As athletics from across the globe gear up for the event of the year with the dream of taking back home gold, the final preparations are underway in the French capital. Since it put forward its candidacy, the City of Paris has set itself the ambitious goal of hosting sustainable Olympic and Paralympic games.
To achieve this, a comprehensive responsible purchasing strategy has been implemented, comprising of five commitments relating to environmental and social innovation in contracts, namely: the circular economy, working with social enterprises, the inclusion of long-term unemployed and people with disabilities, and creating local value by encouraging small and large businesses to join forces in consortiums.
The Paris 2024 organising committee has procured an estimated €2.5 billion worth of goods and services. Or €5 billion including the contracts that the Olympic Works Delivery Company SOLIDEO, public contracting authorities and private customers awarded for the preparation for the Games. These purchases covered a number of goods and services, including the construction and renovation of sporting facilities and stadiums, the Olympic Village, IT services, broadcasting equipment and services, the upgrading of the transport system, catering services, and official merchandise, among others. All Paris 2024 contracts were subject to public procurement rules and have been made available in the form of a call for interest on the platform Maximilien.fr and on the Paris 2024 website: Official Licensed Products Paris 2024.
The Paris Games aims to be the first international sporting event to achieve carbon neutrality and reduce its carbon footprint by 55% compared to the 2012 London Games, aligned with the principles of the Paris Climate Agreement. Paris 2024 received the ISO 20121 certification on sustainable event management systems in 2022, and was also labelled with an “exemplary” level in compliance with ISO 20400 standard on responsible procurement.
SOLIDEO committed to providing 10% of contracted working hours to jobseekers looking to reintegrate into the labour market and providing 25% of contracts to SMEs and Social and Solidarity Economy organisations. As the Games approach, SOLIDEO’s commitments have been surpassed, with over 2.9 million hours of work completed by jobseekers looking to reintegrate into the labour market and 37% of committed amounts billed to SMEs and SSE companies.
While there are signs that the preparations for the games have reached several targets, it will only be after the event that it will be possible to assess the legacy of Paris 2024.
- Paris 2024. (2024, June). Sustainability Report Summary. https://medias.paris2024.org/uploads/2024/06/Paris2024-240605-Sustainability-report-summary.pdf
- Paris 2024. (n.d.). Des achats responsables. Olympics. Retrieved June 12, 2024, from https://olympics.com/fr/paris-2024/comite/nos-responsabilites/investissements-durables
- Yavchitz, E. (2024, June 10). Paris 2024: Pioneering a sustainable and inclusive games through the social and solidarity economy. Cogito. Retrieved June 12, 2024, from https://oecdcogito.blog/2024/06/10/paris-2024-pioneering-a-sustainable-and-inclusive-games-through-the-social-and-solidarity-economy/
Details
- Publication date
- 18 June 2024
- Author
- Directorate-General for Environment