Elite Skiers Sign On To Support 350.org

by Andrew Gardner

First posted on www.FasterSkier.com on December 24, 2008

When Sara Renner planned her comeback to World Cup racing, she left out a trip to New Zealand last summer, a typically annual pilgrimage for the Canadian silver medalist. Renner cited sustainability concerns as motivation in her decision to reduce travel, “We thought about the overall costs of going there. It played into the decision.” Elite athletes don’t usually consider their carbon footprint when planning training. Most of athletics is governed by a more is better mindset. Bling tends to trump social outreach. But green motivations spurned Renner and her husband, Alpine World Cup racer, Thomas Grandi to lessen their impact. It also spurned them to join a collection of athletes endorsing 350.org.

Defined by one of its founders, Bill McKibben, a fanatical cross-country skier, “350 is the red line for human beings, the most important number on the planet. The most recent science tells us that unless we can reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million, we will cause huge and irreversible damage to the earth.” read more...