he Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics is the first and foremost Games where all venues are powered by renewable energy in the history of Olympic and Paralympic Games. Being one of the world's leading developers and suppliers of clean energy technology, China proactively utilizes renewable energy sources to minimize the environmental impact in all possible areas, including the Olympics. In preparation for the Games, the government and organizers have been pouring huge efforts into successfully staging the green and clean Games in Beijing this winter.

In recent years, the central government has been persistently promoting sustainable solutions to develop the green ecosystem by developing and implementing advanced technologies. Consequently, Beijing increasingly pursues science, technology, and innovation policies in various spheres of the economy and society. Green energy plays a crucial role in the energy transition due to its low environmental impact. Indeed, in competition and training venues, the energy generated from eco-friendly sources consistently helps to reduce carbon emissions and protect the environment. Solar and wind energy generate an adequate amount of power for most appliances and operations in venues for events. In collaboration with digital advances, such as sophisticated AI assistance, powerful data analysis platforms and 5G technologies, the computing ecosystem automatically generates and visualizes key indicators of these complex operations.

In addition to a massive clean energy initiative, instead of building new sports facilities, the government upgraded former industrial sites and enhanced the functionality of the existing infrastructures to reduce carbon footprints and reduce expenses. Moreover, as a part of reaching carbon neutrality efforts, the electric (EVs) and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) are being served during the whole event. Notably, in order to decrease operational costs, the government decided to rent all electronic devices and components instead of purchasing them. The aforementioned efforts make all events and operations greener since it does not impact the environment in any way. 

Globally, various large-scale events have already applied green or low-carbon technologies to some extent as a way of reducing their carbon footprint on the environment. Every country on the planet has a responsibility to make sure that their activities do not cause a negative impact on the local ecosystems and not emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. In China, advanced technology continues to enhance the sustainability of mega-events as officials realize the significance of green technology. 

As a global event with tremendous visibility, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics principally presents an opportunity to provide an important platform to showcase sustainable solutions and the significance of innovative technology. Staging the innovative Olympics is also a chance to demonstrate a country’s efforts to firmly stimulate clean technology at both the international and domestic levels. Undoubtedly, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics is destined to be remembered for its innovative approach, and subsequently, the positive impact of the Games will remain high as it leads and pushes clean and green technology to play a pivotal role in the future of the Olympics.

The author, Vusal Guliyev is a Ph.D. Candidate in International Politics at Shanghai International Studies University (SISU) and a Research Fellow at the Davis Center of Harvard University.