Interview between MAIF and the EcoTrail Paris®.

A militant insurer and long-standing partner of French sport, MAIF is joining the EcoTrail Paris® adventure for this 14th edition. For the first time, a major insurer has joined forces with a sporting event to promote its eco-responsible commitments and accelerate community awareness.

Interview with Philippe TAUVEL-MOCQUET, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility and Institutional Communications at MAIF, and Romain PIAU, Head of Partnerships for the EcoTrail Paris®.

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MAIF is committed to the EcoTrail Paris this year. How do you feel about this new partnership?

Philippe Tauvel-Mocquet

For several years now, MAIF has been committed to responsible sport. We believe it's vital to mobilize the entire population around societal issues such as global warming, resource management and pollution. Sport is one of the most effective ways of raising public awareness. As part of our Sport Planète program, we wanted to work with a leading event organizer in this field. Since its creation, the EcoTrail Paris has been a race with a proven track record in terms of eco-responsibility. It is committed to developing important actions in favor of the planet. We can therefore imagine working together on large-scale projects. We share the same values and motivations.

Romain Piau

We're delighted to welcome MAIF to the EcoTrail Paris. We're going to be able to benefit from their invaluable expertise in the field of eco-responsibility. It's the first time we've been supported by such an important non-sporting economic player. It's a real vote of confidence. It will add real value to the event. Their support will enable us to reach a new milestone in our development. Our joint priority will continue to be to raise public awareness of environmental issues, and to implement actions that will enable us to reduce our carbon footprint.

What are the EcoTrail's commitments and actions that attracted MAIF?

Philippe Tauvel-Mocquet

‍TheEcoTrail Paris really does function as an experimental laboratory. For several years now, the organizers have been able to experiment with and implement a number of concrete actions in favor of the planet, without detracting from the pleasure of the sport. In particular, they have chosen to work with short-distance producers to supply runners. They are also committed to providing more environmentally-friendly transport (car-sharing, public transport tickets, etc.). Another innovation this year is the elimination of the famous finisher's T-shirt, which remains a symbol to which many participants are still attached. Over the years, they've always come up with new, engaging solutions that resonate well with trailers. It's a pleasure to talk to this type of organizer, who has such virtuous practices and a real understanding of environmental issues.

Romain Piau

What attracted MAIF was above all our ability to position ourselves as a laboratory of initiatives. From the outset, we've always wanted to be a pioneer in eco-responsibility issues. Although these practices are becoming increasingly common in 2021, they were much less so in 2008. Over the years, we have developed a number of initiatives that have helped us gain credibility.

How will MAIF contribute to this partnership?

Philippe Tauvel-Mocquet

‍Forthis 2021 edition, we will have the opportunity to complete and perfect the actions already in place. Several highlights will also be organized during the race weekend, namely the setting up of eco boxes to recover sports equipment or recycle it, but also raising awareness of the production of new energy thanks to our partner Cyclo Power Factory. MAIF has developed a veritable network of partners from the sporting and ecological sectors. We're going to be able to integrate the EcoTrail Paris into these exchanges with different organizations. There's a real potential for sharing experience and developing synergies.

Romain Piau

We're delighted to be working with the MAIF teams. They'll be opening up their network of experts from different fields to us, just like the Trail Runner Fondation. During the competition weekend, MAIF will also be inviting the Cyclo Power Factory concept to showcase a new energy production solution.

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The EcoTrail Paris will be the^1st event in the Sport Planète program. We can only imagine how proud we are to be launching this program after a complicated 2020 due to the health context.

Philippe Tauvel-Mocquet

‍Wewere indeed in the starting block for 2020. Despite the uncertain context, MAIF was keen to maintain its support for all partner organizations and federations. The Sport Planète program will help organizations to develop and promote more responsible sport. We're going to use sport as a medium to convey these messages and encourage people to take action. For a return to practice, we could hardly have dreamt of better than relaunching this program with the EcoTrail Paris.

Romain Piau

Our event will be part of the Sport Planète program. In fact, we're going to include it in our base line to promote our event. This program is already very rich in terms of organization and implementation of eco-responsible actions. So we're going to be able to exchange ideas with you, with the shared aim of developing our event even further.

How will this partnership benefit EcoTrail Paris?

Philippe Tauvel-Mocquet

‍Togrow, major events inevitably need this financial boost. We are going to work hand in hand with the EcoTrail Paris to support these societal objectives and send a real message to all participants. This partnership will also enable the organizers to join the group of partners developed by MAIF. Mobilization for the planet will involve working together with all players in the sporting ecosystem. This will be an opportunity to share best practices and improve them through new collaborations.

Romain Piau

Beyond the financial support, which is invaluable to us, especially in the context of the Covid crisis, we wish to go even further in our actions with our public. The arrival of MAIF as a partner with a strong awareness of eco-responsibility reflects a change of strategy in our partnership development model. In the future, we'd like to commit ourselves to partners with genuine values and convictions.