Preparations for the Beijing 2008 Olympics - Assignment Example

Preparations for the Beijing 2008 Olympics Rachna Jalan Preparations for the Beijing 2008 Olympics Introduction Since the announcement of the Olympics 2008 to be held in Beijing, the host city has been experiencing a lot hustle-bustle primarily for the preparation of the mega-event which will be conducted this year at different venues in Beijing. The great Olympic Games are scheduled to be held in between 8-24 August this year and it is being anticipated that this occurrence will surely attract around a million spectators from other parts of China and almost half a million spectators from around the globe (“Beijing prepares” 2006 ) . The main theme of the organizers of this time’s Olympics is “Green Olympics” and considerable emphasis is being given upon sustainable development. With the Olympic fever taking its toll a momentary look upon its preparations becomes an interesting subject matter. Sustainable Development: The Brundtland Report According to the World Commission on Environment and Development, “Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” (WCED 1987: 43) This report is also known as the Brundtland Report (WCED 1987). The Brundtland Report puts forward the primary objectives of sustainable development which has been stated as: reviving economic growth changing the quality of economic growth meeting essential need for jobs, food, energy, water and sanitation ensuring a sustainable level of population conserving and enhancing the resource base re-orientating technology and managing risk merging environmental and economic considerations in decision-making reorienting international economic relations (WCED 1987: 49). Beijing 2008 Olympics: A Step towards Sustainable Development On the announcement of the Olympics 2008 to be held in Beijing it was held that the existing Beijing Sustainable Plan scheduled to be completed in 2015 has to be preponed (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). The organizers have promised of a “Green Olympics” (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). They are aspiring to achieve this through the adoption of “green” methods for the least negative impacts on the environment due to the preparations of the Olympic Games (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). The next objective of the host city is the acquirement of environmental protection across the city thereby boosting the sustainable development of Beijing (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). Focus is on 20 crucial ‘greening’ projects beside the “Olympic Green” project encompassing 20 venues, the Olympic Village and the 760 hectare Forest Park (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). The Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG) produced a set of strict “Green Olympics” rules for the preparation of the venues making the usage of “green materials” in construction mandatory (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). Olympic sponsors are instructed to meet environmental standards and so are the public transport vehicles (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). Hotels are expected to use recycled water while the food and beverage providers have been instructed to use environmental-friendly products (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). The results are already emerging to be positive. The usage of 3.8 billion cubic meters of natural gas by the local residents in 2006 inflated the high-quality energy resources by 78% (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). The shifting from 150,000 gas stoves towards clean energy resources is another step towards sustainable development (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). Further, the moving out of 167 factories during the course of Olympic preparations for executing latest technology has been a supporting factor (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). The Strategies & Protective Measures: “Greening the Games” Environmental Policies, Natural Resources & their Protection As per the UN Environment Programme Report the environmental actions adopted chiefly encompass dealing with waste, water treatment, and healthier transport systems along with the creation of new urban green belts which comprises of a 580-hectare Olympic Forest Park (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Some of the crucial challenges encompass: (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Air Pollution Both the Beijing and the Chinese authorities have been working hard jointly to shift various leading polluting industries (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Transfers are being noticed from coal-fired energy generation to less polluting fuels like natural gas (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Rooms are being made for the vehicles requiring compressed natural gas or new vehicles and fuels that are competent to satisfy the tougher, internationally recognized emissions standards like the Euro III standard through the curtailment of older buses, taxis and cars (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Cleaner Transport Systems A 16 km of Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) has already been constructed by the Beijing Government ensuring the movement of 100,000 passengers every day (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). The government is also coming up with two more BRT lines (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Surface and underground rail lines are also being spread out with four completed and four upcoming for creating healthier transport systems (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Energy Emphasis is being given on the usage of solar energy for providing light in lawns, courtyards as well as streets surrounding many venues including the Olympic Village (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). A 27 KW photovoltaic system and a 130 KW photovoltaic system are the sources for energy provision in Feng Tai baseball stadium and National Stadium respectively (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Apart from solar heating the various energy savings technologies adopted encompass geothermal and heat pump technology, translucent membranes in the ceilings and walls of the National Aquatics Centre or ‘Water Cube’ facilitating natural light, specially crafted ‘beam-pipes’ funnel sunlight into corridors, toilets and car parks at different venues embracing the Olympic Green (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Water & Waste Management Smart water saving tactics through water treatment, rainwater harvesting and intelligent irrigation systems are being adopted (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Effective usage of permeable bricks, pipes and wells installed on roofs, roads and green areas are contributing to rainwater collection systems as seen in the Fengtai Softball venue (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). A remarkable capture of minimum 3,000 cubic metres of rainwater can be observed in the Olympic Media Village (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Environmentally Friendly Materials & Ozone-Depleting Chemicals All efforts are focused at minimizing the negative impact on the ozone layer by avoiding chemicals emitted through air conditioning, refrigeration units and firefighting equipment, carbon tetrachloride and methyl chloroform released through laundry and electronic circuit board cleaning (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Great contributions have been made by Coca Cola and McDonald’s to promote an ozone-friendly Game particularly by Coca Cola which has ensured to supply 4,000 bottle coolers that use natural refrigerants (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Other environment protection programmes include conducting landscaping and forestry, marketing, education and communication (“Greening of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games 2007”). Role of Hospitality Industry: Consideration of Sustainability Hotels The upcoming mega-event of the Beijing Olympics to take place between 8-24 August this year is being expected to receive around a million spectators from other parts of China and almost half a million spectators from around the globe (“Beijing prepares” 2006 ) . For ensuring a sustainable approach, the BOCOG Environment Activity Department conducted a discussion with a group of nongovernmental environmental protection organizations in Beijing with the view of collecting opinions and suggestions on the “Guidelines of Hotel Service Environmental Protection for Beijing Olympic Games (first draft)” (“NGOs’ opinions invited” 2003). The Guidelines were specifically formulated for the hotel industries for giving instructions to follow the environmental protection standards thereby ensuring an environmentally friendly mage of the 2008 Olympic Games (“NGOs’ opinions invited” 2003). The target is to boost sustainable growth of the overall hotel industry by way of making hotels the means of environmental protection (“NGOs’ opinions invited” 2003). Beijing Hotel Standing adjacent to the imperial Forbidden City, Beijing Hotel remains a landmark of Beijing (“Beijing Hotel” 2005). Its chief features are provision of world-class hospitality by blending Asian charms and Chinese warmth keeping in mind the comfort and convenience factor (“Beijing Hotel” 2005). The Beijing Hotel has become a member hotel by entering into a contract of Lodging Agreement with BOCOG (“Member Hotels” n.d.). Being one of the “members of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Official Accommodation Network", the hotel is expected to offer accommodation services for the official clients along with their guests during the Beijing 2008 Olympics keeping in mind the environmental factors (“Member Hotels” n.d.). Every room of the hotel exhibits a small card mentioning, “Please be environmentally friendly and help us reduce the frequency of washing towels” (“Goal of Beijing “2007). The use of such polite reminder cards is one of the ways of being recognized as “green hotels” (“Goal of Beijing “2007). Once declared as one of the “green hotels”, it is expected that Beijing Hotel espouses technologies for water conservation as well as reduction in energy consumption and waste generation (“Goal of Beijing “2007). The managers of the hotel are responsible for the maintenance of eco-friendly managerial systems and facilities (“Goal of Beijing “2007). Meeting the green criteria reflects that the hotel adopts improved electrical equipment and structural changes for curtailing air and noise pollution and limiting their energy consumption along with using recycled water to flush toilets (“Goal of Beijing “2007). Being presented the “green” tag, the hotel is expected to sweetly pass the message of leading an environmentally friendly lifestyle to the guests through their services and suggestions (“Goal of Beijing “2007). For instance, the hotel bears the authority to prohibit the serving of meat of animals protected by state law (“Goal of Beijing “2007). Restaurants Recently, in the midst of the busy preparations for the 2008 Olympics, the Beijing’s health department introduced examinations of food security in hotels and restaurants (Xinhuanet 2007). Four safety grades have been set up for over 30,000 hotels and restaurants to be checked throughout the city by the Beijing Health Bureau (Xinhuanet 2007). Director of the bureau, Mr. Jin Dapeng made it very clear that those concerns which are reported to satisfy only the last two grades will be required to conduct up-gradations (Xinhuanet 2007). According to Mr. Jin, "The purpose of the inspections is to ensure safe and comfortable dining for everyone in Beijing," (Xinhuanet 2007). As per Zhang Zhikuan, director of the Beijing Municipal Bureau for Industry and Commerce, comments, "Food security efforts for the 2008 Olympic Games are in full swing," (Xinhuanet 2007). A food safety committee comprising of 16 government departments besides an expert panel has already been established by the city for facilitating the 2008 Olympics (Xinhuanet 2007). A food safety monitoring system has also been incorporated in both the languages of Chinese and English for keeping a close observation on food processing and transportation for the Olympic Games (Xinhuanet 2007) . The city has even declared alerts and steps which will be taken in the aces of any illness due to any contaminated food (Xinhuanet 2007). In case of any challenge like food emergency Beijing is properly prepared to face it through establishing teams to deal with medical treatment, testing and assessment, news briefings and examinations following the emergency plan (Xinhuanet 2007). Beijing already reveals a record of 68 food poisoning cases in the previous year affecting 753 people (Xinhuanet 2007). Last May, the BOCOG appointed the ARAMARK Corporation and Beijing Tourism Group Co. Ltd as the chief caterers by signing the Catering Services Agreement for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games (“BOCOG picks Master Caterer” 2007). Ranking first among the sponsors of the Olympic Games for the sixth time, McDonald’s guarantees the provision of effective and pleasant catering service to satisfy the tastes of innumerable spectators coming from different parts of the world (“BOCOG picks Master Caterer” 2007). Resorts A resort has been defined as “A compound of buildings and facilities located in a scenic area, providing lodgings, entertainment, and a relaxing environment to people on vacation.” (Definitions n.d.).With the upcoming mega-event of Olympic Games this year, the prospects of resorts in Beijing will undoubtedly be bright. The resorts are coming up with attractive and exciting packages for the spectators (Mill n.d.). New facilities such as meeting and conference facilities are also being introduced by the resort managers (Mill n.d.). Further endeavors are being made to make the place appear more happening by conducting various events besides making the guests acquainted with the place (Mill n.d.). Nowadays, overstaffing is the hot topic of the resort managers. A good example is the Nirvana Resort, a five-star resort in Beijing. Facility Management, Space Management & TQM The Beijing Hotel has been rightly given the ‘Five Star Diamond Award’ reflecting its world-class provision of services and facilities (“Beijing Hotel, Beijing” n.d.). The huge range of facilities offered by the hotel encompass fully equipped gymnasium, indoor swimming pool with Jacuzzi, indoor tennis court, squash court, billiard room, chess room besides an 8-lane bowling alley (“Beijing Hotel, Beijing” n.d.). The hotel offers a variety of choices for its diverse guests by dividing its catering into six separate sections i.e. Tanjia Restaurant specializing in fusion of Cantonese style and North Chinese ingredients, China Ceremonial Restaurant specializing in pure Chinese cuisines, Sunshine Café specializing in a la carte menu besides a diverse range of international cuisines, Gonin Byakusho specializing in conventional Japanese dishes and Anhua City offering innovative blend of various diverse cuisines (F&B n.d.). Among Business Center facilities, the Beijing Hotel offers communication systems encompassing local, international and charge calls, sending and receiving faxes, e-mails and internet access and courier services along with facilitating the usage of IBM Multimedia Personal Computer which comprises of online services (Business Center n.d.). The hotel even offers conference room rental for 2 to 10 persons along with bilingual secretarial service (Business Center n.d.). The Beijing Hotel provides the facilities of limousine services, receiving and seeing-off from the city’s railway stations as well as airport (Concierge n.d.). The convenience of luggage storage, packaging, postal services and onward mail delivery services can also be acquired from it (Concierge n.d.). The hotel also makes arrangement for recommendation and reservation of restaurants, sightseeing tours and entertainment events (Concierge n.d.). Ensuring Social and Corporate Responsibilities According to New York-based Dream for Darfur, “For corporations to live up to their own statements of ‘social responsibility’ and their duty as Olympic sponsors, companies have a special obligation to take action on Darfur before the Games begin next August,” (Cole 2007). There have been endeavors of the human rights group to eliminate the Darfur crisis by using the 2008 Olympic Games as the weapon (Cole 2007). Olympic sponsors were graded in the report card on the basis of their role in solving the Darfur problem (Cole 2007). However, very few sponsors of the Olympic 2008 have actually taken any step for the matter as per the report card (Cole 2007). Majority of the foreign consumer brands occupying the top positions among the Olympic sponsors either failed completely or somehow received a ‘D” grade by the Dream for Darfur report card (Cole 2007). Companies like Panasonic, Samsung, Swatch, Kodak, Microsoft, and Visa were declared as failures by the same in spite of exhibiting commitments to social responsibility (Cole 2007). The report card declared General Electric (GE) as the best scorer (Cole 2007). According to Pan Gang, the board chairman and president of Yili Group which has been chosen as the only supplier of milk and milk products for the 2008 Olympians, “While boosting our corporate image and promoting our products, the move (to sponsor the Games) places even heavier responsibilities on our shoulders,” (Xin 2006). Pan further commented, “Our products will have to meet the highest international quality standards, good enough to withstand the most stringent scrutiny not only by the Chinese authorities but also that of the International Olympic Committee.” (Xin 2006). However, according to Wang Xiaoya, hostess of the CCTV “Economy 30 Minutes Programme”, discharge of ‘social responsibility’ is actually the entire set of values and ethical standards that are required to be followed by the management of a company (Xin 2006). According to Wang, “Corporate citizen behaviour covers the protection of staff rights and interests, environmental protection, involvement in social welfare programmes, the protection of consumer rights and interests, and the companies’ relations with their business partners.” (Xin 2006). Yili, Coca Cola, BP, Ford and HP all of China have won the honour of “excellent corporate citizen behaviour” by the Chinese Press (Xin 2006). An example of such responsibilities is Yili’s donation exceeding 100 million yuan to charity and disaster-relief programmes (Xin 2006). Recommendations “Green Olympics” is a way of life and its dependence upon finance and technology is insufficient without proper education (“Notable efforts and results” 2007). For boosting sustainable development the Chinese public needs to be educated about protecting the environment (“Notable effrots and results” 2007). For ensuring “Green Olympics”, the remaining challenges of the environmental programmes have to be dealt with. With the mega-event approaching soon, the hospitality industry should involve regular and strict inspections. Any, hotel, resort or restaurant revealed to be violating the guidelines of the BOCG or not meeting the standards for “green” must be instantly disqualified. The hospitality industry should indulge in thinking various innovative ways which favor sustainable development and reduction of waste. Prohibition of spitting in the streets and smoking in “green” accommodation areas should be religiously followed. Conclusion The mega-event of the Beijing 2008 Olympics is expected to attract millions of spectators from all round the globe in China. This will undoubtedly boost the economy of the hospitality industry which has to play a pivotal role in attaining sustainable development thereby ensuring “Green Olympics”. Some of the manners encompass minimization of waste, use of recycled water, etc. Among the leading hotels declared in the hotel list, the Beijing Hotel has the potential of meeting the highest standards of diverse guests. Hence the hotel truly deserves to be referred as the “green hotel”. Apart from inhibiting the sustainable qualities the hotel also offers a gigantic range of facilities and services making it a perfect facility management centre. From all the above discussion we can therefore conclude that BOCOG is well on its way to fully realizing its promise of a "Green Olympics." Bibliography “Beijing Hotel, Beijing”. (n.d.). Asiatravel.com, http://www.asiatravel.com/china/beijing/beijinghotel/index.html, accessed 3rd Apr 2008. “Beijing Hotel”. (2005). Beijing 2008: One World One Dream, http://en.beijing2008.cn/54/74/article211987454.shtml, accessed 3rd Apr 2008. “Beijing prepares for Olympic hotel boom”. (2006). China Business. 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