Although the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) has adopted three titles for this summer, it remains to be seen which will prove most important to fulfill. This year’s Olympics are being dubbed “The High-tech Olympics”, “The People’s Olympics”, and “The Green Olympics”. The first two are obvious, explaining the usefulness of following through on promises of upping the worldwide standard of these aspects. The third (and normally least appreciated), however, may not paint such a distinct picture of what BOCOG is trying to accomplish. It will not be the first time an Olympic committee has taken environmental concerns into account, but the length of time and magnitude with which the Beijing Committee has analyzed unique situations, developed strategies, and forecasted effects is completely unprecedented. BOCOG has been focused on dealing with expected environmental issues since 2001, and the city government has been taking measures towards cleaning up Beijing (notorious for high air pollution levels) since 1998. This includes moving factories to other provinces, using cleaner motor fuel, planting new trees, and imposing strict new traffic rules encouraging public transportation. Some of the other processes undertaken include: Using high-bandwidth networks to reduce the need for travel, utilizing smart logistics systems to handle the transportation of materials and equipment in and out of Beijing, installing smart management systems into the designs of all the new facilities constructed for the games, and using less, more energy-efficient equipment to reduce power consumption. Also, broadcasters can obtain real-time results and data feeds in their respective countries, which will result in fewer travelers. A country’s performance as host of the Olympics has always been determined by new technology and its strategy of relating to the viewer population. It seems that in the future green logistics will be playing a much bigger role in the success of the games, starting with Summer 2008. |
