The Legacy: Sustainable Procurement for Construction Projects

“In our bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London, we pledged to hold the greenest Games of modern times and I am pleased to say we were hugely successful in doing this. This was because London 2012 built sustainability into everything we did from procurement to the operation of the sites. It’s really important that we share what we did so that others are able to learn from our experience. This Guide pulls together the key lessons on procuring sustainable buildings and infrastructure so that others can learn from the example of the Games and ensure the legacy continues”.

Sebastian Coe CH, KBE, the Prime Minister’s Olympic and Paralympic Legacy Ambassador.

To help perpetuate this legacy, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has facilitated the development of this Guide by working with BRE1 to bring together Government Departments and key people involved in London 2012. Construction of buildings and infrastructure is vital to the growth of our economy. This Guide aims to help authorities deliver growth in a sustainable way taking into account the importance of protecting our natural capital for future generations as well as our social and economic capital in the form of a capable and skilled workforce and small business and entrepreneurship. 

The London 2012 bid team began by working with BioRegional and WWF to create a shared vision called “Towards a One Planet Olympics”. The mission of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA)2was in line with this: to “deliver venues, facilities and infrastructure and transport on time and in a way that maximises the delivery of a sustainable legacy within the available budget”. This was encapsulated in the London 2012 Sustainability Policy and the Sustainability Plan, which provided the overarching sustainability framework for London 2012.

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