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This guide to Climate Action is part of the “Sustainability Essentials” series developed by the IOC. IOC aim here is to provide a general understanding of the issues related to climate change and managing carbon (or greenhouse gas/GHG) emissions. The IOC examine what this means, why it is important, how it relates to sport and what a sport organisation can do to address climate change. In addition, IOC look at climate adaptation measures that organisations increasingly need to adopt in order to continue their day-to-day activities in the face of more extreme and variable weather patterns.

Sustainability is one of the three pillars of Olympic Agenda 2020 alongside credibility and youth. In line with its recommendations, the IOC has developed a Sustainability Strategy. Based on the responsibility of the IOC as an organization, as the owner of the Olympic Games, and as the leader of the Olympic Movement, it focuses on infrastructure and natural sites, sourcing and resource management, mobility, workforce, and climate. 

Here you can find the following elements of the IOC sustainability strategy.

• Executive Summary
• Full version

A total of 11 White Papers have been produced, clustered into four themes referring to key stakeholder groups. These White Papers aim to present the latest thinking, practice, and debate in relation to key human rights issues involved in the planning, construction, delivery, and legacy of MSEs. Each paper also considers the case for, and potential role of, an independent centre of expertise on MSEs and human rights.

Based on a case study from the Commonwealth Games, this paper explores the human rights duties and responsibilities of mega-sporting event (MSE) ‘Hosts’, defined as the event organising committee and their local and national government counterparts.

It reviews frameworks including UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UN Guiding Principles) and Children’s Rights and Business Principles as appropriate roadmaps for implementation by the state and private sector actors engaged in MSE delivery and legacy realisation.
It highlights an emerging area of good practice using a case study from the Commonwealth Sports Movement, providing an overview of the steps taken to date, future plans, and lessons learned so far. Whilst at an early stage, it provides a potential direction of travel for other international federations thinking of undertaking a similar journey to integrate human rights considerations in event hosting.

It concludes by reflecting on what this case study implies for an initiative for collective action, and how the initiative with the Commonwealth Sports Movement can provide valuable lessons to inform the development of more universal roles and functions.

It concludes by focusing on the changing support requirements the Commonwealth Sports Movement is likely to need over time as buy-in and capacity in relation to human rights are built.