North America’s “big four” ski companies join forces to combat climate change

The four largest ski resort companies in North America — Alterra Mountain Company, Vail Resorts, Boyne Resorts and POWDR, who between them operate 71 different resorts across the continent — have signed the agreement to combat climate change, acknowledging that they must “do everything in their power to leave a positive legacy for future generations”.

The ski companies have pledged to incorporate sustainability in all aspects of their mountain resorts, to lead by example and educate employees and guests about sustainability, advocate for climate protection and place collaboration over competition when it comes to sustainability.

Kate Wilson, senior director of sustainability at Vail Resorts told EcoSki that collaborating for climate change easily came above competition.

“As companies rooted in the great outdoors, we recognise the significant threat of climate change and have a unique responsibility to protect and preserve the majestic environment in which we operate,” said Wilson.

“One company alone can’t solve the climate crisis and the charter signifies the start of our partnership to collectively drive climate change mitigation. By coming together to share best practices, establish goals and set strategies, we’ll accelerate progress.”

The idea was first born when sustainability leaders from Alterra Mountain Company, Vail Resorts, Boyne Resorts and POWDR shared a stage at the 2019 Net Zero Summit. The annual conference is organised by Mountain Towns 2030, a coalition of mountain towns committed to working together to aggressively reduce our carbon emissions to net-zero and hopefully by the year 2030.

During the summit, Kate Wilson (Vail Resorts), Laura Schaffer (director of corporate responsibility at POWDR), Stephen Kircher (CEO and president of Boyne Resorts) and David Perry (Alterra Mountain Company executive vice president) discussed the need for sustainability to be at the forefront of resort operations and agreed that working together would not only speed up progress but also amplify the voice of the ski industry when pushing for climate policies.

“Both during the conference and following this group of four kept discussions moving on collaboration and met to craft the charter — we will continue to meet going forward to share the journey we all see as critical for our future,” said Kristin Rust at Alterra Mountain Company.

The companies have publicly committed to:

• Reduce energy use wherever possible and to aggressively pursue renewable energy sources to be carbon neutral
• Climate action and advocacy for effective public policy to accelerate the shift to a renewable energy economy
• Strong efforts and goals to reduce waste
• Be responsible stewards of our environment — the land, forests, watersheds and habitats that provide the pristine locations where we live, work and host our guests
• Share best practices to accelerate change in our companies and communities

Kristin Rust finished: “Now the plan is for everyone to share progress with one another and communicate insights, learnings and next steps. We hope this inspires others within and outside the industry to take action on climate change and share information — other ski resorts can sign on to the charter and get involved.”