Freeskier Kim Vinet Brings Valuable Climate Fighting and Fossil Fuel Extraction Background to EcoAthletes Champions Roster
Freeskier, figure skater, former fossil fuel industry project manager, backcountry ski guide, climate advocate and business owner.
Canadian Kim Vinet’s (Vin-ETTE) varied background immediately appealed to Lew Blaustein, EcoAthletes founder and CEO. One conversation convinced him that she would make a great EcoAthletes Champion.
“Kim’s commitment to climate action and her in-depth knowledge of the fossil fuel industry is such a unique and important combination,” marveled Blaustein. “She understands how complicated the transition from dirty to clean energy will be and that will serve her well as she advocates for a #ClimateComeback as an EcoAthletes Champion."
Her athletic career began on the ice, not on the slopes. Vinet grew up as a figure skater, competing provincially before deciding at age 16 that she didn’t want to go through the grind that was required to potentially make it to the national and international levels. She chose the university route instead.
“I went to the University of Western Ontario, unsure of what to study,” Vinet shared. “I took an Earth Science class and saw incredibly beautiful photos from all over the world and decided to pursue it. I was outdoorsy and athletic and wanted to be hands on. My second year, I joined a professor on some field work in the mountains of Alberta and British Columbia, studying how different layers of rock interact. And that’s what led me to move west to Calgary to work in oil and gas exploration — the science I loved happened to be the science of petroleum exploration.”
Kim Vinet hard at work as a ski guide for Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing (photo: Luke Laurin)
Kim Vinet (Photo credit: Kim Vinet)
At the same time, Vinet took up Freeride skiing, on open terrain, away from groomed slopes.
“I started competing in Freeskiing when I was 26 years old and did well almost immediately,” she recalled. “I moved to the Revelstoke Mountain Resort in British Columbia, about 400km west of Calgary. From 2011-14, I competed on the Freeride World Tour qualifier series, which, thanks to several sponsor brands, took me from Canada to the U.S. to Chile. But eventually I got sick of leaving the best conditions in the world to ski just to compete.”
Rooted in Revelstoke, Vinet pivoted to train to become a ski guide, eventually joining the Mike Weigele Helicopter Skiing guide’s team:
“Ski guiding taught me how to safely take clients backcountry skiing.”
Climate change was impossible for Vinet to avoid, both in her fossil fuel exploration career and in freeskiing.
“I always had a good understanding of the climate impacts of the oil and gas industry,” she related. “I wanted to ensure we used more environmentally responsible processes, which was not always appreciated by management. This made no sense to me because, if you’re not thinking of the future, how can you not want to produce resources more efficiently? Eventually, I switched to geothermal production, which is much more aligned with my values. It was exciting to use my knowledge and experience to help grow renewable energy and fight climate change…but daunting to learn how policy stood in the way of progress.”
Vinet added to her climate fighting bona fides when she starred in “Awaken” by SunGod, a film that documents the impacts of climate change on the ski industry. But she accepts that she is an imperfect messenger.
“Helicopter skiing has a large carbon footprint,” said Vinet. “I am a ski guide to give our customers the best experience of their lives. By connecting them to the outdoors, we hopefully will help them become people who will push for cleaner options in their day-to-day lives or the businesses they run.”
Becoming an EcoAthletes Champion was a logical next step for Vinet.
“I love that the organization empowers athletes with the resources to help them use their platforms to communicate on climate,” the Ontario native offered. “I am excited to use my voice as an EcoAthletes Champion to help mountain enthusiasts to take climate action.”