Today, World Environment Day, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) published the preliminary programme for the upcoming 7th World Conference on Sport and the Environment. Under the motto "From Plan to Action", various stakeholders from within and outside the Olympic Movement will meet and contribute to this event, which will be hosted in Beijing, China, from 25 to 27 October 2007. This seventh edition of the Conference is being staged jointly by the IOC and the Beijing 2008 Organising Committee (BOCOG), in close partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The role of sport

As sport, like recreation and physical education activities, is an integral part of society, it cannot ignore environmental and sustainable issues. This is why the IOC considers the environment as the third dimension of the Olympic Movement, alongside sport and culture. The objective is to ensure that the Games do not have a negative impact on the environment, but instead develop and enhance it and leave a green legacy, as well as promoting awareness of the importance of a healthy environment.

7th World Conference

Since 1995, the year when the IOC set up its Sport and Environment Commission, the IOC has organised two-yearly Word Conferences on Sport and Environment. These forums aim to assess the progress made in the field of sustainable development by the Olympic Movement; provide new knowledge; and encourage cooperation in, and further development of, environmental policies in and through sport. In Beijing, the participants can expect exciting contributions from Olympic Family members such as former Olympic Organising Committees and athletes, and from NGOs, sponsors, sporting goods manufacturers and UNEP. A complete session will be devoted to Beijing's environment partners, who will present a progress report on the preparations for the 2008 Games.

(Credit: IOC. Click here for further information.)