The Climate, Environment and Energy Thread

[DJC]

No it was about climate change. The narrative was changed.

That's incorrect.

Donnell Wallam asked to be exempted from wearing the Hancock Prospecting logo because of the genocidal comments made by Lang Hancock in the 1980s.  Some in the environmental movements seized upon the team's concerns with the sponsorship and tried to change the narrative to suit their agendas ... and that's what social media picked up.  Former Diamonds captain Sharni Norder voiced concerns over Hancock Prospecting’s environmental credentials but she is not part of the team and simply helped to cloud public perception of Wallam and the team's motivation. Wallam's story, and the team's response, has been consistent throughout the entire debacle and Netball Australia's decision not to grant Wallam an exemption has been made public. 

Netball Australia's statement makes the cause of issue very clear:

“Since becoming aware of cultural sensitivities raised by a Diamonds squad member in respect of the Hancock sponsorship uniform logo placement, Netball Australia and Hancock Prospecting have been working tirelessly to acknowledge and recognise the sensitivities, to further understand the concerns of that squad member and to provide avenues for support.

Hancock Prospecting met with the Origin Australian Diamonds leadership group the day after the concerns were raised to extend its support and commitment to Netball Australia and to share experiences, understand perspectives and support these cultural sensitivities through the partnership.”

After the meeting with Hancock Prospecting, Diamonds captain, Liz Watson, said;

“As players we do know that Hancock is such a great investment for our program. We are supportive of Hancock and all the players here are as well.”

This goes back to Netball Australia's Indigenous Round in 2020 when the only Indigenous player in the competition was used to promote the round.  Sadly, she wasn't given any court time and Netball Australia apologised and admitted that it had "missed an opportunity".  This led to Netball Australia, Super Netball players, the players’ association and member organisations signing a Declaration of Commitment that pledged to break down barriers for Indigenous players.  Netball Australia failed to do abide by the declaration with its mishandling of Wallam's request.  The players upheld their commitment with their support of Wallam. 

None of this has anything to do with climate change.