When planning their trips, Mount Noire works with local bars to expand their musical repertoire, while other Black-led organizations sometimes invite artists on their trips. Ne-Yo and Anthony Hamilton performed at the 2023 NBS Summit, and Soft Life Ski is taking a selection of black British DJs to Norway for its next trip to the Fyri Resort in Hemsedal in March. Ultimately, these efforts create a “home away from home” for new demographics, Ojo said. These collective experiences also contribute to reduced self-consciousness among black skiers. As Ojo said: “I prefer to stay in a group of 20, then in a group of two.”
Since 2020, sporting bodies in the United States and the United Kingdom have implemented a series of measures to promote diversity in skiing. In 2021, US Ski & Snowboard entered into a four-year partnership with the NBS, with the ultimate goal of “elevating an African American to the World Cup podium.” Snowsport England, the national governing body for snow sports in the country, is currently working with Mount Noire to fund the training of a black ski instructor. And GB Snowsport is currently rolling out a three-year diversity and inclusion action plan, which aims to increase diversity among recreational skiers, instructors, coaches and, ultimately, elite athletes.
“Our main aim is to take a long-term view of diversity in snow sports,” said Vicky Gosling, Managing Director of GB Snowsport. “We are excited to support the current generation of athletes who are already part of or on the verge of breaking into the elite environment. […] In athletes like Siddhartha Ullah, Zoe Atkin and Nina Sparks, we have great examples of young skiers and snowboarders from non-white backgrounds thriving within Team GB, and that’s something we look forward to. let’s work to build. »
Resorts are also joining the conversation. In 2021, the CEO of Vail Resorts released an open letter in which he wrote: “We must recognize that there are parts of the culture of our sport that are clearly not inviting. Maybe the image we’ve created of the mountain lifestyle needs to be more varied.” And to mark Martin Luther King Jr. Day – one of the most lucrative weekends for ski resorts in the States -United – Steamboat Ski Resort, Colorado, raised $50,000 for the NBS. These efforts, combined with the work of groups like Soft Life Ski, Mount Noire and NBS, mean the mountains may become less white as snow in the decades to come.