A couple weeks ago, I left the 350 headquarters and headed for the mountains near South Lake Tahoe. I was joining my family for a couple days of skiing–one of my life’s central pleasures. When we arrived at the mountain of Sugar Bowl, I was blown away by the coincidence I had stumbled into.
That very day, unbeknownst to me, people were coordinating a 350 Action at the mountain. I took this to be a very good sign–350 is really starting to spread, and people are taking the idea and really running with it. At 3:50 PM, I joined the crowd to unite behind the 350 banner the organizers had made. Standing on that mountain, with bare patches of ground behind us, we were reminded of the world we were fighting for.
I’ve included a guest post from Sugar Bowl Environmental Coordinator Shari Pomerantz after the jump–enjoy!
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As a ski resort, and as an industry, we will be adversely affected if the world’s population is unable to quickly reduce its global warming emissions. We understand that the risks we face include warmer winters, water shortages, and increasingly unpredictable weather patterns – and that we have everything to lose. It is important for all of us to protect the environment we depend on.
Saturday, January 31st, 2009 marked the first annual Sugar Bowl Environmental Awareness Day. Guests and employees took part in numerous environmentally conscious initiatives in all areas of the resort. Our ski team, ski school, and other departments invited everyone to illustrate “Why it is important to me to keep winter cool.” From these drawings, we are creating a mural, which will be displayed in the Judah Day Lodge and on our website.
Also, on Environmental Awareness Day, Sugar Bowl launched a new “Rideshare Rewards” program. Carpoolers and public transit users, as well as everyone who purchased carbon offsets for their travel to the resort, were entered in a raffle to win a snowboard and other prizes.
Sugar Bowl added an exciting take on ‘350’ to our Switching Yard Terrain Park. Sustainable food and drink specials were offered throughout the resort. We set up table displays to talk about our environment commitment, and were joined by our friends from the U.S. Forest Service, Truckee Donner Land Trust, Snowlands Institute, Chill the Earth, and Slow Foods Lake Tahoe.
The focus of the day was a group photo at 3:50 P.M. We united at the base of the Mt. Judah chair lift in support of reducing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to under 350 parts per million. As skiers and snowboarders, we are committed to stopping global climate change – and protecting our favorite winter sports!
For more information: www.sugarbowl.com/environment