Like others around the world, I have been sitting in front of my TV for the past few weeks watching everything from fencing to gymnastics and kayaking to beach volleyball. The Olympics have filled my days with competition and beautiful views of Paris. One of my favorite views has to be the Olympic cauldron floating above the Louvre lighting up the night.
Powered by electricity with beams of light and mist, the cauldron is a beautiful sight indeed. The energy source for the cauldron is just one of the ways Paris is taking initiative to use cleaner energy at this year’s Olympic games. The games plan to reduce carbon emissions by more than half of the average Olympics by using clean energy and implementing energy efficiency practices.
All of Paris’ Olympic venues are powered by 100% renewable energy from solar and wind farms across France. And swimmers are not the only ones in the Seine, with temporary solar panels floating on the river to handle the extra energy load of the thousands of athletes. It gives me hope for what the Olympics can look like in the future, minimizing emissions at the games by using cleaner energy practices.
The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics already plans to host the first “Energy Positive Games” continuing the legacy of Olympic clean energy. But we cannot expect the Olympic cities to be the only ones making a change. While we sit on our couches watching the games there are plenty of clean and efficient energy practices at home we can implement.
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