Ski federation signs onto UN climate change initiative
The International Ski Federation has signed onto a U.N. climate change initiative in a move some view as a welcome about-face from its president, whose comments about environmentalists alarmed leaders in the ski and snowboard community.
FIS announced Wednesday that it had joined the U.N. Sports for Climate Action framework and made it part of its sustainability policy.
The announcement comes seven months after the athletes’ group Protect Our Winters (POW) and the world’s largest snowboard maker called for FIS President Gian Franco Kasper’s resignation after he spoke of “so-called climate change” and said he would rather deal with dictators than environmentalists.
In a statement announcing FIS’ sign-on to the climate change document, Kasper said: “This is an important and clear step for FIS to play its role in combating climate change.”
POW applauded the move, as did Donna Carpenter, the Co-CEO of Burton Snowboards, who had also been critical of Kasper.
