Olympics - Monaco Welcomes 2008 Olympic Year

As Olympic year approaches, a new organisation to promote better understanding between countries through sport has been launched with its headquarters in Monaco, and Prince Albert at its helm.

The organisation is supported by both the United Nations and the IOC - the Olympic Committee - and is called 'Peace and Sport'.

The purpose of Peace and Sport is to lead global actions that will sustain peace, based on its values of independence, neutrality and perseverance. As well as sportsmen and women the aim is to influence governments and industry on how sport can bring people together.

Accepting his position as patron of Peace and Sport, Prince Albert commented that "Even more than an education, sport is mixing people for a better understanding and thus contributes to a better World. Sport is finally just more than sport, sport can contribute to peace. This is why, as some others, we have made our own contribution from Monaco."

Working with Prince Albert as President of Peace and Sport is Joel Bouzou, a former Olympic medalist, modern pentathlon world champion, General Secretary of the UIPM and Executive Board Member of the World Olympians Association.

Bouzou commented that "Through this experience we demonstrated that conceptualized action can bridge the gap between two worlds which very often, deliberately or otherwise, have tended to ignore each other and can help work towards better social cohesion".

The organisation is to hold an annual international forum for discussion of its objectives, plans and results, with the first to be held in Monaco, presided over by Prince Albert, in November of this year.

Peace and Sport represents a new strand of campaigning for Prince Albert of Monaco, who has been campaigning to heighten awareness of global warming since becoming Monaco's Sovereign in 2005.

Prince Albert of Monaco signed the country up for the Kyoto Protocol shortly after becoming Sovereign, and a few months later left behind the comfort and glamour of his palace and Casino Square for the wilds of Antartica to see for himself the damage being caused to the glaciers because of global warming.

Upon his return he set up a foundation with his own money to study the impact of rising sea levels, and since then has been active in the attempts to publicise the need to cut CO2 emissions in the industrialised world.

In recent months he has met both Prince Charles and the then President of France Jacques Chirca to discuss global warming. Although he spent some time in the US in his early years and speaks English fluently, he hasn't had to learn Italian and can converse with leaders the world over without the need for a translator.

Closer to home the Monaco Yacht Show, attended by thousands every autumn, is showing that even events designed for the super rich can play their part for the environment.

World class yachts and its industry has blossomed over the last ten years, with multi millionaires and billionaires buying yachts in the tens of millions of Euros price range - and when it comes to some billionaires they seem intent on buying a fleet that would put some small countries navies to shame.

Despite being the second smallest country in the world Monaco has established herself as the natural European home for many of the world's wealthiest men and women due to her tax haven status, with many more visiting on holiday while cruising the Mediterranean for the Monte Carlo casino - and Monaco has managed to stay as a top destination by cleverly spotting and exploiting trends ahead of her competitiors.

The Monaco Yacht Show is part of the attraction for the super-rich, and has firmly established itself as the leading super yacht show in the world over the last fifteen years. For Monaco itself the Yacht Show is second only to the Monaco Grand Prix for visitor numbers. Combined with the Hotel de Paris and other Monaco hotels the principality has successfully secured her position as a natural environment for the wealthy to live or visit.

Monaco is showing that cuts in carbon emissions and other greenhouse gases are possible in a land of plenty, and the Monaco Yacht Show has successfully achieved carbon neutral status for the 2005, 2006 and this year's event, with plans to repeat this for 2008, establishing itself on the map of Monaco as an environmentally friendly event.

To attain carbon neutral status last year, the organisers sponsored various projects in Europe and further afield to offset carbon emissions generated by the show, giving credence to Prince Albert and Monaco as pioneers for the environment, as well as sports like the Monaco Grand Prix.