ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the environmental discourse and policy implemented and performed in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics in South Korea. Specifically, it investigates the Korean Government’s development of eco-modernist capacity and performance in the Games and discusses the existing conflicts and tensions between the Olympic-led environmental sustainability and the local context. While eco-modernist reforms and advanced policy tools are introduced throughout the Olympic Games, this chapter points out that Olympic mega-events in a country like Korea fail to stimulate reflexive environmental reform, mainly for four reasons: the business-as-usual model of Olympic Games does not correspond with green efforts; environmental overconsumption leaves an unjust burden for locals; economic calculation of nature pays selective attention to particular environmental problems; and the weak model of sustainability prioritizes the appearance of eco-friendliness which does not include long-term, meaningful environmental benefits, especially for the locals.
