The Croatian Olympic Committee joins the world movement in the fight against climate change in order to achieve sustainable development in the sports system.
The world is facing a triple planetary emergency with a climate crisis, a nature crisis and a pollution crisis, and entering the 21st century, the United Nations (UN) defined 17 sustainable development goals, which to a significant extent also relate to the field of sport. These goals were also accepted by the Olympic movement led by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which has been initiating for years numerous activities implementing its strategy for the sustainable development of sport in the world.
As climate change is becoming more pronounced and affects most countries, causing many natural disasters, damages and disruptions in both economic and overall life, including sport, the UN together with the IOC launched a project called "Sports for Climate Action" with the aim of promoting the goals related to the reduction of carbon emissions and the education of international sports federations and bodies so that sports employees, from the local to the national level, could implement activities to reduce their emissions and thereby contribute to sustainability. These goals are joined by the European Olympic Committees (EOC, English EOC), which ask their members, the National Olympic Committees (NOC, English NOC), specific actions aimed at protecting the natural ecosystem, measuring carbon footprints and, consequently, reducing them.
The Croatian Olympic Committee joins the European Erasmus project "Olympic Committees of Europe Approaching Carbon Neutrality - OCEAN" with other NOCs in order to educate its employees and transfer its knowledge to national sports federations. At the moment, it is necessary to define goals as well as possible activities so that all sports stakeholders can start planning and implementing their usual activities, making use of the recommendations for sustainable development.
This is particularly important to Croatia, that in its development strategy until 2030 supports sustainable development, as the main goal of a country oriented towards tourism and sport.