© Victor Liebenguth
© Ana Hernández
POW kicks off 2017/18 season in Chamonix
Protect Our Winters France celebrates the start of winter
Protect Our Winters (POW) was founded by legendary snowboarder Jeremy Jones in 2007 and has since then become the leading advocacy organisation against climate change among the outdoor sports community. Last Friday, Chamonix's sports shop Zero G and Bard'Up were the setting of their French branch's first party of the season, and we were invited.
Celebrations started at Zero G where we were able to talk to Marita van Oldenborgh and Thibaut Liebenguth from POW France, as well as with several of the athletes in the French Riders Alliance, their community of professional sportsmen and women who act as environmental activists, influencing society through their actions and words, supported by Protect Our Winters.
Present were some Chamonix local riders as well as others from the neighbouring valleys. These included 2017's Freeride World Tour winner Marion Hearty, two-time World Climbing Champion Liv Sansoz, legendary mountaineer and rider Pica Herry, 2006 Verbier Xtreme winner and steep skier Giulia Monego and professional freeride skier Florian Bouvet Fournier.
POW France was founded in 2015. According to Tom Wilson-North, responsible for the snowboard department at Zero G, it all started when Jeremy Jones' film 'Deeper' was premiered in Chamonix in 2010. Jones himself attended the premiere and, after all the proceeds from the cinema tickets were donated to the cause, they realised that the country could actually host its own POW branch.
The partnership between Zero G and POW has become stronger this season. The sports shop has created the first shop corner in Europe dedicated to Protect Our Winters, where they are selling T-shirts and hoodies made with eco-sourced, organic cotton that they've developed together, as well as environmentally-friendly water bottles courtesy of their partner Klean Kanteen, all sporting the POW logo. 10% of the proceeds from the sales will go to POW France.
We had the chance to speak to some of the athletes in attendance and ask them how POW aims to gather and mobilise the outdoor sports community to lead the fight against climate change. All of them agreed that actions speak louder than words, so their activism is canalised mainly through the way they practice their own sports. Fewer helicopter flights and more touring, staying longer in their destinations rather than travelling just for a day or two, collaborating with eco-conscious brands and, most of all, sharing their actions through images and videos for all their fans to see.
Chamonix locals Liv Sansoz and Giulia Monego also mentioned how the effects of climate change are especially visible in the Chamonix Valley, where the glaciers are fastly retreating. Sansoz even alluded to the difficulties that the classic routes up Mont Blanc have been experiencing in the last couple of summers due to the increasing temperatures. They also shared that they are going to start a project together in the near future, in which they will explore the mountains using eco-friendly modes of transportation to reduce their carbon footprint.
The evening continued at Chamonix local bar Bard'Up where POW showed some of their new films, including the French premiere of Jeremy Jones' newest flick, 'Life of Glide', Pica Herry and Sam Favret's 'Waking Dream' and Marion Haerty's 'Midnight Tells'. Chris, Bard'Up's owner, has made POW their charity of the season. All the proceeds of one of their shots will go to POW this winter.
Read about Protect Our Winters, POW France and POW UK to learn more and check out how you can help spread the word.
