Jeremy Jones’ journey from pro snowboarder to climate activist

Last updated Mar 3, 2022

A legendary big-mountain freerider and snowboarding movie star, Jeremy Jones (pictured) has devoted his life to winter sports. But over his 30-year career, he noticed that the season was getting shorter. Ming T. Poon/Protect Our Winters

Climate change has led to winters starting later and ending earlier, and extreme weather has become increasingly common. In Lake Tahoe, California, where Jones is based, a lack of snow meant ski resorts weren’t able to open in November last year, as they usually do. A month later, a massive snowstorm shut down resorts because there was too much snow, says Jones. Ming T. Poon/Protect Our Winters

To reduce his own climate impact, Jones gave up helicopter trips to the top of mountain ranges, in favor of his own two feet. He now climbs up mountains and uses a “splitboard” — a snowboard that splits into two halves and can be used as skis for the ascent and a single board for the descent. Ming T. Poon/Protect Our Winters

In 2007, Jones went a step further, founding Protect Our Winters (POW), an organization that brings together the outdoor sports community as a unified voice on climate change. Today it has more than 130,000 members and operates worldwide. Chris Wellhausen/Protect Our Winters

“The winter sports community has … given me a voice,” says Jones. “I feel like it is my responsibility to use my voice and say … we need to come together to help the long term health of our community.” Andrew Miller/Protect Our Winters

Leveraging the voices of some of POW’s most famous athletes, the organization applies pressure on policymakers to create change. In 2017, Jones and others from POW testified in front of Congress about the impact of climate change on outdoor sports. Forest Woodward/Protect Our Winters

The environmental impact of less snow is also significant. It can harm plants and animals that rely on snow for insulation from sub-freezing temperatures and it puts water supplies at risk. California, for example, relies on snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada mountains for 75% of its agricultural water, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Adam Clark/Protect Our Winters

Less snow and earlier snowmelt also increases the likelihood of drought, leading to severe wildfires in some regions, says Anne Nolin, a snow hydrologist from the University of Nevada and a member of POW’s science alliance. Last year the Caldor Fire ravaged the Tahoe basin, including the Sierra at Tahoe ski resort (pictured), which remains closed due to damage. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Seeing forest fires become a “new norm” is frightening, says Jones, and poor air quality and smoke is affecting his outdoor lifestyle. He wants to preserve the mountains and the seasons that have brought him his life’s passion. “The mountains are just the greatest teacher,” he says. “They challenge me, they make me feel alive, they ground me.” Ming T. Poon/Protect Our Winters

Jeremy Jones' journey from pro snowboarder to climate activist sport