Can you run, walk, cycle or swim your way to Congress during September?
The ERS International Congress will take place online this year. As we will no longer be travelling to Congress, we challenge you to count up your kilometres in September and see if you can run, walk, cycle or swim your way there instead!
#TakeTheActiveOption and choose a set target to aim for. This could be the distance you would have travelled, or you can choose one of our set distances based on what ERS/ELF leaders have travelled to previous Congresses.
Working individually or as a team, get active while raising vital funds for the Healthy Lungs for Life campaign.
Hosted by ERS and the European Lung Foundation, Healthy Lungs for Life is a global lung health campaign, raising awareness of the importance of healthy lungs.
Having healthy lungs is more important than ever. We hope you will join us and support the Healthy Lungs for Life campaign.
How to take part
1. Choose your distance
Decide if you want to work individually, or as a team. Choose a set distance from our list below, or pick your own milestone:
- 5km – the distance ELF Chair Isabel Saraiva would have walked around the conference centre during the ERS Congress
- 10km – the distance ERS Congress Chair Peter Schenk would have travelled to the conference centre in Vienna 2020
- 50km – the distance the ERS Congress & Events team would have covered around the conference centre during the Congress
- 250km – the distance the ELF team in Sheffield travelled to the Congress centre in London 2016
- 500km – the distance the ELF Chair elect Kjeld Hansen travelled to the Congress centre in Copenhagen 2005
- 1000km – the distance ERS President Thierry Troosters travelled to the conference centre in Milan 2017
- 1500km – the distance that ERS President elect Anita Simonds will travel to Congress in Barcelona 2021
- …or as far as you and/or your team can go!
2. Set up a fundraising page and start collecting sponsorship for your challenge
Create an account on Just Giving so that you can collect sponsorship for your challenge. Share the link to your page with colleagues, friends and family and ask them to sponsor you to help you reach your goal and raise funds for the Healthy Lungs for Life campaign.
For more information on setting up your Just Giving page:
- Set up your Just Giving page
- Access instructions to signing up as an individual
- Access instructions for signing up as a team
3. Track your distance, submit your evidence and share your photos!
Use Strava (a tracking app), or keep a record of the kilometres you have completed on your Just Giving page. Whether you are out for a walk, marching on the spot during virtual Congress sessions, or doing a long-distance bike ride, remember to track those steps and kilometres – it all counts towards your goal! Once you’ve reached your target, submit your evidence at info@europeanlung.org and share your photos on ELF Facebook, Instagram and Twitter using the hashtag #VirtualCongressChallenge.