The American Alpine Club (AAC), the country’s oldest and largest climbing advocacy organization, said it is taking immediate steps to measure, minimize, and offset the organization’s own carbon emissions, as well as to divert staff resources and financial support toward political advocacy, scientific research through grants, and developing resources for members to make sustainable choices as they plan trips and expeditions.
In a statement, the American Alpine Club said climate change is “a direct threat to the climbing community” and “failure to act with urgency threatens important alpine environments which support the health and vitality of our community.”
The organization noted that around the world, mountain regions are warming at roughly twice the pace of the global average. The American Alpine Club, the advocacy voice of more than 24,000 climbers, is alarmed about the adverse impacts of climate change on climbing, climber safety, mountain environments. A recent AAC climber survey showed 94 percent of AAC members agree that climate change poses a great deal of risk to the places we climb, hike, and ski; the vast majority of survey participants also believe that human activity is the driving cause of climate change.
“It is clear the team at the American Alpine Club and me that the voice of the climbing community is critically important in today’s environmental and social efforts,” said AAC CEO Phil Powers. “I’m proud to be part of a committed group of people who are advocating for the health and sustainability of mountain environments, the ecosystems that house them, and the planet as a whole. We are addressing the challenges of climate change and we hope that you’ll join us; together, we’re stronger.”
Recognizing that climbers, skiers, and mountaineers are credible witnesses to change in the mountains, the American Alpine Club will also be soliciting personal observations of how climate change is impacting the climbing landscape as part of a new Climate Story Collection.
