Jakob Lund loves football, and he's turned his passion into a mission. As founder and director of Play31, an organization that aims to spread joy and peace through football, Lund is putting a humanitarian twist on the sport's familiar designation, "the beautiful game."
The idea for Play31 came to Lund while working on a reconciliation project in eastern Sierra Leone. He noticed children playing football, known in the US as soccer, and saw that "their ball was completely ruined." Like many aspects of village life in Sierra Leone, children's play had suffered from the eleven-year civil war. He offered the children a new ball and their enthusiastic response prompted him to found Play31.
"Football isn't exactly traditional to Sierra Leone," Lund admits, but it was a favored pastime before the brutal conflict disrupted village life. The war ended in 2002, leaving tens of thousands dead and over two million people displaced. War-torn communities are struggling to rebuild in the face of poverty and trauma. Lund envisioned a greater role for football in fostering peaceful societies where children are free to play. Inspired by Article 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which recognizes children's right to play, Play31 has donated hundreds of footballs and organized tournaments among more than one hundred villages in Sierra Leone.
