccer, do yoga or sightsee in Costa Rica.

In response, we've created a truly authentic Costa Rican experience with your budget in mind. We're now offering weekly trips at our beautiful Pura Vida House where you will have the chance to practice your favorite activity in the mornings and go to the beach or sightsee in the afternoons. Enjoy traditional Costa Rican dishes made to perfection by local cooks during your stay in our spacious country house located just 10 minutes from some of the Pacific Ocean's most beautiful beaches.

Weekly trips run from Tuesday to Sunday (6 days/5 nights) from now until the end of May.

Cost:
Adults - $1,200 (double occupancy)
Kids - $800 (13 years and younger)

Includes:
- Comfortable accommodations at Pura Vida House with private bathrooms
- Breakfast and dinner while at Pura Vida House -- Costa Rican style!
- Tennis lessons, soccer matches, yoga instruction, transportation to sightseeing tours
- All transportation while in Costa Rica (including Liberia International Airport pick-up and drop-off)
- Full-time local guide

Not included:
- Airfare to and from Costa Rica, golf greens and range fees, lunch, special trips outside the Province of Guanacaste (though we can help to arrange), beer/liquor/snacks available for an extra fee while at Pura Vida House, tours (canopy, horseback riding, volcanoes, surfing, kayak rental, etc.)

In case you are interested, please contact:
E-mail - CostaRica@SportsForNature.com.
Call - 571-244-7248.

Since we sent this e-mail out to our network we have received numerous requests for additional information, so I think this is going to be a great season at both Pura Vida House and The Westin Playa Conchal! Our team is looking forward to meeting lots of new people as well as exploring Costa Rica with them!

Kind regards, Jorge Morera

www.sportsfornature.com

Finding green giants in the least expected places

2012-01-02T15:01:00.000-08:00

Last week my family and I were on vacation in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. We were all taking a tour of local cattle ranches on ATV’s. At the end of the day one of the local operators’ kids approached me and asked if I was the one that worked on “something” related to nature and sports. I laughed and responded affirmatively and in return asked little Andrey (a cute 11 year old who was born literally on his dad’s ranch), what he thought about that.

He told me that he loved nature and that one day he wanted to help his neighbors recycle. He also mentioned to me in great detail how his local grocery store (named “Super Compro”) charged 20 colones (colones are Costa Rica’s currency); and 20colones is the equivalent of about 4 cents, every time that someone came to buy groceries and they did not bring their own cloth bag and had to use a plastic bag to carry items. I asked him what he thought of this and immediately he responded, “they should charge people a lot more than 20 colones!”.

Needless to say, I laughed and was surprised of Andrey’s response and how much he knew about green initiatives, and also how sure he was that he wanted to work one day in something related to the environment. I loved it! Our future generations wanting to take care of our planet! At the end of our conversation I bought Andrey and his sister an ice cream and said goodbye with a hug. I have to come to Guanacaste again in February for work, I sure hope to see Andrey again!

On my note next week, I want to share with everyone Sports for Nature’s new option for the budget friendly traveler to experience Costa Rica. We will now be running weekly trips to Guanacaste and having people stay at our offices there, a hacienda called Pura Vida House! More on that next week! Oh, and our weekly golf and tennis trips to The Westin Playa Conchal will continue as well!

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world.

Sports for Nature Trips = www.sportsfornature.com/trips

US Open Recycling of Tennis Ball Cans

2011-11-10T06:51:00.000-08:00

Article by Ken Belson, September 2, 2011, The New York Times

Tennis balls are the lifeblood of every match, and as ubiquitous as rackets, shoulder bags and sweatbands. But the cans they come in create a mountain of garbage that the United States Tennis Association is working hard to recycle during the United States Open.

Since 2008, the association has recycled nearly all of the estimated 20,000 tennis ball cans that are opened each tournament. The cans are collected by a recycler who separates the can, top and wrapper, which are plastic, and the aluminum rim.
The aluminum pull tops were considered too sharp to handle and were tossed out. But this year, the U.S.T.A. added separate receptacles for them so they could be properly recycled as well.

“Tennis balls and cans are one of the most essential pieces of the U.S. Open, so we wanted to make it a priority,” said Lauren Kittelstad, a senior manager who works on the U.S.T.A.’s green initiatives.

Recycling tennis ball cans might seem like a drop in the bucket compared with, say, the nearly 300,000 plastic drink bottles that were collected at last year’s Open, or the hundreds of tons of garbage produced over all.

But the tennis ball cans, in addition to being symbolic, are a challenge to recycle because they contain three types of plastics and an aluminum rim that must be pulled from the can.

Allen Hershkowitz, a senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council, who helped the U.S.T.A create its green initiative, said the association had “pioneered” the recycling of the tennis ball cans.

Achieving a nearly 100 percent recycle rate has been possible because relatively few people handle the tennis ball cans, according to Bina Indelicato, the U.S.T.A.’s environmental consultant. Before each match, umpires are given bags containing about 15 new cans with three balls to a can. On the court, they open the cans, take out the balls and put the cans back in the bag. After the match, the umpires return the bag to an umpire station, where the cans and tops are sorted into recycling bins. They are then collected by custodians and later hauled away by a recycler. The balls are reused at the National Tennis Center after the United States Open and are given to community programs. Some of the deflated balls are sent to schools and nursing homes, where they end up on the legs of chairs and walkers.

Jason Collins, the Global Business Director for sourcing at Wilson Racquet Sports, said that although it would be ideal to increase the percentage of recycled plastic in the cans, once they are made with more than 30 percent recycled plastic, they lose their pressure after they are shipped from the company’s factory in Thailand.
“You get leakage,” he said. “Think of it as microscopic holes. Virgin plastic is very clean. Recycled plastic has weaknesses. It’s like a slow leak in a tire.”
A slow leak in the can might not affect the balls immediately, but over time, they will lose their bounce.

The antidote, Collins said, is to switch to pressure less balls, which are not popular in the United States, or to switch to metal cans, which are twice the price of plastic cans. It has not helped that the price of rubber and wool, two key ingredients in tennis balls, has been on the rise, he said. “Because of the retail price of the balls, the common perception is that they can’t be that hard” to produce, Collins said. “But the cans are one of the most difficult products to make and recycle. The components can be recycled, but together, it’s difficult.”

Nature is powerful

2011-09-09T07:23:00.000-07:00

Here in the DC area it has been raining non-stop for the past four days. The remnants of Lee has been creating havoc in the DC Area, an area that is already overpopulated, congested by cars, and add to that torrential rains and it’s a sure recipe for disaster.

Yesterday our beltway was closed several hours creating some of the worst traffic we have seen in years (and that’s a lot to say considering traffic is bad here on a daily basis!). Due to the same storm, many local roads have been flooding, trees falling and local residents are facing a series of challenges.

In New York City, same situation, lots of rain for days, to the point where one of the major sporting events in the world was stopped for two days in a row - the United States Tennis Open. We all heard in the news how the top players were frustrated because tournament officials sent them to play in unsafe conditions, with courts still slippery. Then yesterday, after the match had already started, Andy Roddick found a pocket of water that was still leaking under the court surface. This stopped the match for a few hours until finally officials sent them to play in an even smaller outside court where Roddick beat the fifth seed of the tournament, David Ferrer in four tough sets.

Nature affects our lives and sports quite a bit. If it rains our behavior is entirely different than if it’s sunny outside. We wear different clothes, probably our mood changes as well. Same with cold and heat. Some people like cold better, some like it hot. Some like the mountains while some others like the beach. We depend on the environment so much, yet most of us don’t do much to take care of it. We still believe that the environment is an unlimited resource; and act as if resources such as water, forests, and biodiversity are limitless. Some people also believe that such resources have limits, but that it’s the responsibility of others to worry about taking care of them.

I sometimes ask my self if we have reached the tipping point or not. If we have already done so much damage to the environment and reversing is not an option anymore. If we are yet to see serious life-changing consequences of our harm to nature. I am always very optimistic and hope that we have not reached the tipping point, that we can still protect what remains of our environment and that we can coexist with nature for many centuries to come. I hope I am right.

I think that we all need to act “as if” we have passed the tipping point, and do everything we can in our daily lives to protect nature. And in our jobs, speak to the higher-ups in our company to implement company-wide policies to reduce, reuse, recycle. Every little bit helps.

Without nature we can’t live, so I say let’s take care of the environment so we can continue to enjoy our lives, our family, our friends, and every activity that we love to do.

Be a kid again, get outdoors and have fun!

2011-07-26T06:58:00.000-07:00

Remember when you were a kid and would go out to play with your friends for endless hours at a time? Time would fly, it would be sheer happiness without a worry in this world. And when you would get back home you would be so tired and pretty much be ready for a quick snack and go to sleep. And the next day, repeat! Well, why can’t we do that sometimes as an adult? What is stopping us? Some may say that life gets in the way, work, responsibilities, kids, etc. I say that’s all just excuses. Make some time to get outdoors and have some fun! With friends, or with your family, either way you will have a great time and it will serve as a cheap therapy session in case work has you stressed out.

When I was a kid I was blessed to live in an area where I could go play outside with my friends and not have to worry about any safety issues, cars, pollution, etc. It was a blast for many years!

Being in the forest, the desert, the mountains, the rivers, the ocean is more likely to invigorate your green passion and your innate sense of place than being stuck in the city. You might call them holidays, vacations, weekends, but in reality it is simply playtime. Just like when we were kids. The sheen on the water, the warmth of the rock, the smell of moss after rain, the taste of dirt. It connects us not only to our childhood, but also to our origins. And the longer we dwell there, the greater our sense of stewardship.

Make sure to bring people with you! You know you're going to have a fantastic time under the open sky, so why not share it. Once in a while, soften the hardcore approach a little--take your friends, family, work colleagues, or fellow students out there with you. Watch them swat a few mosquitoes, shake the sand from their wetsuit, or get a sunburned nose, all the while knowing that you are introducing someone anew to the blue sky joys that give you so much pleasure. Chances are, someone did the same for you once.

Something we can also do is support organizations that support green spaces. There are many green charities out there that support wild places, parks, lakes, beaches, and biodiversity in general. If your budget permits, donate to a worthy charity once in a while, or volunteer with them. Charities will always have volunteer opportunities available to fit everyone’s interests!

Also remember, when you play outdoors, minimize your negative impact. There is a tendency when playing outside the boundaries imposed by concrete, glass, and societal norms to think that we can just go for it. And while that's true when shooting through a pressure wave on a whitewater river or pushing yourself to the end of a 20-mile wilderness run, it doesn't mean we can just drop our other responsibilities. Don’t leave any trash behind, pick it up and take it with you back home.

And pack lightly if you can, less is sometimes more. More gear will mean more weight, more worries. If you pack lightly, you will probably move faster and be less tired, as well as minimize your impact on nature.

So remember, make some time in your life to go outdoors and have fun. Bring the inner kid in you out again and if you can, just for a few hours at a time several times per month, have fun in contact with nature without a care in the world! Work to LIVE, don’t live to work!

(Excerpts from Warren McLaren’s article How to Go Green: Outdoor Sports)

Sports for Nature = Greening sports

Sports News: Juan Carlos Ferrero is back and tennis’ schedule is kind of crazy

2011-07-19T06:41:00.001-07:00

(Excerpts from Jon Wertheim’s article: Juan Carlos Ferrero finds the magic in Stuttgart win)

Juan Carlos Ferrero, a former No. 1 player, and a Grand Slam champion has fallen deep in the rotation. His ranking has gone down quite a bit. At age 31, he battles constant injuries. Even when Rafael Nadal pulled out, his name wasn't even mentioned for the Spanish Davis Cup roster. But last week, he looked like the world-beater of years past. Playing in just his third event of 2011, he won the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, Germany, the 16th title of his career. It's not exactly winning the French Open. But one suspects that, in its way, it was comparably sweet. We wish Juan Carlos the best for the North American hard court season!

Now let’s move to tennis’ crazy schedule. The tennis calendar is a logic puzzle that no one has come close to solving. Why -- when all other sports ease into a season and allow time for plots to unfold -- tennis holds its first major two weeks into the year! Why does the last major conclude in early September, rendering the entire autumn and early winter anticlimactic, yet only two weeks separate the French Open and Wimbledon? Why is a Davis Cup competition held five days after the Wimbledon final? No wonder fans complain that many of the world’s top tennis players don’t play Davis Cup. Perhaps they are human and want to rest a bit after a grueling Grand Slam?

We got another sample of tennis' nuttiness this past week. The circuit threaded its way through two clay court events in Europe -- right after the grass court stretch ended and the hard court season is about to commence. It was a dead week in the United States, with the exception of World Team Tennis. Thank God the Legg Mason Tennis Classic is coming to our city – Washington, DC in three weeks!

Please remember that there are spots left for our tennis trips to Costa Rica starting in December. Please contact us anytime at tennis@sportsfornature.com or visit www.sportsfornature.com/trips for full details regarding the Costa Rica trips.

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world.

Sports and the planet go hand in hand

2011-06-10T08:56:00.000-07:00

I want to report that Tennis for Nature at Regency was a hit. We got spectacular weather and all the matches were really good. Players were happy and we received very positive comments regarding the event.

Everyone felt that combining tennis and the environment is a great idea, and fun! And that we should produce Tennis for Nature events more often and in different locations. The staff at Sports for Nature appreciates the feedback and will take the comments very seriously, and try to work towards hopefully producing more tennis events outside the Washington, DC area. And by the way, congratulations to all the winners in the different divisions, everyone gave their best effort and had a good attitude on the court.

Our next Sports for Nature event is going to be a Golf for Nature event in the fall in the DC area. Right now we are working hard to solidify sponsorships and then we’ll move towards working on logistics for the outing. If anyone knows of any companies interested in supporting this event, please let us know.

As always, we’re also promoting the Sports for Earth Tennis Trips to Costa Rica that start in December. Resort management has recently changed and what used to be Paradisus Playa Conchal is now The Westin Resort and Spa Playa Conchal. I heard that the resort is implementing many changes and upgrading facilities to make the experience of staying there unforgettable. And the best news if that all changes will be done by November, one month before our tennis trips start! Needless to say, we are looking forward to many fun tennis trips to Costa Rica this upcoming season!

I want to remind each one of you to try to be green in your personal lives. Recycling whenever possible, and using less resources in general. Every little bit counts for our planet. For example, an easy way to save money and energy is turning lights off in rooms that we are not occupying inside the house. Another reminder is when you go to a fast-food restaurant, only grab the napkins that you are actually going to use. If you grab 2 or 3 less napkins, and multiply that by 1,000 people, you are saving lots of trees!

Have a great weekend! Go green!

Jorge Morera

Sports for Earth = Helping the planet through sports

www.sportsfornature.com

Tennis in Costa Rica = www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Tennis for Nature is almost here!

2011-05-17T14:07:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone! The Sports for Earth Team is working hard this week on Tennis for Nature, our annual event that combines the best tennis in the DC area with nature. This year we have great prizes to give out, including signed sports memorabilia from players such as Andre Agassi, Juan Martin Del Potro, Marin Cilic and Richard Gasquet. Plus, we’ll have Babolat racquets and bags to give out to contest winners.

We’re having a demo court as well as a fast serve and target competitions. This means that the event should provide entertainment for everyone in the family. For the little ones, photos with the polar bear might provide a lasting memory!

We are also in full swing promoting the new season of tennis and golf Trips to Costa Rica. Our 2011 – 2012 season begins in December and this year we expect all trips to be packed with participants. Our last season went great, everyone had so much fun; and the activities on the tennis court as well as off the court kept our players busy and relaxed at the same time. Some took more day tours than others to places such as Arenal Volcano, the zip lines and white water rafting, while others simply stayed the majority of time at the resort and enjoyed the beach and wonderful spa there. Nothing wrong with that!

So if you would like to play some of golf or tennis internationally and enjoy everything that Costa Rica has to offer, please visit our trips section of the Webpage at www.sportsfornature.com/trips. Pura vida amigos y amigas!

Remember, keep recycling and reusing items in your daily lives, every little bit counts for the planet. Plus, you will feel good about your actions too. The more things you own, the more complicated your life will probably be, so keep it simple and keep smiling! Life is too short not to!

Have a fun week!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Sports for Nature Tennis and Golf Trips to Costa Rica = www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Money for Recycling and new season for Costa Rica trips

2011-04-27T06:10:00.001-07:00

I just read a story on treehugger.com about companies that are providing bonuses to employees that recycle the most. Here’s the article:

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/04/company-gives-bonuses-workers-recycle-sumo-cloudapps.php?campaign=top_news

What a great idea. I think this gives employees a true incentive to recycle and cut down on office energy costs, as money is always a big incentive. They even mention a software system that tracks how much is being recycled. I wonder if by the end of the year once they tally all the results and cost savings, if the savings from recycling and less energy consumption will be greater than the bonuses paid to employees. If that’s the case, then this would be a true win-win situation! Helping the planet and being green while having a happy workforce that got rewarded monetarily for their good actions.

On another subject, I want to report that Party for Nature at Tattoo a few weeks ago was a tremendous success. Lots of people came and danced the night away. The friendly Alaska Wilderness League goose was a hit among attendants and many people learned more about the featured green charity. We are still waiting on the final numbers of the donation but we are sure it will be a good one. A big thank you to Tattoo Bar for hosting Party for Nature once again and also to everyone that attended. We sure hope you had tons of green fun!

As always, the Sports for Nature Team is working on new projects and events. We are currently promoting the new season of tennis and golf trips in Costa Rica. The season starts in December of 2011 and extends until April of 2012. We have been able to lower the trip costs by 40% with respect to last season and still offer the same great benefits, so we hope that this trips season will be even bigger than last one! Paradisus Playa Conchal offers 4 beautiful lighted tennis courts and a private championship golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones II, so facilities for the tennis and golf trips could not be better! We have also created a brand new brochure for the tennis trips, check it out at:

www.sportsfornature.com/trips.

See you in Costa Rica! Go green!

Regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Sports helping planet Earth

Sports is passion, too much of it can't hurt

2011-04-15T05:40:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone, Happy Friday!

Hope you’ve had a fantastic week as we have so far. Tonight is Party for Nature night and the Sports for Earth Team is ready to go. The party will be hosted by Tattoo Bar and we expect large crowds tonight as the weather Gods are cooperating, forecast if upper 60’s and sunny for today, not bad! Party for Nature tonight benefits and amazing Alaska Wilderness League, a green charity that does very effective work to protect Alaska’s wildlife, which is very threatened at this point.

Please stop by if you are in DC tonight, Tattoo Bar is at the corner of K Street and 14th, we promise you’ll have a good time and with your presence, you will be helping nature directly. A win-win situation.

Just as a small example of the immense power of sports, I read the other day a blog note about how Leonel Messi created a Facebook page and got over 7 million Likes in less than 7 hours. Here’s the full blog: http://sports.yahoo.com/soccer/blog/dirty-tackle/post/Official-Messi-Facebook-page-gets-nearly-7-milli?urn=sow-wp637.

That is incredible and just shows us that millions of people in this world live to enjoy sports. Work just gets in the way, but watching and playing sports and going to stadiums to support your favorite team is the true passion, a passion that makes us jump in joy, brings tears to our eyes, and affects in one way or another the way we feel for days and even weeks.

Just imagine what would happen if we really start harnessing this huge super power and passion to save the planet, to help endangered species of plants and animals, and to help nature recover on a major scale. The change would be substantial to say the least!

At Sports for Nature that is our mission, to harness the power of sports to help nature. Simple as that. That is our daily guiding principle and we enjoy every minute of our job because we get to watch and play a ton of sports, and apply our passion of sports towards our work. For that, we are grateful and lucky! Go sports and green!

Hope you all have a great weekend and hope to see you tonight at Party for Nature! And remember, keep playing and enjoying sports, you can never do too much of that!

In sports,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature. Fun Included.

www.sportsfornature.com

Skydiving, Soccer, NASCAR and Environment

2011-04-06T19:43:00.000-07:00

Hi, hope you are having a productive week, but also setting time aside to have some fun! At Sports for Nature we are keeping quite busy the last couple of days organizing logistics for Tennis for Nature at Regency Sport & Health Club on Saturday, May 21st. We expect a ton of players from around the DC area so should be a fun time. To view the event page on the United States Tennis Association Website, please go to: www.SportsForNature.com/Regency.

We have also been working on a brand new brochure to present our tennis trips to Costa Rica. We have added new benefits and the pricing levels have also been updated to fit everyone’s needs. We are already looking forward to many tennis trips starting in December to Paradisus Playa Conchal! And golf trips too!

Wanted to mention that the other day one of my colleagues came across an article about sporting activities that damage the environment on Treehugger.com, here’s the link to the article:

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/02/spoil-sports-7-activities-that-damage-the-environment.php

It talks about several sporting activities such as car racing and skydiving; that require excessive burning of fossil fuels to practice. In the case of Nascar gas used by race cars, and with skydiving fuel for the plane.

While this is very true, I think that we should try to minimize the impact these activities have on the environment. Perhaps a small tax can be created and added to the ticket price that fans pay to practice or watch these sports. This tax would go entirely towards to a green charity which in turn can purchase land for conservation. Imagine if we add $1 to the ticket price that you pay for a sports event, such as a soccer match (which was also mentioned in the list of damaging sporting activities due to thousands of people driving to the stadium). A dollar would not make that much of a difference to you, but if we add up 50,000 fans in a match x $1 that’s $50K that goes to conservation. And that’s just one game! There are thousands of games daily all over the world.

Anyways, thought I would comment on this as our daily goal at Sports for Nature is to look for ways to unite Sports and Planet Earth. We believe that there is a way for people to continue to enjoy their favorite sports for many years to come, and also enjoy nature, minimizing negative impact to the planet; and not only minimize the impact, but actually helping make this wonderful planet a better place to live in.

I promise that at Sports for Nature we will continue to try to find win-win situations involving sports and nature, and use all the resources we have towards achieving this goal!

Thank you for all your support and have a fun week!

All the best,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier People in a Healthier World

www.sportsfornature.com

Tennis for Nature and Japan’s Environment

2011-03-25T14:01:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

First of all, I hope that everyone is having a fantastic week! The Sports for Nature Team is very excited to report that we are in full swing organizing Tennis for Nature on Saturday, May 21st. We are excited that this year Regency, the biggest tennis club in the DC area is hosting the event. And in honor of the French Open, the event is being played on clay for the first time ever! So, if you are a tennis player or just want to come and watch some good matches, please check out all event details at: www.sportsfornature.com/Regency. Should be a fun one!

We are very sad about the crisis that Japan currently faces. It is upsetting to hear that so many people have died and that they expect that number to continue to increase. Events such as this remind us that we are all exposed at anytime, to danger; and that when Mother Nature erupts, it can create history changing events, for better or worse. The human race is all connected, no matter in what country or region something like this happens, we all feel a sense of solidarity and compassion, and the need to help in any way we can. And in the future, when we are facing a similar situation, we hope that others will feel the same way, and help out too.

The environment has been negatively affected by this crisis as well, and it will take years to recover. For nature and people to recover. But as we have seen in the past, Japan and its people are strong, unified, smart and disciplined, and if anyone can rebound from an event like this, Japan is for sure on the top of the list. We wish them all the very best and our prayers go out to every person that has been affected negatively by this in some way or another.

The Sports for Nature Team wishes everyone a happy and safe weekend. Please remember to relax and have a good time with your loved ones!

All the best,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature through Sports

Sports for Nature Costa Rica Tennis and Golf Trips = www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Tennis for Nature and more Green Updates

2011-03-09T06:22:00.000-08:00

Hi, hope you all are having a great week as I am!

I am very pleased to announce that our 8th Tennis for Nature event is being hosted by Regency Sport & Health Club, on Saturday, May 21st during the French Open. This will be a big and exciting event in the Washington, DC area as Regency has 21 tennis courts, gym, pool, racquetball and squash courts, tennis store, spas, restaurants, etc., it's a super club in a great location. This year we plan to benefit the Alaska Wilderness League (www.alaskawild.org), one of our green charity partners with a mission to protect Alaska’s wildlife sanctuaries.

The Sports for Nature Team is very excited as Tennis for Nature is our biggest sporting event of the year. For this tennis event, we have both women’s and men’s divisions, and the main event is a Men’s Prize Money Doubles Open, where we’re giving away almost $3,000 in prize money! That should draw great players from the DC area and make for very exciting matches.

Other than that we are gearing up for producing some Party for Nature’s this summer in DC as well as in Costa Rica, and then starting the planning process for next season’s tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica and Paradisus Playa Conchal. I’ll keep everyone posted on this as we’re going to make some changes to the trips based on feedback from participants. All this with the goal of continuing to improve and make them even more fun!

I’ll be in touch soon next week with more updates from the Sports for Nature Camp. Have a great week and remember to take care of our planet, one step at a time … every little step counts!

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier People in a Healthier World

www.SportsForNature.com

Play tennis and golf in Costa Rica! www.SportsForNature.com/Trips

Almost new news, farewell trips, and cool green video

2011-02-24T14:21:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone, I hope you have been having a great week so far just as I have been!

The Sports for Nature offices are busy and we have a really cool project in the works related to tennis and sports management. I can’t mention anything yet, but as soon as we have a confirmation, I’ll be in touch to let you know all the details!

We are coming down to the last months of tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica. We have 2 more tennis trips and one more golf trip to go; then off until next fall/winter.

So far this season of trips has been fantastic, I have had the opportunity to meet some really interesting people that are not only passionate about their favorite sport, but also passionate about nature and all green issues that are so important nowadays.

I am blessed to be able to travel with these individuals and to be able to start friendships based on common interests and great memories. Plus, I get to play lots of tennis and golf, two of my favorite sports (third one being soccer) … how awesome is that?!

If you have a moment, please check out this video I just watched on www.ted.com, it’s Jason Clay from the World Wildlife Fund talking about some of the things that they are doing with big corporations around the world to preserve biodiversity. Here’s the link: http://www.ted.com/talks/jason_clay_how_big_brands_can_save_biodiversity.html. Hope you enjoy his speech, lasts approximately 20 minutes.

Ok, gotta go now, time to keep on working on uniting sports and nature in new ways. And as I mentioned, I’ll be in touch soon regarding our newest tennis project, very exciting!

Have a great weekend and remember to keep smiling!

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = The most fun you’ll ever have protecting nature

www.SportsForNature.com

Green basketball, green videos, and Party for Nature

2011-02-15T15:12:00.000-08:00

The Sports for Nature Green NBA Night at Verizon Center was a hit this past Saturday night! The arena was very close to selling out and numerous fans stopped by our booth to interact with Sports for Nature staff, models and the always popular, Alaska Wilderness League Polar Bear.

We were all sad though that the Wizards did not do too well that night against the mighty San Antonio Spurs, but then again, what team has this year?!

Many fans gave us great feedback regarding ways to keep uniting sports and the environment and how they are supportive of what we are trying to accomplish. A big thank you to each person that stopped by the booth to speak with us and show their support.

Also, later that night, many of the fans headed over across the street to the hottest new sports bar in town, Redline. They were hosting our Party for Nature for the night. The place was packed and people were having a good time, while at the same time, helping nature. Unfortunately though, the polar bear could not make an appearance at Party for Nature that night (as many people had requested), as he was pretty tired from interacting with all the fans at Verizon Center earlier that day; but we do promise that he’ll be present and ready to go in our next Party for Nature. Details on the host venue coming soon!

By the way, when you have sometime, please check out many interesting environmental videos at ted.com: http://www.ted.com/talks/tags/id/70. You’ll be able to find cool videos on all the most important environmental topics of our time!

Have a great week and go green!

Jorge Morera

www.SportsForNature.com

Party for Nature at Redline

2011-02-03T08:21:00.001-08:00

Hope you are having a great week so far! I am pleased to announce that as part of Sports for Nature’s Green NBA Night with the Washington Wizards, Redline, a hot new sports bar in DC is hosting a Party for Nature. So people that come to the game now have a great option on where to go afterwards. Redline is located across the street from the Verizon Center so everyone can just walk there after the game ends.

This is a new venue for Party for Nature so the Sports for Nature Team is excited to throw a party there and hopefully raise some good funds for green charities.

I am also happy to announce that Virginia Green officially approved our event yesterday, due to the green initiatives that we will be implementing. Some of them are limited printing of materials, recycling, and encouraging everyone to use mass transportation to attend the game and Party for Nature afterwards. Verizon Center has its own Metro station, so that will make it easier for everyone.

On another subject, our 5th and last tennis trip of the season to Costa Rica still has four spots open, so if you want to take a week off in warm weather and enjoy the beach, while playing tons of tennis, please contact the Sports for Nature Team today to get in on this trip! Full details can be found at: www.sportsfornature.com/trips.

Please remember to continue to be green in your daily lives – reuse, reduce and recycle whenever possible and you will be doing your part to help the environment. Anyone can be a change maker, we all can be change makers, and every little effort counts!

Sports for Nature = Healthier People in a Healthier World

“The most fun you’ll ever have protecting nature”

www.sportsfornature.com

Warm weather, more green tips, NBA basketball and creativity

2011-01-19T09:34:00.001-08:00

Hi,

The Sports for Nature Team is busy this week! We are continuing to promote our Green Ticket Initiative going on during the Wizards and San Antonio Spurs game at the Verizon Center on Saturday, February 12th. Ticket sales have picked up and we hope it continues that way as fans that buy through our link will not pay any fees and for each ticket sold the Wizards donate $10 to one of our green charities, a win-win situation for everyone!

Also great news, due to our tennis trips to Costa Rica selling out, we are now adding a 5th tennis trip this season to Paradisus Playa Conchal during the week of March 14th. So far we have a few people interested and hope to complete this trip very soon! Weather down in Costa Rica during March will be an average of 85 degrees and sunny everyday, so it’ll be a lot better than up here in DC, where we had an ice storm yesterday, ouch!

Sports for Nature is all about connecting sports and the environment and we are constantly looking for new ways to do so. So please continue sending us your suggestions and ideas, we love to hear what you think about what we do! We think that when sports and nature go hand in hand, it’s good business for everyone.
Before I get back to work, and in relation to our daily lives, I’d like to mention some tips that will help nature and also reduce your expenses (a very good thing nowadays in this so so economy!). I think that it is easy being green, and the good news is that most times, it saves you money.
My first tip is simple, unplug things. TV’s, cell phone chargers, DVD players, mini toaster ovens, etc., basically anything that you might not use in days. If they are plugged, they are using energy, and it’s costing you. So when you can, try to unplug these items and have a nice smile on your face next time you get your power bill in the mail!
Another example of how going green saves you money is switching from bottled water to filtered tap water. The average US family spends about $1,500 a year on bottled water, and 95% of the plastic bottles used are not recycled. Remember that for less than $80 you can get a high quality water filter to make your tap water perfect. So please consider this option and start saving money and helping the environment at the same time.
Another tip that I know we have all heard before but I think it’s worth mentioning is to try to walk and cycle whenever you can. Even if it’s an extra block here and there, you are still helping nature, being more active and saving money.
And my last green tip … if you can, please try to read your favorite newspaper online. All newspapers are online now so you can read everything you were going to read on a printed newspaper, but on a screen. This saves tons of trees and will save you money as well. It is estimated that around 60 million newspapers are printed every day in the US. The majority of them will not be recycled. That is a lot of trees and land being used for just that, producing newspapers. Imagine if we could cut down on printed newspapers by just 5%, that small percentage would make a huge difference for the environment and help conserve many forests, plant and animal species.
Please think about these tips and whenever you can, follow them and save yourself some money while helping our environment!
Life is good, so please stay positive and have a wonderful week! Go green!
All the best,
Jorge Morera
Sports for Nature Golf and Tennis Trips to Costa Rica = www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Party for Nature = www.partyfornature.com

Sports for Nature = Healthier People in a Healthier World

Golf trips, iguanas, and green basketball

2011-01-06T12:34:00.000-08:00

Hello,

Ok, so the Sports for Nature Team is looking for golfers that are interested in spending a week playing golf in Costa Rica at Paradisus Playa Conchal, and sometime in the next 3 months. Why so soon? Because it’s summer down in Costa Rica while up here in the north it’s freezing. Summer in Guanacaste, Costa Rica means blue skies, lots of sun and 85 degrees, perfect weather for playing golf! And when you add a world-class championship course like Reserva Conchal, well the offer is irresistible.

We are very glad to report that our tennis trips to Costa Rica have sold out for the season, but for golf we are still looking for a group of 4 to 8 players to come and enjoy the “Pura Vida” life for a week. In case you or a friend are interested, full details can be found on our Web page at: www.SportsForNature.com/Trips.

This week the Sports for Nature Team is also continuing its efforts to promote the sale of tickets for the Wizards - Spurs game at the Verizon Center on Saturday, February 12th. Remember that for every ticket sold through our Green Ticket Initiative at www.SportsForNature.com/GreenTicket, the Wizards donate $10 to one of our green charity partners. This means the team, fans and nature win!

So golfers, please check out our site and see if our trip to Costa Rica fits your budget, if it does, we promise it will be a vacation you will never forget.

Gotta run now, hope each and every one of you is having a great day. Talk to you soon! And as always, go green!

Sports for Nature = Connecting sports with the environment

Golf trips to Costa Rica: www.SportsForNature.com/Trips

Want to submit interesting ideas to the Sports for Nature Team or have any feedback, please visit: www.SportsForNature.com

Sports trips and green NBA night for Sports for Nature

2010-12-29T10:39:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone,

It has been more than a few weeks since I have been in touch. I hope that each of you had a wonderful Christmas and wish everyone a 2011 full of joy.

The Sports for Nature Team has had a very good December so far, with very successful tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica, where in each of the trips we met fabulous people, very enthusiastic about sports and excited about getting to know Costa Rica, its nature and wildlife, volcanoes, and all the great things that this country offers. We are looking forward to the remaining trips of the season in the upcoming months!

We are glad that the Sports for Nature NBA night with the Wizards on Saturday, February 12th at the Verizon Center in downtown DC is underway! The Washington Wizards will take on the San Antonio Spurs that night, the Spurs currently have the best record in the NBA so it will not be easy, but with the help of Sports for Nature fans, we hope they’ll be able to pull it off. Remember that our Green Ticket Initiative is in place for the night; that means that for every ticket that fans buy through Sports for Nature, the Wizards donate $10 to one of our partner green charities. And the best aspect is, when people buy a ticket through us it already offers a discount and no additional fees will be charged, thus creating a win-win situation! To purchase tickets and enjoy one of the best games of the year in DC please visit: www.SportsForNature.com/GreenTicket.

Thank you for all the support, and as always, I wish everyone all the best, have a safe and Happy New Year’s celebration and I’ll be in touch again next week as we continue to promote the Sports for Nature NBA night at the Verizon Center!

Pura vida,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = The most fun you will ever have protecting nature!

Party for Nature events: www.sportsfornature.com/party

Tennis and golf in Costa Rica: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Cool tips for a greener Holiday Season!

2010-11-23T16:38:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you are having a great week so far and getting ready for Thanksgiving and hopefully spending it with your loved ones!

The Sports for Nature Team has been working this week on a marketing plan for “The Wizards Sports for Nature NBA night” on February 12th, 2011 at the Verizon Center, where we will be featured in the game between the Washington Wizards and the San Antonio Spurs. What a night it will be! We’re preparing very fun activities that we hope all the fans will enjoy; and with the goal of letting people know that the connection between sports-environment is a win-win situation for all!

Now that the holidays are finally here (can you believe it … time flies!), I wanted to send everyone some cool green holidays tips to add a little green to your festivities:

- Make Your Own Wrapping Paper: The wrapping paper you find in stores is not recyclable and ends up in landfills. Instead, here's a great chance to get creative. Wrap presents with old maps, the comics section of a newspaper, or children's artwork. Or use a scarf, attractive dish towel, bandana, or some other useful cloth item.

- Buy Energy-Saving Holiday Lights: Decorate your house with LED lights that use 90 percent less energy than conventional holiday lights, and can save your family up to $50 on your energy bills during the holiday season! LED lights are available at many major retailers, including Target and CostCo.

- Recycle Your Christmas Tree: Ninety-eight percent of Christmas trees were grown on farms, not in forests, so at least it's not as if you're cutting down an ancient tree. Each year, 10 million Christmas trees end up in the landfill. While your tree won't fit in the recycling bin with your newspapers and bottles, you can recycle your tree: many cities offer programs to turn your tree to mulch or wood chips. Call (800) CLEANUP or visit www.earth911.org to find the tree-recycling program near you.

- Recycle Your Old Cellphone: Getting a new cell phone for Christmas? Now you can drop off that old phone at any Staples store, as part of the Sierra Club cell phone recycling program. Each year, 130 million cell phones are thrown out, weighing approximately 65,000 tons. Recycling your old phone prevents hazardous elements from ending up in our landfills.

- Add Organic and Local Foods to Your Holiday Feast: Support local family farmers who grow sustainable meat and produce. Not only does it taste better, you'll be doing your part for the planet too. Look for an organic turkey or ham for Christmas dinner!

- Give a small donation to a green charity! Why not help the planet directly with an environmental gift? As great options, here are our partner green charity Websites where you can make a donation directly in case you wish to do so:

Alaska Wilderness League – www.alaskawild.org

Amigos of Costa Rica – www.amigosofcostarica.org

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation – www.nfwf.org

Defenders of Wildlife – www.defenders.org

Marviva – www.marviva.net

Ok, so if you can, please green your holidays a bit, it will help the planet and even save you money!

On behalf of the Sports for Nature Team, I wish you all a very happy and blessed Thanksgiving! And if you are traveling, please be safe!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting the Environment through Sports

Golf and tennis vacations to Costa Rica = www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Party for Nature Soirees = www.sportsfornature.com/party

Green holidays are just around the corner ...

2010-11-16T10:10:00.001-08:00

Hello,

Hope everyone is doing well. As always, the Sports for Nature Team is busy trying to green sports and expand our presence in different cities and countries with more unique events.

Our February tennis trip to Costa Rica has only 5 spots available so if anyone is interested, please contact us as we expect to be sold out in the next week or so. Keep in mind how nice it would be to escape the cold and head to a tropical paradise in the middle of February (do I need to say more?!).

I’m happy to report a bit more on our Green Ticket Initiative with the Washington Wizards and the Washington Capitals. Very soon we will start helping to sell tickets for these two great Washington, DC Area Teams and a portion of every ticket sold will go directly to one of our green charity partners. I’m not exactly sure what percentage yet, but we will know soon.

Also happy to report that Tennis for Nature will finally be coming to the largest Sport & Health Club in the DC Area, Regency in the city of McLean, VA! They have over 16 courts, both indoor and outdoor so it will be a great event. It has been scheduled for sometime in the spring of 2011. I’d like to thank Sport & Health for the wonderful support the past three years with Tennis for Nature events. We have been able to raise thousands of dollars for green charities and provide very good exposure for them as well that hopefully leads to more third party donations.

Ok, gotta get back to work, that’s all I have to report this week. Thank you to everyone for the continued support of Sports for Nature. I’ll be back next week with tips on how to green your holidays. Crazy that Christmas is right around the corner, huh?!

Go sports and green!

Regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Represents the enjoyment of life – above all, having fun in everything we do, especially protecting nature.

Protecting the Environment through Sports

Go to Costa Rica and play tennis or golf at: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Party for Nature site: www.partyfornature.com

Green news, sports, and an international Party for Nature

2010-11-03T13:36:00.000-07:00

Hello,

It’s been a while … Sports for Nature is keeping me busy!

We have exciting plans on the way but first of all I’d like to thank everyone that came out to Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar the last few times it was hosted there. It was absolutely packed and we all had a ton of fun, especially the dancing polar bear from the Alaska Wilderness League. To date we don’t know the exact amount that was raised from the last event, but I’m sure it’s a good donation. We’ll know in the next few days! So again, thank you to all the attendees for supporting nature, without you Party for Nature would not be possible and our donations to our green charity partners would not be possible as well.

I’d like to mention recent news in the Sports for Nature camp. We recently were selected by the premier Washington, DC area teams the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals to carry out a green ticket initiative. In a nutshell this is raising green funds through the sale of tickets within our network. It’s a perfect win-win situation as tickets have no online buying fees and instead, a small portion of every purchase goes to one of our environmental organization partners. Please stay tuned as we will formally be announcing this new program to our entire e-mail list soon!

I’m also happy to announce that the December and January tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica are sold out. Right now we have several spots available for February and March and hope to fill those quickly. I am definitely looking forward to meeting great people from around the country in Costa Rica and Paradisus Playa Conchal to have some fun and play lots of golf and tennis! Plus, it’s not going to feel bad escaping the cold weather in the Washington, DC area and heading south to 80 degrees and sun everyday.

And lastly, I’d like to mention a new Party for Nature in Costa Rica! A date is still being determined but it will be hosted by the biggest casino in Central America, Fiesta Casino! This will be without a doubt a great opportunity to provide free publicity and funds to one of our local green charity partners. And as always, have lots of fun while helping nature!

I have to go now but again, I’d like to thank everyone who supports Sports for Nature on a daily basis. We are very grateful for your attendance to the events, for your feedback, for your volunteering, and for caring about our planet. The Sports for Nature Team truly believes that by helping the environment, we are giving sports the most important mission in its history. Thank you for making it possible!

Go green!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

www.sportsfornature.com

Golf, fun and adventure, and a birdie letter …

2010-10-20T06:39:00.000-07:00

Here’s a descriptive letter that our Golf in Costa Rica Team has prepared about Sports for Nature’s eco golf vacations to Costa Rica:

Dear golfers,

Do you want to play golf somewhere you’ve never played before? Want to practice your swing in paradise? Well, there’s good news for you … we have personally put together the best golf vacation you will find in the world!

Play golf for a week with your buddies at Paradisus Playa Conchal Resort in Costa Rica, and have the time of your life. Enjoy the good life while playing your favorite sport, with your best friends for an entire week in paradise – you will never want to leave.

Paradisus Playa Conchal is an all butler, all inclusive, 5-star resort. They love to host our trips and will do everything they can to make sure you are pampered and taken care of on a very personal level. By the end of the trip their staff will know your first name, and you will know theirs. They want to make sure you not only have an amazing time, but also create a long lasting friendship with you. This is the true meaning of the famous Costa Rican expression “Pura Vida,” which means “Life is Good.”

One of our full-time bilingual guides who specializes in Costa Rica will go with you to ensure your needs are taken care of and you don’t need to worry about anything except making that clutch putt when a hard-earned birdie is on the line.

The private golf course at Paradisus has won numerous awards and is recognized as the best course in Central America. And it was designed by a guy named Robert Trent Jones II, have you heard of him? Several of the holes overlook the Pacific Ocean and the majority of golfers that play the course have an encounter with a friendly Costa Rican iguana or a capuchin monkey. Careful, the monkeys love to steal golf balls!

Paradisus also offers lots of other activities such as scuba diving, jet skiing, deep sea fishing, dancing lessons, horse back riding, kayaking and more. The resort has a private casino and theater with nightly entertainment. This means that every night you can try your luck and watch a private dance show especially designed for the resort’s guests. And the icing on the cake – a lagoon style swimming pool with several swim-up bars and a zip-line over head!

We promise you that this trip will show you first-hand what it means to live the “Pura Vida” life, where time stops and fun is everything!

Date for the trip? You and your friends set the date! Just tell us when you want to go and we take care of the rest! All we ask is for a six-week notice, and our team gets working on your dream golf vacation.

Take a peek at the Paradisus experience at: www.paradisus-playa-conchal.com.
And for full details on our magical getaways, go to: www.sportsfornature.com/trips.

Last, we promise you this; we will try harder than anyone to make this trip the best trip you have ever taken in your life. We are not happy until you tell us that you had the time of your life on our getaway!

See you and your friends in Costa Rica, PURA VIDA!

Kind regards,

Golf in Costa Rica Team

New Party for Nature just announced

2010-10-15T11:58:00.001-07:00

Hey,

Due to the recent and wild success of Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar a few weeks ago, a new party has just been announced by the Sports for Nature Team at the same location. And guess what, the Polar Bear is back!

Yes, you heard it right, party starts at 9pm but around midnight on Friday the 22nd, the Alaska Wilderness League (AWL) dancing polar bear is back at Tattoo Bar for another Party for Nature. We promise you it will be the most fun you will ever have protecting nature!

Here are more details regarding the upcoming Party for Nature:

The exclusive “Polar Bear Cocktail” is available all night for only $5 and we will also be celebrating the birthdays of Sasha Parker and Enrique Castella, among others

The Sports for Nature Team would like to extend a special THANK YOU, because due to the generosity of Tattoo Bar and all other bars and promoters that have kindly hosted Party for Nature events, so far we have provided thousands of dollars in contributions to green organizations. And most importantly, a big thank you to you, for attending our events and making Party for Nature possible, and fun.

Visit the AWL world: http://www.alaskawild.org

Visit the Party for Nature world: http://www.sportsfornature.com/party

Also, details coming soon about our 1st ever “Halloween Party for Nature” at Mister Days in Arlington. Very exciting!

The Sports for Nature Team is also happy to announce that the December tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica have sold out already. January is close to selling out and we’re also looking pretty good for February and March. Seems like the combination of a world-class environmentally friendly resort like Paradisus Playa Conchal, two great sports such as tennis and golf and an appealing country like Costa Rica is a hit with everyone!

Can’t say thank you enough times to everyone that sends us great feedback regarding sports and the environment on a daily basis. We truly appreciate it and are humbled by your support and great ideas.

Go green! Have a fun weekend everyone!

Sports for Nature = Protecting the Environment through Sports

For more on Sports for Nature’s golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica please visit: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

For more on Sports for Nature’s Party for Nature soirees please visit: www.sportsfornature.com/party

Greener sports industry and man's/women's best friend

2010-10-13T13:02:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you had a great Columbus Day Weekend! Fall is upon us, leaves are turning brown and weather getting colder. I’m a big fan of warm weather so this is definitely not my favorite time of year but nonetheless, the holidays will be here soon and that’s always a fun time when you get to see your family and spend quality time with them. Sometimes that is not the case as I have experienced in previous years due to school or responsibilities at a job, but that just makes the longer wait to see your loved ones even feel better!

Another reason to be excited about are the big plans that we have at Sports for Nature, working on new events and exciting partnerships, all with the common goal of truly uniting the environment and sports.

Regarding sports and nature, I have been very happy to notice in the past year or so that every time I have played tennis in a private court, right next to the court there are recycling bins. Not so much in public courts, but every time I don’t see any recycle bins, I try to call the respective county sports office and provide feedback. Hopefully they will listen.

In other sports that I enjoy playing like golf and soccer, I have noticed as well that there is an increase in the use of recycling bins, post consumer products available like napkins, etc. This is very positive to see and every little bit counts for nature. At Sports for Nature though, we believe that there is still a lot more than can be done to apply the principles of reuse, reduce and recycle to sports. And many of the green actions that can be implemented create a win-win situation by not costing much to start, and saving money in the short and long run.

A quick example is placing a used tennis ball receptacles right next to tennis courts and letting nearby dog owners and local tennis programs know of this so they can help themselves to the used balls for teaching tennis lessons or playing with their best friend in the park. This provides used tennis balls with additional lifetime and reuse, and helps save nature and money for dog owners and tennis instructors.

Ok, have to run now, please continue to send us great feedback through our Website on how to bring sports and nature together. The feedback we have received recently is great and we will pay close attention to all of it!

Go green!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = The most fun you will ever have protecting the environment!

For more on Sports for Nature’s golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica please visit: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

For more on Sports for Nature’s Party for Nature soirees please visit: www.sportsfornature.com/party

Healthier People in a Healthier World

2010-10-06T06:24:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope that you are having a great week! Here at Sports for Nature we are busy as ever, working on two more Party for Nature events due to popular demand. People demand the return of the one and only dancing polar bear, so we are trying to coordinate this. It’s a tough assignment since the polar bear only likes Washington, DC when it’s bitter cold, and right now it’s still in the 60’s, too warm for him. But nevertheless, we will try our best to bring him back quickly!

We continue to try to finalize the Sports for Nature schedule of events for next year. Our main goal is to come up with unique events that will continue to raise funds for worthy environmental organizations around the world.

We are also working on a Latin American schedule of events, and looking to produce sports events not only in Costa Rica but adding a new country for 2011. Stay tuned and I will provide details as soon as anything is confirmed.

Oh and great news, our December tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica sold out this week. We still have spots available for January, February and March so we continue to promote the Costa Rica trips to Paradisus Playa Conchal, a fabulous resort that is also environmentally friendly, a good balance between top-notch accommodations and positive environmental actions. Also, we have added a tennis trip in April that goes from the 19th to the 24th, so if anyone if interested, please let us know and we would be happy to send you the e-brochure of the tennis trip and to answer any questions about this great vacation to Costa Rica. And please remember, more details regarding the tennis and golf getaways to Costa Rica can be found at our Webpage at: www.sportsfornature.com/trips.

Ok, gotta run now, please remember to continue to send us ideas on how to unite sports and nature, to promote environmental considerations into sports, leagues, tournaments, etc. If you can, contact your local league administrator and tell them that you care for the environment and want to see them take steps towards helping nature. Any step, no matter how small it is, makes a difference. After you do this, I promise you will feel great about yourself. Getting healthier and helping the environment at the same time, does it get any better than that?! Well, perhaps if we throw in a Party for Nature once in a while … go green and sports!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports + Environment = Healthier People in a Healthier World

Sports for Nature’s Party for Nature: www.sportsfornature.com/party

Sports for Nature’s tennis and golf vacations to Costa Rica: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Party for Nature and unique ways to help nature

2010-09-29T07:28:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I just wanted to write a quick note to thank everyone in the Sports for Nature network for coming out to Party for Nature this past Friday at Tattoo Bar in Washington, DC. Over 400 people attended and it was a huge success. Everyone was having a blast and even though I had to leave early that night, I heard that the party went on until the wee hours of the night!

Please go to the following link on YouTube to view the impromptu video that the staff at Tattoo Bar created last Friday night while Party for Nature was going on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLwalaASWsc

I want to thank Tattoo Bar and its management for hosting yet another successful Party for Nature. It’s always wonderful to see people having a good time after a long work week and knowing that at the exact same time, funds are being raised for great environmental organizations, that is truly a win-win situation.

The Sports for Nature Team is eager to continue to create situations like this, where people have fun and help the environment. The way we see it, almost everything we do in our lives can have a philanthropic purpose, and for us, taking steps to directly help the environment is one of the most important missions of our time and that is why we gladly work so hard to help nature, one little bit at a time. At Sports for Nature, no initiative is small enough, as long as the 2 cents are being contributed towards benefiting nature through a great environmental organization.

Thank you again to everyone that came out to Party for Nature and for your immense support, we hope you had a ton of fun and please stay tuned for details on the next Party for Nature in Washington, DC coming up very soon!

Go green and have a great day!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting the Environment through Sports

Sports for Nature tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica page: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Sports for Nature’s Party for Nature page: www.sportsfornature.com/party

More Green Sports Tips

2010-09-28T15:17:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you are doing well and having a great week so far! Uncharacteristically, today has been a slow day for me in the Sports for Nature offices. I’m waiting on a few things to get approved and placed on our Website so I decided to write a bit about simple things we can all do when we attend sporting events that collectively will make a big impact on the environment:

Green tip # 1 - When buying food at stadiums, please reduce the amount of napkins you use. So many times I see people buy a hot dog and take 10 napkins, but only really use 1 or 2 of them. Next time, try to think how many napkins you will really use before grabbing a ton of them.

Green tip # 2 - If the stadium or venue you are attending has recycling bins available, please use them! Remember to try to recycle all cans, glass containers, bottles, etc, that you and your friends used during the event or even beforehand in case you have tailgated.

Green tip # 3 - In the middle of a game or match, when you use the bathroom, please remember to not leave water running while washing your hands. Try to minimize the waste of water and you will be making a valuable contribution to everyone’s future, since I suspect that not too many years will go by before potable water scarcity in the world becomes a major issue.

Green tip # 4 - Try to use public transportation to get to the venue where the sporting event is being held at. This will minimize the use of fossil fuels from cars on the streets and have a positive impact on the environment. And if you use your car, try to stay under the speed limit and use the AC or heat only when needed. If you do this you will not only help the environment, but also save money, a win-win situation!

Green tip # 5 - Also related to the transportation to and from the sporting event venue, if you are going with a group of friends, please try to carpool. It’s more fun, you’ll save money, and help nature!

Green tip # 6 - When you go to a sporting venue or if you play in a local league; if you have the opportunity to leave a comment, feedback or speak to the directors, please let them know that you support the environment and would like to see green actions implemented. You would be surprised what a simple comment can do to keep uniting sports and the environment. Feedback from customers many times goes a long way!

Ok, so these are the green tips for today. In future blogs I will try to provide more green tips that can help take steps to help the environment through sports, one little bit at a time! The idea is to get people that love sports to constantly think of green actions they can take while enjoying their favorite sport.

Go green!

Sports for Nature = The most fun you will ever have protecting nature

Protecting nature through sports.

Sports for Nature’s Party for Nature soirees: www.sportsfornature.com/party

Sports for Nature’s golf and tennis Costa Rica vacations: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

www.sportsfornature.com

Party, have fun, dance and help the environment?!

2010-09-24T14:09:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Just a quick reminder for everybody about tonight and our Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar in the heart of K Street in Washington, DC. The party starts at 9pm and it benefits the wonderful green organization – the Chesapeake Bay Foundation – which protects the Bay and makes sure it keep good levels of clean waters for years to come. This also means that it protects the environment around it and all the plant and animal species that depend on the Bay to stay healthy.

So, tonight we will have great food and music, lots of dancing and you get to help nature in the process … needless to say, this is a party you will not want to miss! And, on top of all that, Tattoo Bar is a hip and edgy place that plays great rock and roll music all night long, including classics from the 80’s, 90’s and of course, today’s top hits.

We know you have had a long work week, so definitely come out for a while and enjoy yourself tonight while helping nature.

I’ll be in touch again next week with more Sports for Nature adventures and exciting events.

On behalf of the Sports for Nature Team, we wish everyone a fantastic weekend full of fun!

Go green!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Because sports and the environment should go hand in hand!

Sports for Nature Costa Rica Tennis and Golf Trips: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Sports for Nature’s Party for Nature site: www.sportsfornature.com/party

Green kids, parties, squirrels, trees and vacations ... oh, and sports!

2010-09-22T18:34:00.000-07:00

Hello,

Today I was playing tennis and a kid that was playing on the court right next to me saw the Sports for Nature t-shirt that I had on and asked what that was, and if it was a fun place located in the United States. I thought that was funny and told him that yes, Sports for Nature was a place in the United States (I guess technically the Sports for Nature offices are based in Reston, Virginia, he he). Then I explained to him that it was a place where sports and nature are combined to help the squirrels, polar bears, all kinds of dogs, and even the trees that were right by the court he was playing on. When I told him that, his eyes grew big and he told his dad that he really wanted to go to the Sports for Nature place to play tennis!

Needless to say, I laughed quite a bit and thought that it would be really cool if someday soon I can say that Sports for Nature is everywhere, not only in the US, but also in the rest of the world, in every stadium, in sporting stores, in different sporting leagues in many cities, etc., and always with the objective of raising funds for great environmental organizations and earning their trust.

This is the common goal that we are working towards, growing Sports for Nature so that it starts making a major change in the way we all view sports, and give sports its most important mission in history - helping to save the planet!

This week the Sports for Nature Team was as busy as ever, we are working on a new section for our Webpage but I don’t want to give out the details yet, it’s a surprise and you’ll have to wait and see what it is when it’s live on the site. Hint: it involves combining sports and the environment of course, and bringing together a shared vision with lots of support from outside parties.

Also, this Friday night is Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar benefiting the fabulous Chesapeake Bay Foundation, a local charity! You should expect the same as other Party for Nature’s, lots of good music, food, great company and dancing. I am sorry to report that the polar bear will not be making an appearance this time, he’s currently in Alaska, but no worries, he’ll be back soon once it starts getting cold here in the DC area.

In fact, he’ll be back in October in Arlington, as the next Party for Nature is at the wildly popular bar in Arlington, Mister Days. More details to come on that one. Besides San Jose, Costa Rica, this is the first time Party for Nature is not held in Washington, DC. We’re looking forward to introducing Arlingtonians to the polar bear and the concept of having fun while protecting the environment. A win-win situation.

Ok, gotta go now. As always, if you know anyone that loves golf or tennis and traveling, please forward them to our site for more info on the Costa Rica tennis and golf trips. The first one is coming up soon in December!

Have a great night and a wonderful rest of the week; and hope to see you on Friday night at Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar in the heart of K Street!

Go green!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = The most fun you will ever have protecting nature!

“Healthier people in a healthier world”

For more info on our tennis and golf vacation to Costa Rica please visit: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Sports for Nature online world: www.sportsfornature.com

Green is in - reuse, reduce, recycle

2010-09-17T10:21:00.000-07:00

Hi,

Happy Friday! Hope you have had a great week so far. The Sports for Nature Team is excited to announce for next Friday, September 24th a new Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar in Washington, DC. For this soiree we are benefiting the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (www.cbf.org), an environmental non-profit with the mission to help the Chesapeake Bay waters stay clean and healthy. We are looking forward to this party, so far we have produced two previous parties at Tattoo Bar and they have both been a huge success, so we hope next week’s event is even bigger and raises more funds for a great organization. Plus, the bartenders at Tattoo are preparing a special “Save The Bay” drink for all attendees and will offer it at a special price all night long! To say the least, this is the most fun people will ever have protecting nature!

The promotion of the Sports for Nature tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica has been going well. We continue to receive many calls daily with inquiries about the trips and slowly but surely participants continue to confirm their participation on the trips that are being offered this season.

We are also almost done in preparing the Sports for Nature event agenda for next year. We have very exciting events planned in many sports and also adding other unique ways to combine sports and the environment. The environment is one of the most important topics of our time and sporting events gather millions of people every year cheering for their favorite teams and athletes. This passion has an immense power to make a true change for our planet. Our environment and planet needs the help and when people work together towards a common goal, results are often very effective.

I encourage every one of you to take small steps to help nature in your own lives, no matter how small the action is, it still makes a difference. If you play in a sports league or practice any sport at all on your own time, please take a moment to think of the different ways in which you can be more environmentally friendly. Perhaps all it takes is a quick and costless change here and there and you can be one our way to reusing materials, recycling more, and in general, reducing your environmental footprint. I promise you that it will make you feel better and give you a sense of accomplishment.

I’ll be in touch next week with another update on what we are doing at Sports for Nature. And please remember, if you live in Washington, DC and have no plans yet for next Friday night, stop by Party for Nature, it should be a very fun one! No polar bear this time but no worries, he’s in Alaska now and will be coming back to DC once it starts getting colder here, he he.

Have lots of fun this weekend and go green!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature through sports

“Because sports and the environment should go hand in hand”

For more info on our tennis and golf vacations to Costa Rica please visit: www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Is anyone interested in helping promote green in sports?

2010-09-10T15:06:00.001-07:00

Hello,

How is everyone doing? Friday at last! It’s 5:33pm on a Friday, one of my favorite times of the week. The Sports for Nature Team has had a very busy week. I absolutely love my job, but also love the weekend and the good times ahead in the next few days. Helps recharge the batteries for next week.

We are looking for enthusiastic people that would like to join our team by helping to promote green initiatives in sports. We also look for individuals that are creative, that like to think outside the box and come up with innovative ways to harness the immense power of sports to help nature. There are many ways to help the environment through sports and we want to implement many of them. The way we see it, no matter how little the donation to an environmental organization is after one of our events, it was worth it! A donation plus hopefully some good free publicity will hopefully generate third party donations as well. Needless to say though, we wish for all our events to generate a big donation and lots of positive publicity for our partner green organizations.

So, if anyone would like to find out more information on how to join our team, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I’d be happy to explain more in detail what Sports for Nature is and the ways in which we work hard to hopefully make a difference for the environment.

I can tell you that some of the best ideas we have ever received for Sports for Nature events have come from event participants that are enthusiastic and speak with us to provide feedback and let us know of other events we could be doing, in different sports and venues. Always very exciting to hear new ideas!

One last thing I want to mention, now up on our Website is a “welcome letter to golfers” that provides a good description of our golf trips to Costa Rica and what participants might expect. In case anyone likes to play golf, please access the letter here: www.sportsfornature.com/trips. I hope that some of you can join us in either the tennis or golf trips to Costa Rica, they are fun and I promise you that you will play a ton of your favorite sport. Oh, and you might even like Paradisus Playa Conchal, the beach and exploring all that Costa Rica has to offer!

Ok, leaving the office now, I wish everyone a great weekend and please remember to have fun in everyone you do, and try to be as environmentally friendly as possible.

Go nature!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting Nature Through Sports

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature Trips to Costa Rica = www.sportsfornature.com/trips

Labor Day Weekend, green sports and sunny weather

2010-09-05T08:18:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

Hope you are having a great Labor Day Weekend! Here in the Washington, DC Area we sure are, it’s been 77 and sunny for the last few days and I hear that weather will be like this for most of the week, what a treat!

The Sports for Nature Team has had a very exciting week. As I had mentioned, we are putting together our event schedule for 2011 and trying to produce events in other sports besides tennis, golf and soccer. In the works are events in the sports for basketball, football and baseball, which everyone loves to play.

We have also continued to receive lots of phone calls and e-mails regarding our tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica so we can’t wait to continue to sign people up and do everything we can to make this vacation to Costa Rica for them an unforgettable experience.

Many of the plans we are working on are actually initiated by great feedback that we receive from participants that have previously played in one of our sporting events or been on a tennis or golf trip to Costa Rica. We truly appreciate your ideas and enthusiasm related to sports and how they can benefit nature in a major way. This gets us even more excited for 2011 and fuels our creative spirit!

The Sports for Nature Team truly believes that there is so much more that sports in general can be doing to help the environment. And we hope that we can be the driving force in changing the way people view sports, and give sports the most important mission in history - helping the environment!

Ok, so it’s Sunday and it’s 77 and sunny outside, so I don’t want to be in front of the computer too long. I’ll report back mid week on all new updates. Thank you so much for your support and please remember to have fun in everything you do, enjoy the moment!

Go Sports for Nature!

Pura vida (Life is good)!

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature through sports

The most fun you will ever have protecting nature!

www.sportsfornature.com

Global warming debates and our green actions

2010-09-01T11:57:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I just wanted to share an article I just read on yahoo.com about the global warming debate that has been going on for quite a while now. Here’s the article link:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20100831/sc_yblog_upshot/noted-anti-global-warming-scientist-reverses-course

I guess my brief comment to the article and expressing how we all feel in the Sports for Nature Team is, we should all probably act as if (independent of scientific data and all debates), our environment is facing problems and what could it hurt if we all takes steps to insure a safe and healthy planet for the future? Through Sports for Nature we obviously hope that the sporting world does take those green steps.

Sports are passion. Millions of people participate in this passion, passion that makes people cry, jump in joy, smile, faint, and even hate. Let’s harness a small portion of this passion we all feel for sports and use it to help nature. Why wouldn’t we?

The Sports for Nature Team continues with a busy week filled with exciting plans to grow several new initiatives and events that we are planning. Plus, promotion of our golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica is in full force. We can’t wait to be in Costa Rica having fun with some amazing people!

I’ll be in touch soon to provide environmentally friendly updates.

Go environment!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature Through Sports

Healthier people in a healthier world.

www.sportsfornature.com

Kathryn talks about her tennis trip to Costa Rica

2010-08-30T11:39:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

I asked one of the tennis getaways participants a while back to write some paragraphs about her experience at one of our Tennis Trips to Costa Rica at Paradisus Playa Conchal that she participated in. This is what I kindly received from her last week:

My experience in your tennis camp in Costa Rica in December of 2009 was amazing. I had never been to Costa Rica before but had heard great things about the country and found it all myself to be very true! The weather was wonderful and the resort was incredible. Our group consisted of 7 players total, 4 of us from New York City and 3 players from the Washington, DC area. Everyone in the group had a similar playing level and ages, so we all got along great and even became friends.

Every day we would wake up, have a delicious breakfast with lots of different fruits and then hit the courts. Jorge Morera and Juan Salis, our instructors, were very energetic and would keep us busy hitting ball after ball for a solid hour. We would then play points with the other players and the instructors would play in as well. We played both singles and doubles; and by the end of practice we would be drenched and ready to relax and enjoy everything that Costa Rica and Paradisus Playa Conchal offered.

The first few days I went to the beach a lot and worked on getting a good tan. The beach is beautiful, perfect white sand and crystal clear waters, just how you see it in commercials on TV! A few of us did snorkeling and rode a jet ski, which was an adventure to say the least!

I also took a tour to Arenal Volcano, now that was a blast. We were able to see the volcano and hear it as well. It was amazing. We also went to Tabacon Resort and tried out the hot springs, definitely one of the best experiences of my life. The other tour we did was a bird watching tour to a nearby nature park close to the town of Liberia. We enjoyed that very much and got to even have a typical Costa Rican lunch in the middle of the rainforest while listening to birds sing, not bad!

The last few days we were there we all went to the beach as much as possible (because we knew that up north it was snowing and we would not see a beach again until summer!). Throughout the week, we all ate like royalty too. Paradisus Playa Conchal has at least 8 different restaurants, each one has a different theme and they are all a la carte. And since the package is all inclusive, well we would sample everything in the menu, especially the giant sized shrimp with a special sauce served at Club Gabi, my favorite restaurant of all of them. Other restaurants also served Asian, Mexican, Italian and Mediterranean food. We went to all of them, all very good and the service was outstanding, we were definitely pampered.

We played lots of tennis everyday we were there except for one, which was set aside for a full-day tour somewhere in Costa Rica. All the tennis drills were incredible and both instructors paid close attention to detail and had an upbeat personality that we all loved. Even though everything else was above and beyond what we expected, tennis was definitely the highest point of this incredible trip. I felt like my tennis game definitely improved and had fun while doing so.

The day that I did not play tennis, I actually played golf. The resort has a very nice golf course on the premises and I enjoyed playing with a couple from Los Angeles that was on vacation there as well. I was the only one from the group that played golf, everyone else that day went on hotel arranged tours around Guanacaste.

In general, I would say that this is one of the best vacations I have ever taken in my life. Had a wonderful experience and would not hesitate to go on another tennis trip with the Sports for Nature Team in the future. The 3 friends that went with me were very pleased as well, we all had a blast!

We wish to thank Jorge Morera and Juan Salis for a wonderful job, for keeping us busy through the trip and motivating us to run every ball down out on the tennis courts. We would also like to thank the Sports for Nature Team for putting together this exceptional trip. No detail was overlooked and the experience will be unforgettable!

Best wishes,

Kathryn, avid tennis player from New York City

Thank you Kathryn for the very kind words! I am personally delighted that you had a nice experience and I look forward to seeing you out on the tennis courts again in the near future!

I’ll be in touch soon regarding other Sports for Nature updates. As I had mentioned previously, we have big plans ahead and hope that everything goes well. Oh, and by the way, please don’t forget to watch the tennis US Open, it starts today and will be played over the next 2 weeks (can you tell that I am a tennis fanatic?!)!

Kind regards,

Jorge

Sports for Nature = Reinventing sports to save the planet

Healthier people in a healthier world!

www.sportsfornature.com

Nature and sports, let's get creative!

2010-08-21T16:29:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you are doing well and enjoying your weekend!
The Sports for Nature Team has had a very busy week. We have been working on short and long term strategies to grow this initiative and eventually reshape sports by harnessing the passion that people feel for sporting events and teams to help the environment.

Imagine if we could somehow use the power that 90,000 fans in a stadium feel and put a small percentage of that towards benefitting green charities in the US and around the world? Now multiply that times 1,000 or more times in many stadiums in the world! The difference for our planet would be tremendous, and it would also get people thinking of green initiatives. This is just one example of how sports can truly have a positive impact on the environment. There are countless other examples that we hope we can implement very soon. Those are the strategies that the Sports for Nature Team is working on currently and I hope that our innovative ideas and creative actions can become a reality!

Now on to our other task this week, the Sports for Nature golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica. We continue to plan the agenda for our first trip which is at the beginning of December to Paradisus Playa Conchal in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. Conchal beach is in the middle of the Costa Rican Northern Pacific Riviera and is a beautiful beach with lots of activities for all tastes. Our main goal for these tennis and golf trips is to create a balance between playing people’s favorite sport quite a bit and also allowing participants to get to know the country.

It’s easy to just go on one of our trips and play tennis or golf in the mornings and then relax the rest of the day at the swimming pool or beach. Nothing wrong with that of course, but we want to make sure that players at least one of the days go and explore the many outdoor activities that Costa Rica offers, such as white water rafting, deep sea fishing, volcano sightseeing, bathing in natural hot springs, bird watching, rainforest tours, etc. That way, players get to know Costa Rica outside the resort boundaries and can learn more about the local culture and the environment that they are helping to protect through these trips.

Now, we sure know that going to a huge resort right next to a beach is not too environmentally friendly, but Paradisus Playa Conchal really does a good job in implementing environmental initiatives and reducing their impact on the environment. Their golf course has won green awards for their low impact of their surroundings. This is great, because during our golf trips it gets a ton of use from the participants!

I’m looking forward to working on our Costa Rica trips agenda and big picture strategies related to sports and environment next week. It will be an exciting week full of creativity and fulfillment, go Sports for Nature!

Hope you all have a great rest of the weekend and remember no matter what you do, HAVE FUN, life is too short not too!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature Through Sports

Harnessing the power of sports to save the planet

www.sportsfornature.com

Tennis, golf, Costa Rica, sports, environment, and more...

2010-08-17T11:14:00.000-07:00

Hola everyone,

It’s been a while since I last posted a note. Hope everyone is doing great and having a wonderful week so far. Life is short so please make sure you are having a good time!

The Sports for Nature Team is finally back from Costa Rica. We had a busy trip and everything went great. I had the pleasure of going to Paradisus Playa Conchal resort to arrange everything related to this season’s tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica, which start in December (just in time, because DC is too cold in winter!). I viewed the rooms where the participants will be staying at, and had a chance to take a tour of the facilities, including the tennis courts and the award winning golf course, where much of the action will be taking place. Everything looks wonderful and we can’t wait to start a new season of Sports for Nature Trips and create unforgettable memories for everyone involved, including ourselves!

In case you are interested in learning more about our trips, just visit the Costa Rica trips section of our Web page at: www.sportsfornature.com/trips. Remember, a good portion of the proceeds from each trip directly benefit the environment via a donation to a local green organization in Costa Rica. As always, we believe in profit, but most importantly, making sure we help nature too, that is the main goal for all our actions.

The Sports for Nature Team is currently busy promoting the tennis and golf trips, as well as looking for sponsors for 2011. We are confident that we will receive support from companies that believe that the environment needs our help now, and that a great way to support nature is by providing funds and free publicity to environmental organizations that protect nature for a living, and have been doing so for a very long time. We see it as a way to empower green organizations to do what they do best.

I will keep you posted on our progress and please wish us the best of luck, since the more support we can obtain, the more events we can produce, and the more we can help this planet become an even better place!

To everyone one of you who has supported Sports for Nature for over three years now, we want to thank you for your generosity, without you our dream to make this world a better place would have died a while ago. Instead, Sports for Nature is growing steady and hopefully will continue to do so.

Next time I write I will announce a very cool Party for Nature event that we have in the works. This event I’m sure, will blow everyone away for its originality. Plus, the organization we are benefiting is local and they do a terrific job in protecting our natural resources.

Have a wonderful week, please don’t forget to have fun, and go green!!

Regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature through sports

Healthier people in a healthier world

www.sportsfornature.com - Harnessing the power of sports to save the planet

Sports for Nature by Milo Barajas-Alexander

2010-07-30T13:58:00.000-07:00

Milo Barajas-Alexander has been an integral part of the Sports for Nature Team this summer and the following is what he wrote about Sports for Nature:

Sports For Nature is an empowering movement that combines fun, athletic events with the opportunity to appreciate all the resources and beauty that our Earth holds, and to help restore it by raising as much funds as possible to assist in that process. Costa Rica is home to the most beautiful rainforests in the world, but like most rainforests, is at risk. With the help and partnership of Amigos of Costa Rica, Alaska Wilderness League, Defenders of Wildlife, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and Marviva, we can take advantage of the resources we have and use our funds to benefit a greater cause.

To me, the concept of Sports For Nature is to take care of, save, and restore our most important asset, the environment. As an athlete, I enjoy the idea of using sport to encourage others to become active in Sports for Nature’s great cause. These days, the prosperity of the environment is a great issue, asking more of people in developed nations to combine their resources and look for ways to diminish environmental damage, while searching for ways to fix those faults we have already caused as inhabitants on this Earth.

Sports for Nature unites people with a common goal: of benefitting the environment. We do, however, approach this benefit with a different thought in mind, the fun we have organizing and carrying out events is unmatched and unique to Sports for Nature. Those people, united through their interest to benefit the environment, also find similarities through sports, and the talent they can put to use in our many impressive tournaments and events.

There is no greater cause than helping the world we live in. Sports for Nature is the future, and I have felt so lucky to be a part of it.

Thank you Milo!!

Life is good, green is even better

2010-07-22T18:39:00.001-07:00

Hola,

I hope you are doing well and life is good! The Sports for Nature Team is busy as always, people are registering for our tennis and golf trips to Costa Rica and in a week and a half we have a big concert (our first concert by the way!), with El Parque, a legendary group from Costa Rica. Things are looking good right now and tickets are selling well so we are excited and can’t wait to have lots of fun listening to El Parque’s old hits as well as their brand new album!

The Sports for Nature Team is also going to Costa Rica right after the concert for the Tennis Clinics for Nature event with ex ATP Tour Pro player Juan Antonio Marin. This event benefits a new organization that we have not partnered with before - Fundación Keto. They have vital projects in Osa Peninsula, the southern part of Costa Rica. These projects provide the necessary tools to local communities to make a profit from environmental services, so that nature wins and they win as well. I think that’s the way it should always be, or at least most of the time. It’s a bit unrealistic to lock nature; instead it might make more sense to make good use of it with good input from scientists and locals keeping busy and making money to support their families.

After the events mentioned above coming up, we hit the ground running again and get ready for Golf for Nature and a Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar in mid August. The polar bear as always, will make one of his famous appearances and make the crowd go wild.

I’ve always been amazed at the concept of Sports for Nature in the sense that it provides people with very fun moments and without even noticing it, we are all directly helping the environment. That is the fuel that makes us work so hard at growing the Sports for Nature concept every day, helping nature while making people have fun and smile. After all, life is short and putting smiles on people’s faces is priceless. And putting a “smile” on an animal, is beyond that, it’s heavenly 

Lastly, in the past couple of weeks I want to thank all the people that have written to us and given us incredible suggestions on what new sporting events to produce that we can tie to nature. Special thanks go out to Kelly for the very original suggestions. I think we will follow-up on some of the suggestions. Please keep on sending us ideas, the Sports for Nature Team welcomes your feedback and truly appreciates it!

I gotta run now, friends are waiting for me at a restaurant next door to have dinner and relax for a while.

Go green, go Sports for Nature!

Saludos cordiales a todos!

Jorge

Sports + nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports

www.sportsfornature.com

Environment rocks!

2010-07-12T14:16:00.000-07:00

Hello,

I hope everyone has been doing great! I just came back from a week-long vacation to the Outer Banks and boy, was it fun! I took my first surfing lessons and really enjoyed it. So much that I think I am going back to the beach for several days very soon to keep on practicing and hopefully become a good surfer soon.

The Sports for Nature Team has been very busy as always, focusing on the upcoming concert that we have here in DC on July 31st with legendary rock band from Costa Rica, El Parque, which should be a very fun event. Plus, this is the first concert that we are producing under the Sports for Nature brand so we are all very excited. It benefits the environmental non-profit Amigos of Costa Rica so it is a Concert for Nature! Not exactly a sport, but we saw a great opportunity in this event to raise funds for an awesome green organization, so why not produce it?!

On another note, we are very excited that people continue to register for both our golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica. Last week we had one more player register for the December tennis trip and the week before one person registered for the January golf trip. Through these trips, we try to help local Costa Rican environmental organizations with funds. Before every trip to Costa Rica we either decide what green organization will be the recipient, or as we did in a few occasions, we present info from several local charities to the participants and they get to decide which one obtains the available funds.

Costa Rica presents many different activities that participants can do while they are down there, and for many of them it is their first time there, so it is a very special trip. We do try to make sure through, that all participants play a ton of their favorite sport, either golf or tennis; and Paradisus Playa Conchal is a treat because they have an award winning golf course and four beautiful lighted tennis courts that players always love.

Ok, enough about our golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica, now I want to mention exciting news that everyone at Sports for Nature is stoked about, our new Web page is up and running! Check it out at www.sportsfornature.com! Send us a note if you have a chance to visit the page and let us know what you think. Any feedback is greatly appreciated as we are always looking for ways to improve.

Gotta run now, I’m off to play some tennis after I leave the office in a bit! On behalf of the Sports for Nature Team, I wish you all an awesome week. I’ll be in touch again very soon!

Go green.

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting Nature Through Sports

www.sportsfornature.com

What does Sports for Nature represent to me?

2010-06-23T19:20:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

Hope you are doing well! The Sports for Nature Team is busy as always. We are working on several events at the same time so juggling lots of details and a have a big to-do list, but very happy to know that hopefully all our hard work will truly make a difference for nature.

We are still very shocked from the news we keep receiving about the oil spill on the gulf and hope that this can be resolved soon to minimize the impact on the environment (if that is even possible). We know though, that even the most positive outlook on this mega environmental disaster, is very pessimistic. In the meantime, at Sports for Nature we will continue to do everything we can to help the environment one little bit at a time.

The other day I met someone that asked me what I did for a living, and curious enough, I actually hesitated before answering. That got me thinking about what I do everyday and what Sports for Nature represents to me, and it occurred to me that this is the happiest I have ever been in my life at work. Sports for Nature is so meaningful to me that I would not even call it work, I would call it an organized hobby (that I do for many hours a week!) and that I would do even for free. I have always believed that win-win situations are ideal to be involved in and I think Sports for Nature is exactly that, a win-win activity that benefits environmental organizations with funds and publicity, it benefits our company, it benefits the participants because they have a good time and exercise, and it benefits sponsoring companies because they receive publicity. The idea of harnessing the power of sports to help our planet is something that we hope continues to grow consistently because sports is a huge force in this world, and nature needs all the help it can get. A match made in heaven!

By the way, my answer to the person that asked me what I do was “I help produce green sporting events”. From now on I think my answer will be “I am passionate about the environment so I get to be very happy by helping nature through a unique initiative called Sports for Nature”. Answer too long? Might be, but at least it shows a glimpse of what Sports for Nature represents to me.

And lastly, the new Sports for Nature Web page is almost ready, hopefully by next week when I tough base again, it will be up and running!

Have a great rest of the week and … go green!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature through sports

“Healthier people in a healthier world”

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature Team is busy

2010-06-11T11:14:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you are doing well. Here in the DC area the warm (and most of the time humid!) weather has arrived and the Sports for Nature Team is busy with lots of projects and events.

This week we are working hard to have the new Sports for Nature Website ready by next week. We are all excited about this and can’t wait to show it to everyone! It will be much easier to navigate and will have a much more appealing appearance than our current page.

We are also promoting the two big events that we have in Costa Rica in July and August. One with tennis star Juan Antonio Marin and the other one with the world famous author, speaker and mountain climber, Jaime Viñals. Both events are shaping up to be very successful and with lots of media coverage. This translates into lots of funds and exposure for the recipient green organizations: Keto Foundation and Programa de Aliados del Cambio Climático (ACC); in English this means the Program of Alliances Against Climate Change. This is the first collaboration with these two environmental organizations so we look forward to starting a long lasting relationship with them and helping out in any way we can.

The Sports for Nature trips to Costa Rica are also being heavily promoted right now among tennis and golf players mainly in the Washington, DC and surrounding areas. We are receiving numerous inquiries related to both the tennis and golf trips and six people have signed up so far for the December, January and February trips. Very exciting!

The second annual Golf for Nature is underway as well. We are finalizing the promotional materials as I write these words and starting next week we will start circulating these materials among thousands of residents of the Washington, DC area. This year we are shooting for about 100 to 120 players, but hopefully it will be more than that number. The organization that we are benefiting in this event is Amigos of Costa Rica, a great environmental charity that helps protect imperiled habitat in Costa Rica and Central America.

Ok, have to run now to a meeting, I will be in touch next week. I hope everyone has a great weekend! Go green!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature Through Sports

“Healthier people in a healthier world”

www.sportsfornature.com

Play Tennis and Golf in Costa Rica

2010-05-19T08:32:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you are doing well! I want to dedicate today’s blog to our Sports for Nature Trips to Costa Rica.

We have been producing golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica for three seasons now and going to the gorgeous, five-star, all inclusive, all butler, Paradisus Playa Conchal Resort, located in Conchal Beach in the Northwestern part of Costa Rica.

Our golf and tennis trips run from December to March (summer time in Costa Rica!). We have one trip in each of the sports every month for a total of eight trips per year. The common theme in each of our trips is that everyone gets to play a ton of either tennis or golf in the mornings and then in the afternoon and evenings, all participants get to enjoy the full array of activities that Paradisus Playa Conchal has to offer, such as sailing, Jet Ski, horse back riding along the beach, ATV tours, spa treatments, ecotourism excursions, volcano tours, and plenty more.

There are also several different restaurants in the resort, each one with a different theme and type of food, so no matter what you like, you will probably find it at Paradisus Playa Conchal. Needless to say, Paradisus is truly paradise on Earth, and not only do the participants of the trips have a blast, but we also have lots of fun running them!

And in keeping with the Sports for Nature tradition, we donate a good portion of the proceeds from every trip to a local environmental organization in Costa Rica.

So, if you like to play tennis or golf, and want a unique and unforgettable international experience, please consider participating in one of our trips, we promise you will not regret it!

Follow this link to view our Golf Trips to Costa Rica e-brochure:

www.thegreenbusinessworld.com/GolfLatest.pdf

Follow this link to view our Tennis Trips to Costa Rica e-brochure:

www.thegreenbusinessworld.com/TennisLatest.pdf

Paradisus Playa Conchal on the Web: www.paradisus-playa-conchal.com

Our new Sports for Nature Website is almost ready so please stay tuned and we will let you know once it is ready to officially be announced.

The Sports for Nature team is busy as always and working on several exciting events for the remainder of this year and 2011. The idea of nature and sports working together for good causes continues to inspire us and makes us believe that we can truly make a difference in this world!

Kind regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature. Through Sports

“Healthier people in a healthier world”

www.sportsfornature.com

Great trip to Costa Rica

2010-05-12T10:19:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone!

I hope you are doing well. The Sports for Nature Team is back from a busy trip to Costa Rica last week. We really enjoyed our time down there even though we worked round the clock to get everything done that we needed to do. We were preparing for two big events down there at the end of July and beginning of August with sporting celebrities Juan Antonio Marín, Jaime Viñals and Warner Rojas.

The tennis clinics with Juan Antonio Marín we are doing again because of popular demand from the tennis community in Costa Rica. Many people could not participate in our first Tennis for Nature with Mr. Marin in March, so they asked us to produce another event with him, and that is precisely what we are doing! This time around the most prestigious tennis club in the country is hosting the event – Cariari Country Club.

And the event with Jaime Viñals and Warner Rojas is a never-before-seen event in Costa Rica and practically in Latin America. It combines team building exercises, seminars, a 5-mile nature walk on a mountain and even an interactive show with these experts in mountain climbing in the biggest mall in the country! The event is aimed at employees from private companies in Costa Rica and should bring a very unique experience to the participants, as well as productive. Way better than spending another day in the office or cube, right?! Oh, and did I mention that the majority of the funds will benefit a green organization called Aliados de Cambio Climático (ACC) in Costa Rica? Enough said!

Last week we focused on meeting with the different sponsors, host hotels and conference centers for these events, and reviewing all logistics with SM Producciones, the company that will be providing internal logistical support to us for these events. All the pieces of the puzzle for these events are coming along very well and we should be good to go to officially start promoting them soon. Can’t wait!

We’re also working on a new Sports for Nature Webpage and planning three other events for the end of the year. Just as a hint, they involve poker, soccer and tennis, on a major scale. More details coming soon!

By the way, if you are not doing anything this Friday night, please stop by Tattoo Bar in the heart of K Street in Washington, DC to enjoy our latest Party for Nature, starts at 10pm. We are benefiting the Alaska Wilderness League so the dancing polar bear will be in attendance. Should be a fun one!

In the meantime, please remember to have some fun because life is short, and be as green as you can because our dear environment can use all the help it can get.

Kindest regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature. Through Sports.

“Healthier people in a healthier world”

Sports for Nature on the Web: www.sportsfornature.com

Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar…WOW!

2010-04-20T19:18:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

This week we are celebrating Earth Day, so please take some time if you can to think of ways in which you can reduce your impact on the planet in your daily lives. Even if it’s a very small change, it still makes a difference; and you never know, it might even save you some money by doing so. For example, next time you eat at a fast food restaurant, use 1 less napkin than you usually do. This is just one example of thousands that can have a big positive impact for the environment. Go green!

Ok, so Party for Nature at Tattoo Bar in Washington, DC was simply, the best party in town that night, and perhaps for the entire weekend in the city! The dancing polar bear rocked the house with her moves and the crowd sure responded by dancing the night away. It was a packed house from start to finish that enjoyed every tune that the DJ played. A mix of top 40 hits and 80’s was exactly what attendees needed, because people did not stop pouring in the venue all night long. Very exciting considering that the benefiting organization was the Alaska Wilderness League. I must confess that the Sports for Nature Team was a bit tired the next day, but it was all worth it! Please visit the Sports for Nature Facebook Group page to view all photos from the party.

Everyone in the Sports for Nature Team is very excited about the upcoming events – Mountain Climbing for Nature, Tennis Clinics with Juan Antonio Marin for Nature II and Golf for Nature. Plus, a surprise Party for Nature in the weeks to come. These events mean lots of work and discipline on our behalf, but we are sure excited to be producing them! For Mountain Climbing for Nature we have two of the best climbers in Latin American history, and that’s just the start of it, because the event’s format is very unique and sure to cause a positive impact in the host country, Costa Rica.

I’ll provide more details about these events next time around. In the meantime, I hope you have a great week, and please, whatever you do, have fun doing it because life is short and happiness is priceless!

Go nature, go Sports for Nature!

Sports for Nature = Protecting Nature. Through Sports

Healthier people in a healthier world.

www.sportsfornature.com

More events coming up...and a new Sports for Nature Web page!

2010-04-06T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

Hope you had a great Easter Weekend! The Sports for Nature team as always, is going 100 miles per hour with lots of work in order to harness the immense power of sports towards protecting nature.

This weekend we have two very fun events, the first one is a new Party for Nature at the fabulous location Tattoo Bar located in the heart of K Street in Washington, DC. This event benefits the Alaska Wilderness League and starts at 10pm in case you live in the DC area and want to stop by. The dancing polar bear will be present so you will not want to miss this! Please visit www.sportsfornature.com to view the official event flyer with all the details.

Our second event this weekend is the classic Soccer for Nature IV Tournament at the Dulles Sports Plex. This event will be going on both Saturday and Sunday and the best amateur teams in the DC area will be participating and battling it out on the field to win great prizes.

Besides the Sports for Nature events that I just mentioned, for this summer we are working on many events, including Golf for Nature, several Party for Nature’s in the hottest night spots in the DC area, a second Tennis for Nature event in Costa Rica with the participation of professional ATP Tour players and a Climbing for Nature in Costa Rica as well, at the end of July. This last event will probably feature the two best mountain climbers in Latin America. To say the least, this event will be very unique and sure to get very good media attention in Central America.

Exciting plans and news, so I will keep you posted on new details regarding the upcoming events. Oh…and forgot to mention, a brand new Sports for Nature Web page in under way! We should have it ready very soon, should be very refreshing and appealing to visitors. We will send out an e-mail blast to the entire Sports for Nature database once it’s ready!

Have a great week and talk to you soon! Go green!

Sports for Nature: Protecting Nature. Through Sports

Healthier People in a Healthier World.

Sports for Nature on the Web – www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature - Updates from our trip to Costa Rica!

2010-03-19T15:11:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

The Sports for Nature Team just got back from Costa Rica and what a trip it was! We are exhausted from working hard in the Juan Antonio Marin event and then at Party for Nature in Rapsodia Lounge (although I must confess that during Party for Nature we drank a beer or two in between work)!

The Tennis for Nature Juan Antonio Marin event exceeded all expectations. The clinics directed by the famous Costa Rican ATP Tour player were packed and all available spots were taken. And then at night, the exhibition matches were outstanding. Juan showed everyone why he was a consistent top 50 player in the world for over 6 seasons. He played singles and doubles against the best Costa Rican players and won all singles matches quite handedly. He won all doubles matches as well, except for the last one he played with Francisco Conejo against the # 1 doubles team in Costa Rica, Kenneth Thome and Jose Carlos Hidalgo; they beat Marin/Conejo in the tie breaker 8-7. This was a very entertaining match that fans loved.

Tennis fans in Costa Rica showed great appreciation for Juan Antonio Marin and everything that he has done for the sport in the country. This became especially apparent during the final ceremony the last night of the 3-day event where we gave Juan a crystal plaque to honor his outstanding career. There were also numerous speeches given by different tennis associations in Costa Rica, several of his ex Davis Cup Teammates and the current Costa Rican Davis Cup Captain, Jose Carlos Hidalgo. Juan was overwhelmed by this show of appreciation and delivered a great speech at the end thanking everyone for this kind gesture. Fans in the stands cheered his name and applauded for over 4 minutes, this showed how much people appreciate Juan and what he represents for Costa Rica.

We are currently working on a second Tennis for Nature event in Costa Rica in December with Juan Antonio Marin and other international tennis stars from the ATP Tour. I will provide details to everyone very soon once we start confirming names, dates, venues, etc. Very exciting!

And lastly, I want to mention that Party for Nature at Rapsodia Lounge was a hit as well! Over 200 people came out that night to celebrate, have a good time with their friends and help the environment. The great big lion stole the show though, everyone wanted a photo with him and he was quite a hit in the dance floor as well. You will not want to miss the photos in our Sports for Nature Facebook Group Page. They are hilarious!

Ok, off to go home and enjoy the weekend, finally! Weather right now outside here in the Washington, DC area is 70 degrees and sunny, can’t be better. I hope wherever you are located at, weather is nice as well. Have a great weekend and remember to have fun and be green!

So long from the Sports for Nature desk, I’ll be in touch next week with more updates regarding upcoming events. Our next one in a few weeks is Soccer for Nature so I’ll give you all the 411 on that event!

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature, through sports

Healthier people in a healthier world!

www.sportsfornature.com

Go green!

Sports for Nature’s Event with Juan Antonio Marin, Costa Rica

2010-02-19T14:51:00.000-08:00

Hello all,

Sorry, it has been at least a couple of weeks since I’ve been able to write you a message. The Sports for Nature Team has been very busy working on our upcoming event in Costa Rica with tennis star, Juan Antonio Marin. We expect thousands of spectators and let me tell you, coordinating the logistics for this has not been easy. The good news is that everyone at Sports for Nature has quite a bit of fun working in these events. This particular event is benefiting the MarViva Foundation, an excellent Central America based non-profit that protects the sea and its biodiversity in the Caribbean.

We have already confirmed for the exhibition matches the current best tennis players in Costa Rica. They will all be playing against Juan Antonio Marin, making this a very exciting event. This line-up of tennis stars has never been seen in Costa Rican history before so spectators will be treated to some great tennis that’s all in favor of the environment and green initiatives.

The event will also have lots of food and merchandise vendors, DJ’s playing music and a performance from the famous Costa Rican chorus Cámara Surá; plus, lots of interactive contests with the audience and models performing to today’s popular music. What a show this will be! Local Costa Rican TV stations will be present taping the event so we expect high ratings for this tennis and nature celebration.

Juan Antonio Marin has been giving interviews in the last couple of weeks to local media and carrying out the message that tennis in Costa Rica, in order for it to have success in the international stage, needs to be more affordable to everyone, that public courts need to be built around the country and tennis eventually will take off. Right now soccer is the main sport for Costa Rica but we hope to change that with initiatives such as the present Sports for Nature event.

I’ll be in touch next week with updates on our Soccer for Nature and Golf for Nature events coming up in the next few months. I’ll also provide an update on our Party for Nature event also in Costa Rica on Friday, March 12, 2010 at the popular Rapsodia Lounge in the heart of San Jose.

I hope you all have a great weekend and please keep on visiting the Sports for Nature Website for updates on events in your favorite sport!

Kindest regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature, through sports

Healthier people in a healthier world!

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature and Costa Rica Events

2010-01-28T19:08:00.001-08:00

Hi,

I hope everyone is doing well. We have been BUSY lately coordinating logistics for the Sports for Nature event in Alajuela, Costa Rica on March 4th, 5th and 6th featuring tennis star Juan Antonio Marin at the Conejo Tennis Academy. This will be a very exciting event with tennis clinics scheduled for three days in a row directed by Mr. Marin, and then every night we are planning on having a true party with great exhibition matches between Juan Antonio Marin and the best tennis players from Costa Rica. There will be a singles match and a doubles match played every night and in between we will be running lots of contests on the main show court interacting with the spectators and giving away cool tennis merchandise as prizes. We will also have a DJ playing everyone’s favorite tunes and a daily show performed by Costa Rica’s top dancing models. You will not want to miss this!

Press coverage for this Sports for Nature event has been outstanding so far and we expect lots more to come before the start. And on the last day, we will be formally thanking Mr. Marin for his outstanding tennis career as an ATP Tour player, reaching a top ranking of # 55 in the world in 1999.

Let’s also not forget Tennis for Nature at Worldgate Sport & Health Club on Saturday, February 13th. An event open to all Washington, DC Metropolitan Area tennis players (register now at: www.sportsfornature.com). This event includes an after party at Jackson’s in the Reston Town Center, a place with a fun atmosphere and great food.

Please support Sports for Nature by participating in any of our events, joining our Facebook group or simply making a small donation to any of the charities that we support. By doing this you will be helping all of us live in a healthier planet.

On behalf of the Sports for Nature team, I would like to express our gratitude to all the people that in some way or another support our efforts. Also, without our sponsoring companies, this initiative would not be possible, so a big thank you!

I’ll be in touch next week with more updates.

Go green!

Kindest regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature through sports

Healthier people in a healthier world

www.sportsfornature.com

Busy with lots of Sports for Nature events!

2010-01-16T08:21:00.001-08:00

Hello friends,

I hope everyone is doing well and had a great week! I’m glad it’s the weekend because the Sports for Nature Team had one of the busiest weeks to date coordinating logistics and securing sponsorships for different events in the next couple of months.

As I had mentioned we are producing a Tennis for Nature event in Costa Rica on March 4th, 5th and 6th with star ATP Tour Player Juan Antonio Marin. He is one of the best tennis players in recent Latin American history and is very enthusiastic about participating in this event because it’s benefiting an awesome environmental organization – MarViva Foundation. The funds from this event are going towards helping local farmers in the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica to find sustainable ways to make a better use of their land. The objective is for them to create income while being in harmony with nature. Gladly, sponsorships for this event have been secured so this helps free funds for the environmental charity.

Another event that we are working on is Tennis for Nature at Worldgate Sport & Health Club on February 13th. We are very excited about this event because since we sent the promotional piece out this week to all Washington, DC tennis players, the response has been tremendous. We expect many players to participate and since it’s Valentine’s Day weekend, we are inviting both singles and couples to show up and spend a great day out on the courts. Then we’ll all go to Jackson’s Restaurant and Bar for the after party!

The event is benefiting the Alaska Wilderness League as well as Habitat for Humanity. This is the first time that a Sports for Nature event is providing funds to an organization who’s main mission is not strictly environmental, but in light of the tragic event that occurred recently in Haiti, we are making an exception and hope to raise lots of funds to aid in the long reconstruction process for Haiti in the years to come. Our prayers go out to every person that has been affected negatively by this event. We feel deeply sorry for the human loss and hope that Haiti can rebound quickly from this and start taking steps towards getting back to normal.

The other main event that we have been working on is a Party for Nature in Washington, DC. The location is still to be determined but we hope to have everything set and ready to go soon. During this event, we will also allocate a portion of the funds to Habitat for Humanity.

On behalf of the Sports for Nature Team, I wish you all a wonderful weekend and hope that you appreciate everything that you have - mostly family and friends - because as we were reminded recently with the events in Haiti and in other times in history, things can change quickly so we need to make every day of our lives count!

As always, go green!

Kindest regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature through sports

Healthier people in a healthier world!

http://www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature in 2010

2010-01-06T16:08:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

I hope that everybody had a wonderful and green Holiday Season! We were very busy in Costa Rica but of course, we were able to take some time off after the events to go to the beach and relax. It was 85 degrees and sunny everyday down there and when we got back to Washington, DC it was 25 degrees with a wind chill in the teens; so needless to say, the Sports for Nature Team was a bit sad but at the same time, ready to hit the ground running in 2010.

Right now we are working on four different events for the next six weeks: a new Party for Nature in Washington, DC at a place that still needs to be determined, a “Fiesta por la Naturaleza” or Party for Nature in Costa Rica on March 13th, a Tennis for Nature event at Worldgate Sport & Health Club in Herndon, Virginia; and a very cool event in Costa Rica with famous tennis player Juan Antonio Marin on March 4th, 5th and 6th. This event consists of a series of tennis clinics and exhibition matches involving Mr. Marin that will be sure to rock the tennis world in Costa Rica. Players down there go crazy with the sole mention of his name in conversations. And following the Sports for Nature tradition, the event will benefit a local environmental organization!

We are also working on events for March and April that will involve new sports such as racquetball, baseball and basketball so we are extremely excited about all this!

I’ll keep everyone updated on all these events once more details become available. In the meantime, if you are located in most of the continental United States right now, please stay warm and have a cup of hot cocoa tonight.

Best regards on behalf of the entire Sports for Nature team!

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature through sports

Our goal: Healthier people in a healthier world

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature…from a participant’s perspective

2009-12-15T14:11:00.000-08:00

Hola,

I hope you are doing well and that the holidays bring you joy, health and many blessings.

The Sports for Nature team is in Costa Rica right now. Our first event went very well and now we are getting ready to run a second green event this weekend. Plus, we have several meetings in the next few days with promoters, club owners and tennis instructors to set-up two events here in March of 2010 - a Party for Nature and a Tennis for Nature with famed Costa Rican ATP Tour tennis player Juan Antonio Marin. He is now retired and lives in Spain but is very interested in helping good environmental organizations through a Sports for Nature event. How exciting is that!

I wanted to share with you a very nice letter that we received from a participant from one of our previous Tennis for Nature events that was held in Washington, DC. Here are a few paragraphs from this letter…

“I want to take this opportunity to thank the staff at The Green Business for the efforts in helping nature. My husband and I had a blast at your Sports for Nature event and felt great that we were also benefiting good environmental organizations in the process. We both know that the economy right now is not the best and donations have decreased, so every little bit helps.

Please find enclosed a small donation for your green organizations and please keep up the great work! Happy Holidays, Vicky”

I thought it would be nice to share this note with you since we were very surprised to receive it. We know that we are not only helping environmental organizations with funds, but also creating green awareness in general. That is the common goal for everyone in the Sports for Nature team.

Thank you for your continued support and when you have a moment, please visit any of the following Web pages to obtain information on incredible green projects going on around the world. Also, if you can afford a small donation, please help the environment!

www.alaskawild.org

www.defenders.org

www.nfwf.org

www.marviva.net

www.amigosofcostarica.org

Have a great weekend!

Kindest regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature, protecting nature through sports

Healthier people in a healthier world. Go green!

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature - Green Holiday Tips!

2009-12-01T07:57:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! The Sports for Nature Team is getting ready to leave for Costa Rica in less than a week to hopefully produce a very successful event down there and raise funds for effective environmental organizations.

As we get ready for another holiday season, here are some tips that can help make your holidays green.

10 ways to make your holidays sustainable:

1. Recycle your Christmas tree (visit www.earth911.org or call 1-800-CLEANUP)
2. Use dishes, silverware & cloth napkins instead of disposable utensils & paper products
3. Avoid keeping your holiday lights on all night
4. When cooking with your oven, avoid constantly opening the door (temperature will drop 25 degrees every time you do)
5. Try sending e-cards when it’s possible, this will save paper
6. Try making ornaments at home with items you would normally recycle. Be creative! (hints: toothpicks, popsicle sticks, old calendar pictures, old Christmas wrap & holiday cards, paper towel cardboard rolls)
7. When you buy wrapping paper, look for ones made of recycled paper
8. Turn off heating when you leave for long periods of time
9. When booking a hotel, make an effort to stay in an environmentally friendly place (visit www.greenhotels.com)
10. Ask about alternative fuel vehicles when renting a car

Remember, it only takes a small commitment to help the environment.

Next time I write to you all it will be from Costa Rica! Have a great rest of the week and please remember to visit the Sports for Nature Web site (www.sportsfornature.com) for announcements on upcoming events.

PS: Announcement - Even though this is not a Party for Nature event, this upcoming Friday, December 4th, Josephine’s Management and DC promoters Nightlife Agency have kindly donated a portion of the night’s proceeds to one of Sports for Nature’s star environmental organizations, the Alaska Wilderness League! This is truly a great opportunity to help the polar bear habitat in Alaska while socializing in DC’s most exclusive hot spot.

So, if you are in the Washington, DC area this week, come to Josephine Lounge on Friday, December 4th starting at 9:30pm and help Alaska conservation!

Kindest regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting Nature through Sports

Go green!

Links:

www.alaskawild.org

www.sportsfornature.com

www.thegreenbusinessworld.com

More Sports for Nature Updates

2009-11-20T08:31:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you all have had a great week so far and that your Friday goes by fast so you can start the weekend. I know I am ready to start it myself!

As always, it’s been a busy week for the Sports for Nature Team. I must say that helping the environment is not easy, but it sure is rewarding and we love what we do. We have been in negotiations with several venues for a possible Party for Nature event in Washington, DC in December, although nothing is set in stone at this point. I will let you know as soon as this event becomes a reality.

We have also been busy fine tuning the Sports for Nature 2010 events calendar. I think next year will be very exciting, with many new sports being added to our repertoire such as baseball, racquetball, squash, basketball and Ultimate Frisbee. The whole Sports for Nature team can’t wait until we start working on these events to hopefully raise thousands of dollars for great environmental organizations around the world.

The Sports for Nature Team is also traveling to Costa Rica most of December to work on a Tennis for Nature event down there, or should I say “Tennis por la Naturaleza” and also to meet the promoters of our upcoming Party for Nature event in San Jose, Costa Rica in February. We are eager to see how the Costa Ricans will react to such an event and also curious about how many funds we can raise. We expect a good acceptance of the event since Costa Rica has always been a very environmentally friendly country, with solid initiatives such as having over 25% of their territory in perpetual conservation. We hope this environmental culture which stems down from the government all the way down to its citizens will help Sports for Nature and Party for Nature have an incredibly successful first event!

We sure hope to see you soon at one of our events and please don’t hesitate to send me a message anytime if you would like to talk or have any questions about Sports for Nature. Also, feel free to join our Facebook Group anytime to keep updated on all our upcoming events. Simply log-in Facebook and search for the “Sports for Nature” group.

Next week I will be talking about the many ways you can stay green during the holidays. Stay tuned.

Have a great weekend! Go green! Go environment!

Kindest regards,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports.

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature News

2009-11-12T12:37:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you are doing well and that today has been a great day so far! The Sports for Nature team is busy planning a few more events to hopefully finish off the year on a great note! They will both be Party for Nature’s with the first one being in Washington, DC and the second one in San Jose, Costa Rica…our first international Party for Nature, very exciting! More details to come on both those events soon.

I am happy to report that Party for Nature at Eye Bar was a success. We had several reporters and photographers attend the event so the Alaska Wilderness League received very good media exposure and they will also obtain a good donation from the event. The star of the night was of course the giant, friendly and dancing polar bear! Everyone wanted to have their photo taken with him and he also got quite a few people on the dance floor. He was also the star of the night because the reason we decided to produce this event is to help save the polar bear habitat in Alaska. According to recent studies, their habitat is being affected negatively at an alarming rate so much help is needed in order to help save these wonderful creatures. If you would like to make a donation anytime to the Alaska Wilderness League, please do so at: www.alaskawild.org.

Please support Sports for Nature events and come out to meet the staff of the great organizations that we are honored to help. The passion for the environment that every staff person shows from these organizations is nothing less than inspiring. This makes the work that we do at Sports for Nature easy and energizing every day.

Soon we will be posting photos from the event at Eye Bar in our Sports for Nature Facebook Group. I will keep everyone updated when they are ready. I can assure you that the polar bear is in almost all of them and being the center of attention!

Environment…sports…nature…fun…Sports for Nature! We hope to see you soon at one of our events, perhaps you will even get to meet the friendly polar bear, he he.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Best,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Promoting conservation through sports

www.sportsfornature.com

GO GREEN! BE A FRIEND TO OUR ENVIRONMENT

Party for Nature at Eye Bar in Washington, DC tonight!

2009-11-06T08:52:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone!

The Sports for Nature Team is very excited about the big Party for Nature tonight at Eye Bar! Hundreds of guests are expected to come and everything will be benefiting the Alaska Wilderness League, an excellent organization that works hard to protect Alaska’s environment.

The main attraction of the night will no doubt be the dancing six-foot polar bear! This will create plenty of attention and I’m sure all the photographers will be going crazy for him. I saw him yesterday practicing his dance moves and it was looking good. Plus, he will want to be the star of the party because the proceeds will be helping his fragile surroundings in Alaska.

Sports for Nature has provided $238,000 so far to environmental organizations and we hope that tonight this amount will be made a lot bigger; especially considering that Alaska is one of the places that according to scientists, is being greatly affected by the rise in temperatures in the world. This is why the Sports for Nature Team picked the Alaska Wilderness League again to be a part of one of our events.

So remember, if you live in the DC area, please feel free to stop by Eye Bar tonight anytime after 9pm and help out the environment while having lots of fun. Hey, if you are lucky you might even get a chance to dance with the friendly polar bear!

Have a great weekend everyone, I’ll make sure to report back to you all after the big Party for Nature tonight!

Best,

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Promoting conservation through sports…and now through green parties as well!

www.sportsfornature.com

GO GREEN!

Sports for Nature New Updates

2009-10-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

The last couple of weeks have been very busy for the Sports for Nature Team so I’m sorry that I have not had a moment to blog and keep you all updated on what we have been up to.

Last week the World Cup Qualifier between the United States and Costa Rica was held at RFK Stadium and it was an exciting game. But the most exciting aspect of the game for us was that we were able to sell (through DC United) a good amount of tickets for fans attending the game. Tickets bought through our green initiative had no online processing fee and a portion of each ticket sale went directly to two great environmental organizations: MarViva and Amigos of Costa Rica. We are still awaiting word from DC United on the final amount of tickets that were sold under this green initiative and also how many funds were raised. Once we receive this information, we will go ahead and make the donation to the organizations, very exciting! A true example of sports and environment working hand in hand.

We also have more exciting news to report with respect to Party for Nature. Remember that Party for Nature is the part of Sports for Nature that helps raise funds for nature through events produced in Washington, DC nightly hotspots. It turns out that the companies DC A List and Red Rope Promotions are generously donating all proceeds from the cover at the main door at Shadow Room this Friday, October 23rd, 2009 to Sports for Nature environmental organizations. Shadow Room is a luxurious club located in downtown DC on K Street and should be a perfect venue for all guests to enjoy. This means going out and having a good time while helping nature! We will be there with the Sports for Nature models and posting all the details in the Sports for Nature Facebook Group very soon. Stay tuned, and if you live in the DC Metropolitan Area, come out, have fun and be green!

I will provide details very soon about our other exciting Party For Nature event coming up in November. We are still finalizing all the details so I don’t want to announce anything yet, but I can tell you that it is shaping out to be our biggest Party for Nature event to date. We hosted hundreds of guests in our last event and hope to make this one much bigger!

Please continue to check our updates on upcoming Sports for Nature events and always remember to play sports and help nature. Until next time. Go green, go Sports for Nature!

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

http://www.sportsfornature.com

Protecting nature through sports

Sports for Nature in 2010 and Party for Nature II announcement!

2009-09-25T07:43:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

It’s finally Friday so weekend is right around the corner! The Sports for Nature Team has had a very busy week. We have continued to work on our events schedule for 2010 and also finalizing the sponsorship brochure that we are getting ready to send out to green minded companies around the world that would like lots of publicity at the same time!

Our schedule for next year includes 20 different events in several sports and in five different states. Plus, we are planning to produce two Sports for Nature events in San Jose, Costa Rica. Also, if everything goes well, we are in the initial planning stages for introducing Sports for Nature to a country in South America, we don’t know exactly where at the moment, but I will keep everyone posted on this, very exciting!

For the month of November, we are going to have Party for Nature II in Washington, DC again. The first event was extremely successful and everyone’s feedback was very positive, so we want for this second celebration to build on the momentum from the first one. The host club has not been determined yet, but we know that the date will be either Friday, November 6th or Saturday, November 7th. Stay tuned for more details, this will be the biggest celebration in DC in the Fall!

A special thank you to all the individuals that support our efforts on a daily basis and also to all the generous sponsors. Without your help, Sports for Nature would not be possible. Our mission today remains the same as it has always been: Protecting nature through sports. Because we believe that healthy individuals and a healthy planet is a great combination!

Take care and go green!

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports

www.sportsfornature.com

2010 Sports for Nature Events News

2009-09-12T06:58:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

We hope you are doing well and enjoying the weekend. The Sports for Nature Team had a busy week as we are finalizing our schedule of events for 2010 and also getting ready to send out our 2010 Sports for Nature sponsorship brochure to companies. We hope that we can continue to grow and we need the support of our sponsors in order to do so.

Without our sponsors, Sports for Nature would not be possible! And the way we see it is, the more we can do to help the environment, the more we are helping ourselves and everyone else, because the environment sustains us all, simple as that!

Sports for Nature has big plans for 2010 with over 20 events planned in the sports of golf, soccer, tennis, racquetball, ultimate Frisbee, kickball, basketball, and squash! We will also continue to develop Party for Nature, Sports for Nature Trips and initiatives such as the one we have implemented in conjunction with DC United to raise funds for environmental organizations through the sale of tickets for fans for the World Cup Qualifier between Costa Rica and the United States. So far ticket sales are going very well, we hope to be able to sell all 3,000 tickets that have been reserved.

So please, continue to support the Sports for Nature initiative. Without you, this would not be possible! So far we have raised over $220,000 in contributions and over 4,400 players have participated in our events, plus thousands of spectators have attended.

Let’s make 2010 a very successful year to hopefully be able to raise much more funds and provide lots of exposure to great environmental organizations. Go green! Go sports! Go environment! Go nature! Go Sports for Nature! We will continue to protect nature through sports; that is our promise and our inspiration.

Enjoy your weekend, cheers!

Jorge Morera

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports

http://www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature news

2009-08-31T19:28:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you all had a great weekend! We sure did, the first ever Sports for Nature night party at Lima Restaurant and Lounge was a huge success. We are very happy to report that over 500 guests attended to support great environmental organizations.
Attendees danced, socialized, laughed and celebrated the night away!

Many attendees asked about the participating organizations and mentioned that they loved the idea of being able to go out and have fun while helping the environment. Because of this, we are confident that we will have another Party for Nature very soon! More details to follow on that very soon!

We are also very happy to report that tickets are now on sale for the Soccer World Cup Qualifier Match between the United States and Costa Rica at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC on October 14th, 2009.

For full details please go to: https://secure.dcunited.com/wcq-costa-rica

A portion of the funds from every ticket sale will be donated to two effective organizations: Amigos of Costa Rica and MarViva. So please support this initiative and come out to RFK and watch some great international soccer while being green!

The Sports for Nature team has many exciting projects in the works so please stay tuned for more details on everything coming soon.

Have a great rest of the week and go green!

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports™

www.sportsfornature.com

The Sports for Nature team is getting ready to Party for Nature!

2009-08-14T14:11:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope everybody is having a good week so far. Friday is finally here and in Washington DC the weather is very nice right now, so I am pretty excited to get out of the office soon and start enjoying the weekend!

At The Green Business we are all very excited about our upcoming Party for Nature event at Lima Restaurant and Lounge in downtown DC. I went to Lima last night with another colleague from the Sports for Nature team to come up with ideas on how to decorate the space for the night of Saturday the 29th.

We are also promoting Party for Nature on Facebook and other ways and the response so far has been terrific. This makes us even more excited about this exclusive night of green celebration and awareness. Our goal is to have a total attendance of 300 guests and it looks like we are we are taking solid steps towards that goal.

We want to create an experience for all attendees that will have them begging for more. The Sports for Nature models will be hosting the event and we have plenty of activities prepared throughout the night so I’m sure this will keep things lively.

Plus, Lima is an amazing venue featuring one of the best sound systems in DC, a 40 foot bar, three floors and an outside patio. That means will be having lots of fun and hopefully raising lots of funds for good environmental organizations!

To view the Party for Nature flyer, please go to www.sportsfornature.com

Come out and join us on the 29th.

Have a great weekend everyone, and be green!

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports

Party for Nature...more details!

2009-08-08T07:44:00.000-07:00

As I had mentioned in my previous post, Party for Nature is a very unique and innovative idea that is being produced by The Green Business and Prime Design and Marketing. In keeping with the Sports for Nature® principles, this event will benefit environmental organizations in a way that has never been seen before. Hundreds of individuals from the Washington DC Metropolitan Area will gather the night of Saturday, August 29th starting at 9:30pm at the exclusive DC hotspot Lima Restaurant and Lounge (www.limarestaurant.com) located in the heart of downtown Washington, DC for a night of celebration, green awareness and pure high-rolling fun. This event will include plenty of music, food, drink specials and games to please everyone’s taste. Plus, it will be hosted by the SFN models! The event will include initiatives such as the 100% recycling policy to reduce its own environmental footprint. There will be a $15 mandatory donation at the door that will include one free drink. If you want to reserve a table and/or be included on the guest list, please call 571-244-7248. Portion of the proceeds will directly benefit environmental organizations.

It gives us such pleasure to introduce this event to the Washington DC area. This is definitely Sports for Nature branching out with the objective of benefiting the environment in ways that have never been seen before. We hope to break barriers and raise lots of funds for environmental organizations that need it now more than ever, and produce an incredibly fun event that will have people begging for more. Go green!

So, if you live in the DC area or will be visiting during the weekend of the 29th, please consider joining us at Lima to support the event and most importantly, have some FUN!

For full details on this event and Sports for Nature, please visit www.sportsfornature.com.

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports

Party for Nature

2009-07-27T15:47:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you had a good weekend. We sure did! This past Friday we had our First Annual Golf for Nature Outing at Reston National Golf Course in Virginia and had a great time. We had fantastic weather, a big turnout and the staff from The Green Business, Reston National and Amigos of Costa Rica, plus all the event volunteers made sure that the event ran smoothly. A big thank you to everyone! We are definitely looking forward to our second golf outing next summer!

As I had mentioned in a previous blog, Sports for Nature has been diversifying its activities and looking for additional ways to raise funds for environmental organizations. In doing so, we are planning international golf and tennis trips to Costa Rica scheduled for the end of 2009 and beginning on 2010. But also, in the upcoming weeks we are producing our first ever Party for Nature! This is a very exciting concept that has the same goal as all of our other events, to raise funds and awareness for environmental causes. Only that this event intends to appeal to a younger audience and in a different setting. The host location of the event will be Lima Restaurant and Lounge on K Street in downtown Washington, DC, one the premier clubs in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area.

This event has the goal of attracting hundreds of young professionals that like to have fun and are eco conscious. And if some attendees are not aware of green issues, this might be a great opportunity to make an impact about all the issues that society today faces related to the environment. Also in keeping with the Sports for Nature tradition, we will take all steps possible to reduce the carbon footprint of the event itself; focusing on reusing and recycling as much as possible.

The staff at The Green Business is very excited about this event and hopes that it is a huge success that will allow many more events of its kind to take place. Thus, continuing to further green awareness and help good environmental organizations.

Go green and Sports for Nature!

Cheers everyone.

Sports for Nature = Healthier people in a healthier world

Protecting nature through sports

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature Update: Golf in Costa Rica

2009-07-17T12:41:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

It’s been a few weeks since I have written, I hope everything is going well wherever you may be. Another fast week has gone by and it’s Friday today, so happy Friday!

I wanted to let you know about another Sports for Nature initiative that we are working on called Golf in Costa Rica. Due to the great amount of interest in our tennis trips, and the fact that people kept asking us if we offered similar trips to Costa Rica but tailored to golfers, we have finally decided to offer four golf trips to Paradisus Playa Conchal Resort, located in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. This is the same resort where we take participants to enjoy a week of tennis and fun under the sun!

Paradisus Playa Conchal offers a private championship course designed by Robert Trent Jones II with majestic ocean views and surrounded by lush tropical forests. So we though this would be the ideal place to bring golfers to relax and enjoy a week of good golf (or at least try to play good golf, he he!). Each trip is limited to only eight players and we are offering trips in December of 2009 and January, February and March of 2010.

The staff at The Green Business is looking forward to making every one of our trips (golf and tennis) an unforgettable experience for each participant, and hopefully they can all leave Costa Rica with a big smile on their face and say: Pura vida! That is the Costa Rican saying for: Life is good!

For more information on our Golf in Costa Rica trips feel free to visit our Webpage at www.sportsfornature.com. Our e-brochure which is posted there contains all the information about these trips as well as Sports for Nature in general.

For all our trips, we provide a portion of the proceeds to a local environmental organization, that way we can try to balance out the impact that we have on the local environmental resources, thus reducing our footprint.

This is a constant for all Sports for Nature events, trying to protect nature though sports. We truly believe that every little bit of help counts, no matter how small it is; together we can all make a difference. Sports have the power to help nature in many ways. That is our main goal at Sports for Nature, to look for and implement opportunities to harness that power and raise funds for effective environmental organizations.

Stay tuned for details coming soon about our Party for Nature event in Washington, DC, you won’t want to miss it!

Have a fun and green weekend!

Cheers.

Sports for Nature = Protecting nature through sports

Sports + environment = Healthier people in a healthier world

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature® is branching out: Play tennis in Costa Rica

2009-06-26T08:52:00.000-07:00

Hello friends,

I want to let you know about a very exciting initiative that is part of Sports for Nature. It’s called Tennis in Costa Rica Trips. These are international vacations that our company organizes for tennis players that are interested in a tennis vacation to a beautiful spot in the world.

Costa Rica is a very environmentally friendly country so we thought it would be a great place to host these getaways. Trips are limited to only eight players and the host resort is Paradisus Playa Conchal, an all-suites five-star resort located in the province of Guanacaste, off the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica. And keeping with the Sports for Nature values, we provide a good portion of the proceeds from the trips directly to a local environmental organization. Not only that, but our instructors are very knowledgeable about the environment and nature, and how it has played a vital role in Costa Rica’s history. So we make sure participants are educated about the importance of nature in general and especially for a country like Costa Rica, which has about 4% of the world’s species of animals and plants.

Our goal with the Tennis in Costa Rica getaways is for all participants to have the tennis trip of a lifetime, an unforgettable experience, and also to help local effective environmental organizations. Costa Rica is a country that protects over 30% of its territory from development, so it would be good for this percentage to remain unchanged or be increased!

To find out more info about Tennis in Costa Rica please visit www.sportsfornature.com, you will find there our e-brochure will all the details about the trips.

I hope this note finds you well. It’s a good day today, it’s Friday so happy Friday to all of you and may your weekend be fun!

Cheers!

Sports for Nature: Promoting conservation through sports

Sports + environment = Healthier people in a healthier world

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature® Online Store

2009-06-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

I want to let you all know that the new Sports for Nature Online Store is ready. It features high quality products with the logos for our main green events: Soccer for Nature, Golf for Nature and Tennis for Nature.

To visit the green online store, please go to: http://www.sportsfornature.com

Play sports and support the environment, go Sports for Nature!

Sports + environment = Healthier people in a healthier world

Sports for Nature: Promoting conservation through sports

http://www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature® and FIFA World Cup Soccer Team Up for Green

2009-06-18T10:15:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

I hope you are all doing well and this note finds you in good spirits. I want to update you on a very cool initiative involving Sports for Nature®. The United States Men’s National Soccer Team plays against the Costa Rica Men’s National Soccer Team in the final match of World Cup Qualifying Stage at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC on October 14th, 2009. And thanks to the generous support of DC United (MLS host team for the event), we are able to reserve group tickets for this match and have the processing fee waived. The cool part is that we will add a small increase to the ticket price – only a fraction of what the processing fee would have been – and give a portion of the funds from every ticket sale directly to environmental organizations.

This creates a win-win situation for everyone in the sense that people who buy the ticket will pay a bit less than if they would have bought it at any other online ticket selling outlet, and at the same time they are helping the environment.

So, if you can save money and help the environment at the same time, why not do it, right? Well, there’s even better news, DC United is creating a special Web section within their official Website for people to purchase their ticket online through our group in a convenient manner with any major credit card and/or debit card. And not only that, they will also offer the same promotion for tickets for their two biggest matches this summer against Real Madrid and LA Galaxy (August 9th and 22nd respectively). This only means one thing…more chances to help the environment!

The Costa Rican Embassy in Washington, DC is also generously supporting this initiative and will help in promoting it within the Costa Rican community living in the United States. We truly appreciate their support!

As soon as the Web section is ready we will post it here as well as the Sports for Nature® Webpage and our Facebook group page.

I hope this is the first of many more similar initiatives involving sports and nature. The Sports for Nature® team will continue to work hard to find new ways to help raise funds for effective environmental organizations.

Thank you for your support!

Sports for Nature® = Promoting conservation through sports

Sports + environment = Healthier people in a healthier world

http://www.sportsfornature.com

Sports and Nature

2009-06-05T09:51:00.000-07:00

Sports and nature, these are two concepts that are very important to every human being. Think about it for a minute, how much time in our lives do we spend doing some sort of sporting activity or being in direct or indirect contact with nature? I think the answer is: a great majority of our lives. We even go to great lengths and at times pay quite a bit of money to practice a certain sport or have access to particular natural areas.

This is one of the main reasons why we feel that the Sports for Nature concept is exciting, rewarding and challenging. Exciting because there are no limits to this concept, we can produce events in any location in the world and with any sport as long as there are participants interested. Rewarding because we make it our main mission to allow everyone that participates in our events to have fun and at the same time by doing this we can benefit great environmental organizations. There is nothing more rewarding than after a hard-days work to know that your work put a smile on someone’s face and perhaps allowed an extra acre of rainforest to be protected in some region of the world or in our backyard.

And finally, challenging because Sports for Nature is relatively a new concept, so it takes careful planning and hard work to implement every idea. And trust me, there are lots of ideas! The good news is that the concept has grown very fast, so far we have: raised over $185,000 in cash and in-kind contributions, had 3,300 participants in our events, and have been supported by 34 sponsoring companies. These are all very good accomplishments considering that the Sports for Nature idea was born during one of the worse depressions in the history of the United States of America.

This gives us hope that Sports for Nature will continue to grow in a consistent manner and that we will have hundreds of events ahead of us in the future. If that happens my friends, then we would have put thousands of smiles in people’s faces, and hopefully saved a heck of a lot of sensitive natural areas with many unique plant and animal species.

Please visit our Web site at www.sportsfornature.com for full details regarding our upcoming summer events, Golf for Nature and Soccer for Nature III. If you can, please participate and allow us the honor of working hard to try to put a smile on your face! Go sports and nature!

Cheers!

Sports for Nature: Promoting conservation through sports

Sports + environment = Healthier People in a Healthier World

www.sportsfornature.com

Weather is nice … time to go outside and play sports!

2009-05-20T10:32:00.000-07:00

Good afternoon friends,

I hope this note finds you well. The weather is finally warming up (and staying warm) here in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area so you know what that means … it’s time for barbeques, trips to the beach, sunscreen, swimming pools, summer camps and of course playing lots of sports!

At The Green Business we are busy promoting our upcoming Sports for Nature events in July and August – our very first Golf for Nature Outing and the third edition of the classic Soccer for Nature Prize Money Tournament. Many players have already expressed their interest in participating in both these events so they should be fun; and most importantly, should gather a big crowd in support of great environmental organizations such as MarViva and Amigos of Costa Rica.

Summer is also the time for the French Open and Wimbledon, and as a huge tennis fan, these are always much anticipated events for me throughout the year. This reminds me that we are also planning a Tennis for Nature event in the fall at a Sport & Health location in Northern Virginia. We are not sure what the dates or format will be, but we will do everything possible to make it as fun and interactive as possible for all participants.

Well, I have to go now to a few meetings, but please continue to check the Sports for Nature Web page for updates on upcoming events in your favorite sport. And wherever you may be, I hope that you are having a good time so far this spring and will have an even better summer! Life is too short to not have a good time, right?!

Cheers!

Sports for Nature: Promoting conservation through sports

Sports + environment = healthier people in a healthier world

www.sportsfornature.com

Announcing Golf for Nature and Soccer for Nature III!

2009-05-08T14:57:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

I wanted to write a bit to let you all know about the two very exciting Sports for Nature events that we are having in July and August of this year – Golf for Nature and Soccer for Nature III. More details on both these events including registration forms can be found at: www.sportsfornature.com.

We are especially excited about Golf for Nature since this is the first event we will be producing under the Sports for Nature initiative with this sport. We have very good sponsors and the event will be held at Reston National Golf Course, which is one of the best courses in the Northern Virginia area, so it should be a good time. Among some of the benefits that players will enjoy while playing are free beer and cigar sampling from our sponsors. Also, the Alexander Tennis Academy at Tuckahoe Club in McLean has donated a coupon to every player for a free one-hour tennis lesson. Why not combine golf and tennis, they are two great sports!

Soccer for Nature III should be very exciting as well, we are holding this event in Reston and it is part of the Asian Festival, which drew over 60,000 people last year. Needless to say, we are thrilled to be part of the festival again this year and hope that this event brings hundreds of soccer players together competing for a good cause – the environment!

Please visit our website (www.sportsfornature.com) for updates on all upcoming events. The Sports for Nature team is very enthusiastic about all the upcoming events this year and will continue to come up with new sports and venues to host our events!

We are based in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area and it has been raining quite a bit this week (a lot more than usual!), so I will wrap-up this blog and head out of the office ASAP to enjoy the nice weather and the weekend. We hope you will do the same wherever you are located at in the world!

Cheers!

Sports + Environment = Healthier people in a healthier world

Sports for Nature “Promoting conservation through sports”

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature and Earth Day

2009-04-22T08:50:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone,

We want to send out a special message today because it is Earth Day! It is important to celebrate this day, but more importantly, it would be great if every one of us once in a while does something to help reduce our footprint in the world. The ideal action is something that will not cost us much or anything at all, both in terms of money and time. Some examples would be recycling more, not using bottled water or reducing the use of it, turning the lights off in rooms that are not being occupied in our homes, disconnecting appliances that are not used for long periods of time, taking a shorter shower in the mornings, even if it’s just a minute less, it makes a big difference when multiplied by hundreds and thousands of people.

At Sports for Nature that is what we think Earth Day is all about, making small adjustments in our lives that will not cost us money or time and that will make a big difference in the long run. Not only that, but some of these small actions might actually save us money. Now that’s a win-win proposition!

The same can be applied to companies, if they make small adjustments as they are doing now more often, they not only save money, but also look good and help the environment.

At Sports for Nature our goal is to promote and empower environmental organizations so they can continue doing great work related to the environment. We try to contribute to this goal as much as we can, not because we think global warming is imminent or the world is going to end soon, but because we think it is the right thing to do and because we want to act “as if”. As if there is a serious environmental problem, as if global warming is indeed a global threat, as if we are eroding nature more than we should and the environment will not be able to sustain us much longer if we don’t reverse our course of action, as if we need to starting changing our behavior towards nature before it’s too late.

There is much scientific data and point of views with respect to the environment and our actions, but at The Green Business and the Sports for Nature team, we like to act “as if”; not worrying about what position to take, or what piece of data we should believe in or not, but simply because it’s the right thing to do and also because doing something good for the environment does not take much effort on our behalf, just a few simple actions throughout our day. And also because it’s nice to save some money while we’re at it!

Happy Earth Day everyone, cheers!

Sports for Nature: Promoting conservation through sports

Sports + Environment = Healthier people in a healthier world

Soccer for Nature II Results and Other Updates

2009-04-15T15:37:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I want to report some of the highlights from our most recent Sports for Nature event, Soccer for Nature II at the Dulles Sports Plex in Sterling, VA.

The event went great, we had over 130 players participating and the level of play was outstanding. Each of the semifinals was decided by a very close margin and in the final, Zenit St Ashburn FC played the Sweet Carolines FC and the final score was 4 – 3 in favor of the former. The entire match was very exciting and it came down to a goal at the end to decide the winners. Congratulations Zenit!

Besides great competition and sportsmanship, we were very pleased that several players congratulated us for putting together events that help environmental organizations. One team even proposed, if they had won, that they would donate a part of the winnings to one of the participating charities. At the end they did not win but it is a great example of how Sports for Nature events can truly make a difference in creating awareness about some of the serious environmental issues that we face nowadays.

Another very positive aspect from the event is that we had many kids come over to our table and ask about the environmental organizations. One of the organizations gave out non-toxic temporary tattoos that featured several species in danger of extinction. This was a big hit with the kids and event the parents! It was a great way to engage them and have them think about the environment while having fun.

We are currently very busy and looking forward to our next Sports for Nature event, Nature Team Tennis on Saturday, April 25th at Skyline Sport & Health Club in Falls Church, VA. Many players have signed up so we are eager to watch all of them in action out on the courts!

Later in the year, we will be producing our first Golf for Nature event in the Washington, DC area. Very exciting, please stay tuned for details!

Cheers!

Sports for Nature – Promoting conservation through sports

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports for Nature: Update on upcoming events and other news

2009-03-25T09:43:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

We are very excited that we have had many players sign-up so far for the two Sports for Nature events coming up in April! For our Soccer for Nature II Tournament there are over one hundred players registered so far and teams keep calling us to inquire about the event which makes us believe that hopefully many more will register.

For Sports for Nature’s Nature Team Tennis we currently have seven teams signed up, that is a total of over 90 players. We are thrilled about this turn out so far considering that there is still one more month left to sign up and based on our experience regarding tennis events in the past, the majority of teams sign-up in the last week of registration. Tennis players always register very close to the deadline!

Good news comes from the sponsorship side of things as well, since many companies that supported our previous events are also participating in the upcoming events. This is vital to Sports for Nature events since sponsors provide the resources for a successful event and the means to support the participating environmental organizations.

Several of the environmental organizations have confirmed their participation for both events so all our staff at The Green Business is getting really excited and can’t wait for the first event to start!

Other good news to report is that now players/teams have the option to register online for all Sports for Nature events on our Web site: www.sportsfornature.com. The option of paying via a check is still available but we think that this new option is more convenient for all the participants since they can pay with any major credit card or debit card and the process is very simple to complete.

As you can see, we are slowly but surely advancing the Sports for Nature initiative and we are extremely excited to continue to work towards empowering very effective environmental organizations even more.

Cheers!

Sports for Nature: Promoting conservation through sports

Sports for Nature Online

2009-03-10T09:09:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

We want to dedicate today’s blog to our Sports for Nature online marketing efforts, specifically Facebook.

We started the Sports for Nature Group on Facebook several months ago and already we have over 415 members that have been joining and support the promotion of conservation through sports. This gives us great hopes that we are on the right track to continue to develop the Sports for Nature initiative.

Nothing would be possible without the gracious participation of all the players and sponsors in the events we produce, and also without the help of Websites such as Facebook, that provides an instrument to bring people together towards common goals and interests. In our case, it has helped tremendously to increase awareness of Sports for Nature events and get more participants to play in these events. And the best aspect is that there is no cost to start a group on Facebook. This helps a company such as The Green Business to produce Sports for Nature events because we have limited funds and by not paying for online marketing, we can provide a little more to the environmental organizations.

So, thank you Facebook for helping us connect people that care about sports and the environment through the Sports for Nature Group. Feel free to visit our page as you will find the latest news on upcoming events, photos of past events, information on how to donate to the participating environmental organizations, etc.

We hope that our members will continue to grow and together we can truly make a difference!

Cheers.

www.sportsfornature.com

Sports + Environment = Healthier people in a healthier world

Sports for Nature events are now oficially certified by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality

2009-02-26T06:40:00.000-08:00

Hello, I want to share the good news, all Sports for Nature events are now officially certified by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality under their Virginia Green initiative.

Virginia Green is Virginia's campaign to promote environmentally-friendly practices in the tourism industry. It certifies that Sports for Nature events are committed to minimizing its environmental impacts by preventing pollution wherever feasable in its operations. At a minimum, Sports for Nature events have committed to recycling, eliminate styrofoam, minimize printed materials, reduce waste and green signage.

Certified Sports for Nature events under this initiative and their description can be found on their website at: http://www.deq.virginia.gov/p2/virginiagreen or also: http://www.virginia.org/green/

We are very proud to be certified under this great initiative and will do everything we can to reduce our environmental footprint while producing Sports for Nature events!

Sports for Nature sponsors ... thank you!

2009-02-07T07:49:00.001-08:00

On behalf of The Green Business I would like to thank all the Sports for Nature sponsors in 2008. Without these generous companies Sports for Nature would not be possible. In total, between in-kind and cash donations, our sponsors in 2008 have contributed over $85,000 divided into four different events. That is very good considering that this is a new concept and that the economic situation is not the best. This gives us hope that 2009 will be a very good year for Sports for Nature events, with more participants and spectators, more sponsors, and of course more funds and publicity going directly towards the participating environmental organizations. These organizations are conserving land, waters, animals and plants in our backyard and around the world, and they need all the help they can get.

The main goal of Sports for Nature is to harness the power of sports and translate it into concrete actions that help the environment. At The Green Business we are convinced that we need to take care of the environment now, independent of what scientists from both sides of the spectrum might say. We need to reverse our actions towards the environment and we think that assisting effective environmental organizations is one of the best tools to accomplish this.

To all the sponsoring companies, thank you very much for your continued support. We hope you continue to support Sports for Nature so we can all make a difference together!

Sports for Nature SPONSORS (thank you for your support!):

- Sport & Health
- Whole Foods
- Chipotle
- Tennis Channel
- BB&T Bank
- Wilson
- Babolat
- Singha Beer
- Starbucks
- Hair Cuttery
- SQN Communications Design
- Digilink
- Thai Tennis Organization in America
- Ruth's Chris Steak House
- Jo's Trophies
- Strategic Sustainability Consulting
- USTA Virginia
- Midtown Jewelers
- Tennis Factory
- DC United
- Essential Tennis
- Potomac Soccer Wire
- Robeks
- Dulles Sports Plex

The first two Sports for Nature events in 2009 are coming up!

2009-01-29T11:24:00.000-08:00

The Green Business is proud to announce the first two Sports for Nature events of 2009, Soccer for Nature II and Nature Team Tennis.

Soccer for Nature is being hosted by the Dulles Sports Plex again in Sterling, VA. Last event there was in November of 2008 and over 180 players registered and hundreds of spectators attended to watch all the exciting matches. For this event we expect many more people to play and attend. We want to build on the tremendous success of the first event and hopefully have Soccer for Nature become one of the largest soccer events in the DC area soon!

The Green Business is extremely excited about Nature Team Tennis as well since this is a new format that we are trying to implement. This event is being hosted by Skyline Sport & Health Club in Falls Church, Virginia. In previous events we accepted registrations individually but for this event every team has a captain and the captain is responsible to registering his/her team. The main reason we want to try this format out is because we feel it makes it very interactive for all players, even when they are not playing. For example, each team has four doubles teams, and when one of the teams is not competing then they will be along side the court cheering for the teammates that are playing. If anyone has ever watch Davis Cup ties or World Team Tennis events, then this event should be similar.

As always, for both these events, we will have plenty of entertainment, food, beverages, sponsor prizes and gifts, trophies/medals for the winners, and much more! Plus, a good portion of the funds raised goes to environmental organizations that are doing a great job in the world to conserve our precious natural resources.

Sports for Nature: “Promoting conservation through sports”

Take care everyone!

Promoting conservation through sports!

2009-01-09T08:06:00.000-08:00

SPORTS + ENVIRONMENT = healthier people in a healthier world.

"Promoting conservation through sports"

DEPORTES + AMBIENTE = personas más saludables en un mundo más limpio.

"Promoviendo la conservación por medio del deporte"

The Sports for Nature Concept

2009-01-09T07:44:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone! I want to introduce you to the new and exciting concept of Sports for Nature.

What is Sports for Nature? Sports for Nature is a series of competitive sporting events around the world that benefit environmental organizations and include green initiatives to reduce the events own environmental footprint. A percentage of funds obtained from sponsorships and participant fees in each event go directly to the participating environmental organizations.

The goal of Sports for Nature is to promote conservation by producing events where participants and spectators enjoy themselves, sponsors obtain great exposure and environmental organizations promote their cause and obtain a financial reward in the process. Plus, our aim is to create a long-lasting environmental culture in each of the locations that host the event. This is a win-win situation for everyone.

Last year we produced three events in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area. These events included two different sports: tennis and soccer; and had over 1,500 participants and spectators! This year we are expanding Sports for Nature to three new cities in the US and adding two new sports!

Please help us support the participating environmental organizations:

- Alaska Wilderness League Visit: www.alaskawild.org
- Defenders of Wildlife Visit: www.defenders.org
- ThanksUSA Visit: www.thanksusa.org
- MarViva Visit: www.marviva.net
- National Fish & Wildlife Foundation Visit: www.nfwf.org

Sports for Nature is produced by The Green Business, an international environmental consulting company based in Reston, VA with satellite offices in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Take care everyone!