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Sports Sponsorships
TCS Sports Sponsorships: Blending Sports Technology and Sustainability
Highlights
- In 2022, TCS became the title sponsor of the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, adding Toronto to its prestigious roster of marathon sponsorships in cities such as New York, London, and Amsterdam.
- TCS pledged to donate up to 32,000 person-hours dedicated to developing technology to help the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon become the most sustainable race in Canada.
- As we gear up for the 2023 marathon, new ideas and technology will keep moving the race closer to becoming the most sustainable race in the country.
On this page
Why sustainability
As the world goes green and gets greener, the term ‘sustainability’ has firmly planted itself in the everyday lexicon. It’s cropping up everywhere — from the classroom to the boardroom, from NGO mission statements to the speeches of world leaders, and beyond. But what does sustainability really mean? And how can it be achieved? To answer those questions, it’s important to take a closer look at the entire concept, as well as its various forms of execution.
Sustainability has been defined as:
The balance between the environment, equity, and economy.
The idea of meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
The presumption that resources are finite, and so should be used wisely and conservatively, with a view to long-term priorities and consequences.
TCS philosophy
At Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the philosophy of building sustainability into business is rooted in the importance of caring for the community and climate as much as commerce. As such, TCS is dedicated to maintaining the right balance between economic, social, and environmental factors. And when it comes to our business practices — from sales to sponsorship — TCS keeps the sustainability lens in sharp focus.
For example, since 2008, TCS has been leveraging its technological expertise and passion for innovation to enhance the sport of marathon running. At TCS, running and technology go hand in hand. We believe that running transforms the lives of employees, clients and neighbors in the same way that technology transforms our customers’ businesses. Some could also argue that running is the most sustainable sport, as participants leave no environmental footprint behind.
Green TWM
In 2022, TCS became the title sponsor of the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, adding Toronto to its prestigious roster of marathon sponsorships in cities such as New York, London, and Amsterdam. And, as with similar endeavors, planning for the first-ever TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon put sustainability at the forefront.
At the onset of their partnership with race organizer Canada Running Series (CRS), TCS pledged to donate up to 32,000 person-hours dedicated to developing technology to help the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon become the most sustainable race in Canada. And in a huge step towards this goal, CRS has recently been granted Evergreen status from the Council for Responsible Sport, making the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon the first and only race in Canada to attain this top level of environmental certification.
Some of the noteworthy achievements that led to this designation were:
85.9%/9,400 kg of waste diverted away from landfills
Complete elimination of plastic bottles from the event
Moving to an online-only format for sharing discounts and partner information
The purchase of certified carbon offsets
Fundraising for charities to support the environment (see details below)
To further highlight the importance of sustainability in sport, the official race app, powered by TCS, featured a first-of-its-kind consumer ‘gamified’ survey to create awareness around environmental choices (and impacts) related to the marathon. The TCS Sustainability Scorecard included questions addressing things such as single-use plastic consumption, apparel origin and purchase, and hydration and nutrition options.
Once respondents completed the survey, they were assigned a score, given words of encouragement, and prompted to learn about environmental responsibility. They were also given the opportunity to donate to the two official charities, which many did; by the end of the race, $6,000 was raised for Trans Canada Trail, and nearly $17,000 was collected for Trees for Life, the latter of which will result in the planting of 865 trees along the Toronto waterfront.
Mirroring TCS’ philosophy about sustainability in business is our core ideology and corporate brand statement, ‘Building on belief.’ And when it comes to running a marathon, nothing is needed more than the belief that you can do it.
Looking ahead
On race day, every one of the 400 TCS employees who participated in the race harnessed that belief with every step. And for one person in particular, the belief was sparked well before that. TCS Canada’s Head of Marketing, Loucas Saites, had not only set out to run his first full (42K) marathon, but he had also been instrumental in bringing the Toronto Waterfront Marathon to TCS in the first place.
In a recent interview, Loucas noted that belief makes TCS colleagues “relentless and driven to make things happen.” Drawing a parallel with how TCS helps its clients succeed, he also expressed that completing the marathon (in just under 5 hours, as it turned out) was all about “mastering the journey”— beginning with belief in himself and then running with it — all the way across the finish line.
Now that year one is in the books, the journey continues, and TCS and CRS have their own sustainability scorecards to follow. As they gear up for 2023’s marathon and the ones after that, new ideas and technology will keep moving the race further along the course — closer to becoming, as promised, the most sustainable race in the country. In addition, learnings from this year’s initiatives, including the sustainability survey, will inspire better individual and collective choices, helping to preserve the natural beauty of Canada for all to enjoy.
