Olympics need to go for as green as well as gold
time2011/04/11
The recent award of the Nobel Peace Prize for environmental accomplishments makes it a good time to consider what sport has to do with the environment. Today, sport involves a great deal more than fans cheering on their favourite athletes. It is responsible for more so-called “mega events” than just about any other organised activity. The Olympic Games and the football World Cup are two of the biggest. Add in all the other sporting events around the world each year and the result is a considerable movement of people and demand for resources. It has a measurable effect on the environment and carries a serious obligation for organisers.
The Nobel awarded to Al Gore and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change sent a strong message that a sustainable environment is critical to everything, from regional peace to healthy economies. Every nation is part of the problem as well as the solution and 205 of them participate in the Olympic Games. As such, the games offer a rare forum for learning and co-operation.
The wake-up call for the Olympic movement came just before the 1994 Lillehammer games, when the Norwegian organising committee requested that the environment be added to sport and culture as a third pillar of the Olympic movement. That year, the International Olympic Committee signed a co-operative agreement with the United Nations Environment Programme to consider closely how the games could reduce their impact on the environment. A year later, the IOC established its Sport and Environment Commission including representation from the UN programme. read more...
The Nobel awarded to Al Gore and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change sent a strong message that a sustainable environment is critical to everything, from regional peace to healthy economies. Every nation is part of the problem as well as the solution and 205 of them participate in the Olympic Games. As such, the games offer a rare forum for learning and co-operation.
The wake-up call for the Olympic movement came just before the 1994 Lillehammer games, when the Norwegian organising committee requested that the environment be added to sport and culture as a third pillar of the Olympic movement. That year, the International Olympic Committee signed a co-operative agreement with the United Nations Environment Programme to consider closely how the games could reduce their impact on the environment. A year later, the IOC established its Sport and Environment Commission including representation from the UN programme. read more...
Tags: Green , Olympic , sports