Sport, Humanitarianism, & Climate Justice

Oxfam Trailwalker Korea: Exploring the Contradictions of Humanitarian Sport

Project Description

This project examines the intersections of sport, humanitarianism, and climate injustice through the case of Oxfam Trailwalker Korea. Working in partnership with Oxfam Korea, the research explores the tensions and contradictions that emerge when sport is mobilized for humanitarian purposes in contexts where competing values and ideologies, such as ecological justice and consumer driven sport, intersect.

Project Information

Project Lead: Alex Gang

Research Team:

• Eunah Jo (CSSTE – Graduate)
• Kyuhyun Choi (Seoul National University, Korea)
• Yong Chae Rhee (Virginia Commonwealth University)
• Jin Park (Illinois State University)
• Ju Young Lee (The Citadel – Military College of South Carolina)

Partner(s): Oxfam Korea
Period: 2025 – Current

Project Goals

• Tensions in Sport, Humanitarianism, and Climate Justice: To examine the ethical and practical tensions that emerge at the intersection of sport, humanitarian action, and ecological responsibility, including how good intentions may be shaped or constrained by broader structural conditions.
• Experiencing Imperfect Activism: To explore how participants make sense of their involvement in humanitarian sporting events through postqualitative inquiry, with particular attention to the idea of imperfect activism and the complexities of acting within imperfect systems.
• Organizing and Associational Engagement: To understand how participant groups engage and sustain involvement in the event, and how these forms of associational participation reflect different pathways between organizing and mobilizing in civic engagement.