Sydney Olympics Walk the Talk

The Olympic Games being held later this summer in Sydney, Australia have gone further than any other modern Olympics in addressing environmental considerations—due largely to a unique collaboration.

In the early 1990s, Greenpeace International head Paul Gilding participated with environmental consulting group Manidis Roberts, the Rocky Mountain Institute, and developer Lend Lease/Mirvac in the open bidding process in Australia for creating an Olympic Village concept that could sell the International Olympic Committee on Sydney as host for the 2000 Summer Games. Greenpeace and the other environmental partners wanted to demonstrate what a city could do if it was truly committed to the environment. Their vision was an Olympic Village that was powered by the sun, used no cars, used land carefully, avoided toxic materials, and provided a highly visible platform for cutting-edge green technologies. These green ideas helped Sydney win the bid, and the green partners, including Greenpeace Australia, worked with lead developer Lend Lease/Mirvac in creating the Athletes Village.