Sustaining a legacy – from Sydney 2000's environmental guidelines to the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012

Abstract

The so-called Green Olympic movement had its origins in one of the five winning designs for the Sydney Olympic Village by two architects associated with Greenpeace Australia. This led to the development of a set of Environmental Guidelines for the Summer Olympic Games. The Sydney Olympics provided a benchmark for sustainable design and construction in Australia and also a template for future Games. London's successful bid for the 2012 Games took these principles further with a focus on legacy as its core mission. A comprehensive London 2012 Sustainability Plan was developed. The Commission for a Sustainable London 2012 was established to provide on-going independent sustainability assurance of all aspects of Games developments, the event itself and the legacy transformation of the Olympic Park. This paper explores the evolution of environmental and sustainability concerns in the Olympic movement and how these have altered the staging of the Games and the associated physical developments. It examines whether the lessons from the Sydney and London Olympics can be more widely applied in urban renewal and regeneration schemes in both Australia and the UK.

Keywords:

• hallmark events
• Olympic Games
• Green Olympics
• environmentalism
• sustainability
• sustainability assurance
• Sydney 2000
• London 2012

Acknowledgements

I would like to acknowledge Emma Synnott and John Toon who provided useful comments on this article. John Toon was Associate Professor in the Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning at the University of Sydney. He was a member of the judging panel for the Sydney Olympic Village design competition. Emma Synnott is currently manager of the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012.

Notes

1. The GLA Group comprises the organisations directly accountable to the Mayor of London. The London Development Agency was dissolved in 2011.

2. The UK Department for Communities and Local Government launched the Code for Sustainable Homes in 2006. It assesses sustainability under nine categories. In terms of energy efficiency, Code Level 4 nominates a 44 per cent improvement on the baseline standard in Part L1A of the 2006 Building Regulations.