By: Kailee Bradstreet
January 3, 2012
Chris Davenport has been appointed to the POW Board of Directors
(Pacific Palisades, Calif.) – Protect Our Winters (POW) announced today that Chris Davenport, one of the world’s most accomplished professional skiers and ski mountaineers, has joined the Board of Directors of Protect Our Winters (POW). POW, a global non-profit founded in 2007 by pro snowboarder Jeremy Jones, is focused on uniting and mobilizing the winter sports community against climate change.
Davenport, of Aspen, Colo., is widely regarded as one of the premier big mountain skiers in the world today. Among his many skiing achievements, in 2007 Chris became the first person to ski all 54 of Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks in less than one year. A two-time World Champion, he has numerous first descents of peaks around the globe under his belt, and recently guided and skied on Mt. Everest.
Chris has been featured in more than 30 ski films. He is also a TV commentator for ESPN, ABC sports, and Outside Television, and is an Olympic and World Cup announcer for ski racing events. Chris is also the author of two beautiful coffee table books that celebrate North America’s mountains, Ski The 14ers and Fifty Classic Ski Descents of North America.
Davenport was part of the five member team that went to Washington DC in September, 2011 with Protect Our Winters to represent the winter sports community, fighting to protect the EPA’s ability to regulate CO2 emissions through the Clean Air Act.
“Chris is a role model for all of us on so many levels,” says Chris Steinkamp, Executive Director of POW. “What he’s done on skis and in the mountains is mind blowing, yet he also makes it his priority to be a true environmental activist. We’re honored to have him be part of POW’s leadership.”
With climate change an ever-increasing threat to the $66 billion winter sports industry, Protect Our Winters has built a team of pro athletes, climate and sustainability experts, and industry professionals to unite and mobilize the winter sports community and positively address the massive climate issue.
POW Board Of Directors, Current Members:
Gretchen Bleiler – Olympic Silver Medalist, four-time X Games Champion, co-founder of Nice Reusables/ALEX Bottle
Matt McClain (Chairman) – Director Marketing & Communications, Surfrider Foundation
Penn Newhard – Owner, Backbone Media, Carbondale, Colo.
Naomi Oreskes – Professor of History and Science Studies at the University of California, San Diego
Kristine Stratton – SVP of Operations, Earthjustice
Auden Schendler – Vice President, Sustainability, Aspen Ski Company
Christina Thomure – Director of Sustainability, Grand Targhee Resort
Strick Walker – Sr. Director, International Brand Communications, Converse
