  The event questions men whether it is political, cultural or touristic. It
has its own meaning as it starts something while showing a will, a new
possibility to create, to meet and to surprise. The event is in fact an "advent
that reaches everything" generally integrating itself into a long process or
phase of the evolution of societies in terms of its societal structure.
However, if the event exists, it is significant and therefore assessable. How
to evaluate an Olympic Games or an international exhibition? Can we evaluate
the before (from the statement of position, application file), the during (the
course of the tourist, cultural or sporting event) and the after (the closing
of the festival and its direct and indirect effects on society)? How then to
evaluate all the dimensions of the event generally based on major tourist and
urban planning operations? We will take as a field of study a city -- capital
-- commercial port which has become a sort of archetype in the context of the
organization of mega-events with a tourist vocation, such as the Universal or
International Exhibitions and the Olympic Games, namely Barcelona and three
very important dates for the Catalan capital: 1888, universal exhibition, 1929
universal and international exhibition, 1992 the modern Olympic Games and 2004
the Universal Forum of Cultures of Unesco, international exhibition. The
economic interest of organizing an ephemeral giant event is still relevant and
will be confirmed in the future with the role of Asian countries within the IOC
and the BIE (Bureau international des expositions). The important thing is to
develop a rational argument to communicate on the economic merits of the event.
Sustainable development and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) are
predominant elements for ephemeral events that are intended to be sustainable
over time for future generations.
