Qatar Olympic Committee has joined the Sports for Climate Action initiative to reaffirm its commitment to reducing its environmental impact, ANOC reports.
The Qatar Olympic Committee announced it has become a signatory for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s “Sports for Climate Action” initiative.
The move saw QOC reinforce its commitment to reducing its environmental impact and vow to work towards a low-carbon future for the sports sector.
As a Sports for Climate Action signatory, the QOC now has an obligation to provide reports on progress with its commitments which will be supplied by the UNFCCC.
In line with the recommendations of Olympic Agenda 2020+5, the QOC is set to push its athletes, fans and all stakeholders to take action towards climate neutrality.
The five core principles of the framework, in line with the Paris Agreement, will see the QOC aim to promote greater environmental responsibility, reduce the overall climate impact of sports, use its platform to educate on climate action, promote sustainable and responsible consumption and advocate for climate action.
“We are proud to sign up to the UNFCCC’s Sports for Climate Action initiative and to take another step forward in our commitment to minimising our overall climate impact,” said QOC President Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad al Thani.
“We are dedicated to ensuring that environmental sustainability is embedded within our organisation and reflected in everything that we do. But we know there is a lot more we can do and this framework will help establish a clear structure against which we can measure our progress,” Sheikh Joaan added.
This announcement comes as Qatar continues to promote climate responsibility in the world of sports through world-leading programs and research.
This has pushed Qatar to the forefront of change, all of which are part of efforts to support the country’s transition from a carbon economy to a sustainable, climate-positive economy.
The Gulf state has been preparing to host the first-ever carbon-neutral FIFA World Cup, and has continued to promote sustainability in the sports sector through introducing more environmentally friendly projects.
Just some of the initiatives in the works are sustainable cooling systems, hundreds of electric buses to transport spectators during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 as well as reusable stadiums that will be donated to countries which lack sporting infrastructure.
Principles of the Sports for Climate Action Initiative
Uniting behind a set of principles, sports organizations and their communities have created an initiative by collaborating in order to position their sector on the path of the low carbon economy that global leaders agreed on in Paris: Sports for Climate Action.
Participants in the Sports for Climate Action Initiative commit to adhere to a set of five principles and incorporate them into strategies, policies and procedures, and mainstream them within the sports community, thus setting the stage for a wider dissemination of the message and long-term success.
