Greening the Games: Sustainability at the Paris Olympics 2024 | Blog
Mega events should and could represent the best of us in sustainability!
Mega events like the Olympics are celebrated for bringing the world together and showcasing the pinnacle of human achievement, but they also carry a significant environmental burden…
The vast scale of these events demands extensive resources, from the construction of venues to the transportation of athletes, officials, and spectators, all of which contribute to a substantial carbon footprint. This environmental impact extends beyond carbon emissions, affecting local communities through resource consumption, waste generation, and sometimes even displacement.
The need to incorporate sustainability into these events has never been more pressing. As the world grapples with the realities of climate change, events like the Olympics have the potential to either exacerbate the problem or contribute positively to global efforts. If deliberately responsible, mega events can leave a lasting positive legacy on the world, promoting sustainable practices, boosting local economies, and enhancing community well-being. Conversely, managing irresponsibly can lead to environmental damage, financial waste, and even greenwashing.
A recent example is the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, which advertised itself as the first carbon-neutral tournament of its kind. Despite these claims, experts raised serious doubts, suggesting that the goal was achieved more through creative accounting, than through meaningful reductions in carbon emissions. This has underscored the importance of transparency and genuine commitment in sustainability efforts, particularly for events of this scale.
The Paris Olympics 2024, set in the same city where the historic Paris Agreement on climate change was adopted, represented a critical opportunity to demonstrate how large-scale events could reduce their environmental impact. By prioritizing sustainability, the games now finished, can set a new standard for future events, ensuring that they contribute to the fight against climate change rather than detract from it.
A look back: sustainability in past Olympics
The Olympic Games in Paris have made notable strides in sustainability, each building on the lessons of its predecessors. The 2000 Sydney Olympics emphasized energy efficiency and recycling, while the 2012 London Olympics excelled in water conservation, sourcing 40% of its water from recycled rainwater.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics introduced hydrogen-powered transport and used recycled materials in infrastructure, but still faced criticism for its carbon footprint. The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics showcased innovative technologies like natural CO2 refrigeration and solar power, yet struggled with the environmental demands of winter sports. Despite these advances, challenges such as high costs, balancing sustainability with attendee experience, and the difficulty of accurately measuring progress and impact persist, in the process making the journey towards seeing a truly sustainable ‘mega event’ complex and ongoing. These efforts highlight both the progress and challenges in making such large-scale events truly sustainable, setting the stage for the ambitious goals of the Paris Olympics 2024.
Paris 2024: a blueprint for sustainable games
The Tokyo Olympics in 2020 is estimated to have produced 2.73 million tonnes of CO2, despite having almost no spectators. The Paris Olympics 2024 has set an ambitious target to be the greenest games yet, aiming for a 50% reduction in carbon emissions, compared to the average of London 2012 and Rio 2016. This commitment to sustainability is woven into every aspect of the event, from the construction of venues to transportation and energy use.
Key measures include:
- Use of existing infrastructure: Paris 2024 will use 95% existing or temporary venues, reducing the need for new construction and minimizing the environmental impact associated with building new facilities.
- Renewable energy: The games will be powered by 100% renewable energy, with a focus on local sources like wind and solar power.
- Sustainable transportation: The event will promote the use of public transportation, cycling, and walking for spectators, and electric or hybrid vehicles for official transport. Over 80% of venues are within 10km of the Olympic Village and all are served by public transport. The vehicle fleet has been trimmed by 40% compared to previous games, with electric, hybrid and hydrogen vehicles.
- Implementing a circular economy strategy: This is to be based on three principles: using fewer resources, making better use of resources, and ensuring resources have a second life after the games. For example, 75% of sports equipment will be rented or loaned, and 75% of screens, computers and printers will be rented.
The role of technology service partners in achieving sustainability:
Service providers play a crucial role in helping mega events like the Olympics achieve their sustainability goals. By leveraging advanced technologies and innovative solutions, these partners can significantly reduce the environmental impact of such large-scale events. For instance, information technology (IT) providers can optimize energy use through smart infrastructure management, utilizing data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor and adjust energy consumption in real-time. This not only reduces waste but also enhances the efficiency of operations across venues.
Cloud computing and virtualization technologies also enable organizers to minimize the need for physical infrastructure, reducing both the carbon footprint and the resources required for construction and maintenance. Additionally, IT service providers can offer robust carbon tracking and reporting tools, ensuring transparency and accuracy in measuring the event’s environmental impact. These tools are essential for validating sustainability claims and avoiding accusations of greenwashing.
Moreover, digital platforms powered by these providers can facilitate sustainable practices among attendees, such as promoting the use of public transportation or enabling waste reduction through digital ticketing and cashless transactions. IT services also enhance communication and coordination among stakeholders, ensuring that sustainability initiatives are effectively implemented and monitored throughout the event.
Key partners such as Atos, Deloitte, and Schneider Electric are already making significant contributions to the Paris Olympics 2024. Atos, as the Worldwide IT Partner, implementing DevSecOps practices and deploying nearly 600 containerized microservices, which reduce the need for physical servers and enhance operational efficiency.
Deloitte has entered a decade long partnership with the International Olympic Committee to digital transformation, sustainability, and DEI initiatives, including launching a maturity assessment tool to advance gender equality and inclusion in event planning. Schneider Electric, leveraging EcoAct, is helping the Games achieve their goals with carbon offset management and consulting. Deloitte provides strategic consulting to develop comprehensive sustainability strategies, and Salesforce helps manage stakeholder engagement and sustainability reporting. Together, these IT service providers are instrumental in turning ambitious sustainability goals into reality, ensuring that the Games are not only a showcase of athletic excellence but also a model for environmental stewardship.
The future of sustainable sports events:
The Paris Olympics 2024 are setting a new benchmark for sustainability in mega events, but this is only the beginning. As technology continues to advance, future Olympic Games, and other major sporting events will have even greater opportunities to reduce their environmental impact. Emerging technologies such as AI-driven energy management, advanced carbon capture methods, and more efficient digital platforms will enable even more sustainable practices.
Looking ahead, sustainability enablement technology services will not only reduce the carbon footprint of sports events, but also enhance the fan experience by providing real-time data on environmental impact, interactive platforms for eco-friendly engagement, and more. The future of sports is not just about breaking records on the field but also about setting new standards for environmental stewardship.
Conclusion
The Olympics have always represented the pinnacle of human capability and achievement, bringing together athletes and nations from across the globe in a celebration of excellence and unity.
The Paris Olympics 2024 are not just a stage for athletic prowess, but a platform to showcase the very best of what humanity can achieve in terms of sustainability. By partnering with leading technology and service providers, the organizers are demonstrating that it’s possible to host a world-class event while significantly reducing its environmental impact.
As these games have unfolded in front of our very eyes, now let them be a testament to our collective commitment to a sustainable future, where the spirit of competition is matched by a dedication to preserving our planet for generations to come. As the curtain has come down on the greatest spectacle on earth, these Olympics will now represent the normalizing of a people and planet optimistic mission.
