Recognising the capacity and responsibility of sport to manage issues relating to environmental sustainability, and following the Olympic Movement’s Agenda 21 recommendations, the International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF) issued a mandatory sustainability handbook for its Local Organising Committees (LOCs), which between them organise six World Cups and one World/Continental Championship every year. Presented to all LOCs in 2017 and tested and successfully implemented by the Andorran National Federation at the Font Blanca Andorra World Cup event in 2018, the objective of the handbook is to protect the natural environment where ski mountaineering (skimo) competitions are held and to establish a clear and systematic framework that ensures sustainability around three key areas: Leave no trace; Reduce global impacts; and Be the change.
Marine litter is a global issue that carries multifaceted consequences, with poor waste management being the main reason for litter finding its way to our coasts and oceans. It is imperative to raise global awareness of this problem and take measures to address shortcomings in waste management. The Federated States of Micronesia National Olympic Committee (FSMNOC) implemented the Love Your Coast (LYC) project in December 2017 to address this issue through coastal clean-ups and practical educational training on marine litter and coastal recovery.
In 2016, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) joined the United Nations (UN) Climate Change Secretariat’s Climate Neutral Now initiative, pledging to achieve greenhouse gas emission neutrality by the mid-21st century. Climate Neutral Now brings together organisations committed to measuring, reducing and reporting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions – the leading cause of global warming – and compensating unavoidable emissions with UN Certified Emission Reductions. Joining Climate Neutral Now contributes to the central objective of the Paris Agreement of limiting global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees celsius, and to the mitigation of climate change’s gravest effects.
The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA)’s annual FIA Smart Cities Award highlights innovative mobility projects implemented by cities that host the rounds of the fully electric ABB FIA Formula E Championship. The award was first given in 2017 and creates a sharing platform for expertise in innovative urban mobility solutions
To help motorsport stakeholders (e.g. National Sporting Authorities [ASNs], circuits and teams) measure and improve their environmental performance, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) has developed and implemented an Environmental Accreditation Programme. This three-level programme introduces an environmental management framework for motorsport drawn from multiple international standards, such as ISO14001. Providing clear guidelines on the sustainable management of motorsports events, the FIA’s programme has been tailored to enable all stakeholders to apply the right level of environmental assessment according to their activities, needs, and their level of maturity.
To more firmly anchor biodiversity in sport, raise awareness and establish closer links between sports and nature conservation organisations, the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) launched the Sport Moves – Experience Biodiversity project, supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU).
Funded and supported by the German governmental, academic and non-profit sectors, the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) has developed Green Champions 2.0, a bilingual (German and English), step-by-step online sustainability tool for sports event organisers such as National Federations (NFs) and local organising committees (LOCs).
Originally drafted in 1997 and revised in 2008, the National Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation of Denmark (DIF)’s Environmental Code of Conduct contains requirements and recommendations on the subjects of nature, the direct and action-oriented language of the code has been designed to strongly encourage its implementation.
The Spanish Olympic Committee (COE) has developed a Sustainability Strategy that is aligned with the IOC Sustainability Strategy, Olympic Agenda 2020 and the United Nations’ (UN) Sustainable Development Goals. The strategy is designed to be a benchmark for sustainability in Spanish sport and the wider Olympic Movement.
In May 2019, World Taekwondo (WT) launched its first Sustainability Strategy. Containing 17 recommendations designed to ensure WT, its continental unions and member national associations are operating sustainably, the strategy is directly aligned with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Sustainability Strategy It was presented by the WT Sustainability Committee at the World Taekwondo Conference, and was subsequently approved by both the WT Council and General Assembly.
