Iconic Athletes to Testify in Senate

Iconic athletes including snowboarder Jeremy Jones, climber and star of “The Dawn Wall” Tommy Caldwell, legendary mountaineer Conrad Anker, ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson, skier Caroline Gleich and dozens of other major athletes, outdoor brands, and mountain resorts are leaving the mountains to make a personal case for climate action, including protection of the Arctic Refuge, methane waste protections, clean energy innovation, passage of the CORE Act, transportation solutions and more designed to slow the changes they are witnessing firsthand in the world’s wildest places.

They will be in D.C. from Sept. 11-13 with the Protect Our Winters Action Fund (POW Action Fund) to testify in the Senate, brief the House Special Select Committee on Climate Change, advocate for the protection of the Arctic Refuge and passage of the CORE Act, and meet with their representatives on behalf of the $734B outdoor industry and the 146M people who participate in outdoor recreation.

Ahead of next week’s expected vote to protect the Arctic Refuge, athletes who have recently explored the region and met with the Gwich’in people including Hilaree Nelson, Luke Nelson, Tommy Caldwell and Clare Gallagher will be pressing for protection of the irreplaceable landscape at an event at the House Triangle on Wednesday.

On Thursday, iconic snowboarder and founder of Protect Our Winters Jeremy Jones, top climber and star of “The Dawn Wall” Tommy Caldwell, and skier Caroline Gleich will testify in the Senate Democrats’ Special Committee on the Climate Crisis hearing “The Fight to Save Winter: Pro Athletes for Climate Action.”

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

9-10AM     Arctic Refuge Event @ the House Triangle (more details available on Monday)

10AM-5PM     Interviews are available on-site or in-studio prior to and following the event with athletes who have explored the Arctic Refuge and spent substantial time in Alaska’s wildest places: Hilaree Nelson, Jeremy Jones, Conrad Anker, Caroline Gleich, Clare Gallager and more.

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Morning        Bookings in-studio or interviews in-person

9AM-5PM    Catch up with athletes on the Hill as they meet with Members of Congress (intv. availability between meetings)

11:30AM       Senate Democrats’ Special Committee on the Climate Crisis hearing “The Fight to Save Winter: Pro Athletes for Climate Action”@ U.S. Capitol, SVC-202Witness testimony and a live video of the hearing will be available at www.democrats.senate.gov/climate.

2:30PM      Congressional Briefing for House Special Select Committee on the Climate Crisis Staff

5PM-7PM Meet POW athletes and outdoor brands at private reception. Email for location, RSVP

Friday, September 13, 2019

7AM-Noon              Athletes and executives from top outdoor brands and mountain resorts available for interviews by phone, in-studio, or in person

Founded in 2018 as a sister organization to Protect Our Winters, the POW Action Fund works to make action on climate change a top policy priority for the outdoor sports community. By connecting the dots between climate change and its impact on the outdoors, the POW Action Fund turns the outdoor community’s shared passion for adventuring in wild places into the political will needed to drive positive action on climate change.