The IOC Climate Action Awards 2023

Marcus was recognised for reducing his personal travel emissions in a variety of ways. In addition to selling his car and opting to commute to training by foot and by bike, the British fencer has also implemented a yearly travel plan that minimises emissions. In addition, he is working with Trees for the Future – a charity that is a leader in sustainable agriculture, tree planting and climate adaptation solutions for smallholder farmers.

World Sailing has identified travel and transport as one of its main focus areas for carbon emissions reduction, with priorities including reduced organisational travel and new policies for promoting the use of public transport by staff. Initiatives have also included supplying all competitors, staff and officials at the 2022 Youth Sailing World Championships with bicycles to commute between their accommodation and the venue, while robotic marks and decarbonised boats also featured as part of its decarbonised fleet testing.

Since developing its sustainability strategy, the Spanish Olympic Committee has focused on travel as one of its key lines of action. This has included promoting sustainable mobility by using electric and hybrid vehicles from Worldwide Olympic Partner Toyota, and prioritising the use of trains for domestic staff travel. NOC staff have also increased the use of virtual and online meetings, whenever possible.

Paloma received the award for her work with the organising committee of the International Laser Class Association (ILCA) European Championships in Andora, Italy, to introduce a range of measures to reduce waste. This included abandoning the distribution of free T-shirts to participants, and removing all single-use cutlery during the event. Instead, participants were given reusable cutlery and shopping bags, while two drinking water stations were also established, to help eliminate the use of bottled water.

World Rugby was recognised for implementing an innovative initiative to promote circular economy principles and engage fans and stakeholders on waste and sustainability during the Rugby World Cup Sevens 2022 in South Africa. “The Bag that Builds” initiative, which was launched in partnership with the South African Rugby Union and CRDC, involved collecting waste generated by fans, athletes, and operations staff during the tournament and converting it into an eco-aggregate used for the construction of social housing in the host nation. As well as providing a tangible legacy for the tournament, the initiative supported the World Rugby Environmental Sustainability Plan 2030.

The Colombian Olympic Committee was recognised for launching a pilot initiative to reduce carbon emissions at the National Sea and Beach Games held in Tolú (Coveñas) in 2021, which is now being rolled out at other sporting events in the country. The initiative identified all environmental impacts during the Games, with carbon emissions from each source being calculated to determine where reductions could be made.