Howard E. Woodin Environmental Studies Colloquium Series

“Building a Soccer Club driven by Environmental Justice” by Sam Glickman & Patrick Infurna, Co-founders of Vermont Green FC, and Markus Gerke, Visiting Scholar, Department of Sociology, Middlebury College.

Soccer club Vermont Green FC is using its platform to advance environmental justice through sport and in its local community. In this talk, Vermont Green FC co-founders Sam Glickman and Patrick Infurna will present on the club’s goals, initiatives, and achievements in environmental communication – but also on the challenges of running a soccer club that strives to advance environmental justice. Sports sociologist Markus Gerke will discuss findings from a survey of Vermont Green FC fans: Do spectators care about the club’s environmental mission?

Sam Glickman is a Vermont Green FC co-founder and Chief Operating Officer. After graduating with an Environmental Studies degree from Skidmore College, Sam spent time in New York City and San Francisco working across support, sales, and business operations roles at startups. Sam met two of the other Vermont Green FC co-founders playing college soccer at Skidmore College and loves how the sport can bring individuals from all backgrounds together.

Patrick Infurna is a Vermont Green FC co-founder and leads all digital strategy and storytelling. He grew up in Castleton and has been a lifelong soccer fan. He has worked for multiple professional clubs, and currently works as a Digital/Social Media Producer at professional German club, Eintracht Frankfurt. Patrick believes in the power of social media storytelling to communicate the club’s mission, and that this work is essential to building an informed and engaged fan base.

Markus Gerke is a Visiting Scholar in the Sociology Department at Middlebury, specializing in the sociology of sport. His research explores how fans engage with sports and how consuming sports can impact attitudes and behavior in spectators.