Paris Olympics 'Green' Policies Risk Backlash & Higher Emissions

Paris is gearing up to go green for the 2024 Olympics, but some of their initiatives might face challenges. For instance, the lack of available air conditioning for athletes is causing some disruption to their plans.

Matthew Huber, professor of geography and the environment at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, shared his thoughts below. If you’d like to schedule an interview with him, please reach out to Vanessa Marquette, media relations specialist, at vrmarque@syr.edu.

Huber writes: “As long as well-meaning ‘green’ policies continue to foreground taking away modern comforts, they will generate angry backlash (and in this case the opposite effect of more emissions as countries inefficiently seek to keep their athletes cool in a uncoordinated fashion). This is not unrelated to the electoral losses Greens endured in the recent EU elections (and could hit France itself soon).”