Tag: sustainable

Patagonia

Posted on by Al Slinn

As an event business based in the Alps, we are well aware of the impact our choices might have on the environment. That’s why we work closely with local businesses, encourage coach transfers, and run a paper-free office, among other things. One of the environmentally-driven decisions we are most proud of is our choice of clothing for uniforms and gadgets. We use Patagonia – a brand internationally recognised for its sustainability.

Patagonia’s decisions as a company never cease to amaze us. In recent months, the founder Yvon Chouinard gave up ownership of the company and used the profits to fight climate change. Over the past few days, Patagonia has closed all stores in the U.S. and Canada to give employees some deserved rest over the holidays.

Patagonia CEO’s words

CEO Ryan Gellert recently made an announcement on Linkedin. “In 2021, we closed our stores […] for the last week of the year and gave employees paid time off. The purpose was to provide […] a much-needed break, and our customers were overwhelmingly gracious about it. 
 
We’re doing it again this year. Our North America stores […] will be closed from December 25 through January 1 because we believe in providing quality of life for our people. I want to thank Patagonia’s incredible employees for an amazing year of working to save our home planet […].”

Our experience

We couldn’t be happier with our Patagonia products. They are fun, extremely colourful, and use great quality materials. Most importantly, they are good for the planet! We purchased our Patagonia-branded Ten80 uniforms at our local store in Chamonix. It’s very easy to take them in for repairs, and we could even give them back once used in exchange for credit. Not that we intend to return those amazing uniforms anytime soon!

We would highly recommend Patagonia to anyone, whether in search of trusted technical material, or looking for a stylish everyday look. We will be happy to point you to our Patagonia local store next time you are in town!

The MoonBike

Posted on by Al Slinn

There’s a new, sustainable way to get around in the Alps: the MoonBike. If you have never heard of it, read on.

As we found out in this article on Euronews, the idea of building an electric snow bike came to Nicolas Muron – CEO of MoonBikes – in 2015, when visiting his grandparents’ home in the French Alps. He made a simple observation: transportation options are infinite in the summer months, but when winter comes around, heavily polluting cars and snowmobiles are the only viable option.

Nicolas took on the challenge of finding a solution. He created the world’s first electric snow bike – an ambitious undertaking aimed at protecting the environment he calls home, and having some fun along the way.

A sustainable solution

At just 87 kilograms, the MoonBike provides a speedy alternative over three times lighter than a conventional snowmobile. But while ergonomic factors remain a key selling point for Muron’s design, his main drive lies in bringing sustainability to an industry infamous for its gas-guzzling.

Fossil-fuel powered skidoos cause significant damage to land cover, affecting vegetation growth throughout the year. In one hour, a typical snowmobile can emit as much hydrocarbon as a 2008 model automobile emits in 86,000 kilometres of driving. Their exhaust fumes contain dangerous levels of toxins, degrading air quality and altering snow chemistry for good.

The MoonBike, meanwhile, can cover up to 64 kilometres with a single 2.5 kilowatt battery. It can climb groomed slopes with a 40 per cent steepness, and boasts top speeds of up to 42 kilometres per hour. “In the powder snow, it seems like skiing or snowboarding,” says Muron. “Because it’s completely silent, you really feel like you’re sliding, you can really curve lines just like you do when skiing.”

You can watch a video of the MoonBike in action here.

Can we make skiing sustainable?

Posted on by Al Slinn

As environmental issues are on the rise, we’re all aware that skiing as we know it will not be sustainable in the long run (pun intended). We can of course re-think the activities we do in the mountains and find alternative ways to enjoy them. However, as shown by French ski resort Sierre Chevalier, there is a big margin of improvement in terms of sustainable measures that can be implemented. We can only hope this kind of positive innovations will become the norm for ski resorts in the near future.

Full article by The Guardian here: https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2022/feb/17/future-proofed-piste-sustainable-skiing-in-the-french-alps