At the Maison des Canaux, an Olympic dance, an athlete's bedroom and a solidarity project

How comfortable is it to sleep in a cardboard bed on a fish net mattress? To find out, head to the Maison des Canaux (19th arrondissement), for an immersive visit to a typical athlete's bedroom in the Olympic Village. This festive totemic site every day, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., for the duration of the Paris 2024 Games, for a festival of solidarity and circularity.

While these beds were designed for the Tokyo 2021 Games, their production has been entrusted to a French company for the Paris 2024 Games. As for the 20,000 mattresses, they will be donated at the end of the Games to Emmaüs Défi's Banque solidaire de l'équipement. All the items in the room - from the towels to the drying rack and the carpeting - have been designed by integration workshops or are second-hand…

But that's not all! This hub of solidarity-based and innovative economies offers year-round support to entrepreneurs in the textile, construction, and furniture sectors. It also demonstrates its role since Paris' bid in making the Games the first sustainable, inclusive, and solidarity-based Games in history. Panels display the accomplishments of the 556 companies participating in ESS2024, including the solidarity laundry managing eight tons of athletes' laundry daily, the jump seats crafted from recycled plastic at the Olympic aquatic center, and the 110,000 volunteers' T-shirts stitched by individuals in integration programs.

Photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand, President of Les Canaux, has chosen to immortalize some 30 of these companies. The exhibition "On peut faire le bien et même qu'on peut en vivre" ("You can do good, and even make a living from it") shows the faces of the teams and retraces their life paths; it begins at Les Canaux and continues all along the Quai de la Seine at Paris Plages.

Whether it's over a cup of coffee, at a conference, or following a morning wake-up call at 8:30 am on the Canaux terrace, you are invited daily to engage in discussions about solidarity, eco-design, peace, and legacy with the organizers and companies involved in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. It's an opportunity to find out more about what goes on behind the scenes.

The festival program also includes concerts (on Friday evenings), workshops for creating "sports planters" or learning to dance the Games, and climate quizzes. You can also concoct energy balls during cooking workshops, discover the rudiments of facial yoga or design a little eco-supporter equipment! All these activities are free of charge.

Alternatively, why not sit on a hot-air balloon pouffe along the canal, sipping a fruit juice from the Canaux zero-waste refreshment stand? And don't forget to cheer on the para-tennis de table or basketball-tri players!