CASCAIS, February 21, 2024 - The Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) and the Portuguese Olympic Committee (COP) on February 20 contributed to the planting of one hectare of native trees to support the offsetting of carbon emissions for the upcoming ANOC General Assembly on 28 October – 2 November 2024.
In total 10,000 trees will be planted which will contribute to COP’s ongoing Portuguese Olympic Forest project, part of the IOC’s Olympic Forest Network. The initiative is fully aligned with ANOC’s Sustainability Strategy and its commitment to reducing 50% of its emissions by 2030 and reach net zero by 2040.
The tree planting took place at Quinta do Pisão in the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park and was led by ANOC Secretary General Gunilla Lindberg, COP Secretary General José Manuel Araújo, Municipal Councillor Francisco Kreye and Cascais Tourism President Bernardo Correa de Barros. ANOC Sustainability Commission Chair Victoria Cabezas joined the tree planting a long with representatives from the three organisations and former athletes: Portuguese national judoka Yahima Ramirez, Olympic dressage athlete Gonçalo Carvalho, long distance runner Luis Filipe Jesus, Olympic swimmers Victoria Kaminskaya and Diana Gomes, and Olympic sailor Joana Pratas.
Speaking at the tree planting, ANOC Secretary General Lindberg said:
“We are delighted to partner with COP and the town of Cascais to deliver this tree planting initiative. By planting trees native to Quinta do Pisão we can help to offset the emissions that will be produced by hosting the General Assembly later this year but also contribute to reforestation and the promotion of biodiversity in the park.
“ANOC is committed to minimising its impact on the environment and initiatives such as these are a key feature of the ANOC Sustainability Strategy. As well as offsetting we are prioritising effective carbon emission reduction and we are working with COP to ensure that sustainability is fully integrated into the delivery of the General Assembly. We want to make sure that the General Assembly uses its global platform to promote the importance of sustainability to the world’s National Olympic Committees.”
COP Secretary General José Manuel Araújo added:
“NOC Portugal is proud to welcome the Olympic family in Portugal for ANOC General Assembly next October but also concerned to deliver sustainable events. This is a great opportunity to show that ANOC and Cascais will contribute to the increase of 10,000 new trees in the Portuguese Olympic Forrest that we started a year ago.
"Once in Portugal all delegates can be sure that they actively contributed to ANOC’s Sustainability Strategy and to NOC Portugal’s goal of holding the most sustainable General Assembly ever."
