Esports ecology

There is considerable discussion of the ongoing emergence of esports and its relationship with (or lack thereof to) "traditional" sport. Acknowledging the field of sport ecology, this paper draws comparisons between esport and "traditional" sport to compare and contrast each with regard to their bidirectional relationship to the natural environment. No previous research has considered this comparison and this paper conceptually establishes the relationship between esport and the natural environment.

Confining the definition of esport for this purpose to professionalized events which draw large audiences to watch live competitions (preferably in person), there is little difference to be made between esport and "traditional" sport. Thus, both consume the same environmental resources, produce the same environmental byproducts, are vulnerable to climate risks, and may need to adapt to climate change. One single area of consideration for contrast is the potential for esport competitions to take place entirely in remote settings where participants and audiences are not required to travel as this reduces the environmental impacts from travel but does increase climate risks by introducing multiple settings. Future research and sustainability management in esport must consider this research, although it is acknowledged that the reach of esport is far beyond the simple definition provided in this paper.

CITE: Ross, W. J., & Fisackerly, W. (2023). Do we need esports ecology? Comparisons of environmental impacts between traditional sport and esports. Journal of Electronic Gaming and Esports, 1 (1), 1-7. doi: 10.1123/jege.2022-0030

#Esport #Sustainability #EnvironmentalImpacts #Gaming #Adaptation