8th WORLD CONFERENCE ON SPORT AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Report
Ecomagination has inspired GE employees to be sparkplugs in this initiative and lead the way with
small changes. Through this initiative, the employees of GE have created over USD 100,000,000
in energy savings for the company.
Equally important is the need to keep funding GE’s research and development teams throughout
the globe. With four research centres and over 26,000 employees, GE’s budget for R & D is
approximately USD 5 billion. It has had successful products launched in the marketplace and
continued to deliver more products, such as its illuminating wallpaper (as an alternative to light).
To date, GE has fi led over 2,000 patents a year.
8th World Conference on Sport and the Environment
International Cooperation and Development Department
Mr Dmitri Kolosov,
Head of Environmental Support Department,
Sochi 2014 Organising Committee, Russia
Mr Kolosov showcased the landscape of the Sochi Games. The Sochi Games aimed to become
the greenest Games of their kind, perhaps greener than the Vancouver Winter Games. He identifi ed
that the Federal National Park, which is a protected area, will play host to the Sochi 2014 facilities.
There will be 200 developments and 13 competition venues. All of the venues will include “cuttingedge”,
environmentally friendly initiatives that will set new standards throughout Russia.
Mr Kolosov also talked about the topic of energy supply and conservation as it pertains to the
different event venues. Their strong partnership with the government ensures that the message
and delivery of these initiatives is both implemented and tracked.
The environmental projects planned by Sochi 2014 and its partners could be a true example of the
Russian Federation’s new environmental approach. These Games could also be the opportunity
to develop and implement a green code in the area of construction for the Russian Federation.
Mr Antoine Masson-Delisle,
Regional Marketing Director, Tennis Canada, Canada
Mr Masson-Delisle started his presentation by talking about his organisation, Tennis Canada, and the
implementation of a “Green Plan” which was developed in 2008. In order for the plan to work, he had
to get every member of the organisation to buy into the initiatives. In fact, Tennis Canada had hired a
third party to observe these initiatives and help build objectives to pursue more green endeavours.
Mr Masson-Delisle described Green Plan implementation at the Rogers Cup (a tennis tournament
held in Montreal and Toronto). Certain green initiatives had been implemented during last year’s
Rogers Cup, such as reusable transportation tickets, provided by the Montreal Transportation
Society (STM), free and secure bicycle parking used by over 1,200 spectators, recycling and
composting, cleaning and maintenance, promotional materials, spectator awareness, sponsor
engagement, and carbon offset initiatives.
Mr Masson-Delisle’s focus on the individual resonated well with the audience. It sparked discussion
questions relating to the retention of sponsors.
Discussion:
The Moderator Mr Umedaly asked the panel how sport can fi nance clean energy and effi ciency.
Ms Allan argued that it depends on the specifi c goal each specifi c event has in mind, and
advocated groups to think out of the box.
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