How green can they be? A survey of ski tourers’ pro-environmental behaviour

ABSTRACT

As more and more people seek out new experiences in mountain regions, ski touring has been gaining increasing popularity in France for the past 15 years. While there are concerns about the immediate and indirect environmental harm caused by ski touring (such as flora destruction, wildlife disturbance, or carbon emissions from transportation and gear manufacturing) there are also potential benefits to human health and the promotion of positive attitudes and behaviours through experiencing nature. To understand the pro-environmental behaviours (PEB) of ski tourers in the French Alps and Pyrenees, a quantitative survey was conducted with 1,312 participants. Findings underscore the influential role of gender and education level as strong predictors of PEB. Furthermore, participants engaging in ski touring outside ski resorts exhibit a higher likelihood of demonstrating PEB compared to those who practice on groomed slopes. The research uncovers a correlation between visiting renowned national parks and PEB. This indicates a preference among environmentally conscious individuals for ski touring in natural, unequipped areas and an attraction to emblematic protected areas. These results also demonstrate that individuals with greater socio-economic capital make distinctive choices in both recreational and sustainable consumption practices.

KEYWORDS:

• Mountain sports
• ski touring
• pro-environmental behaviour
• experience of nature
• protected areas

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge Asters, Parc National de la Vanoise, and Office Français de la Biodiversité for their financial support and human resources during data collection. We thank Moussa Mamadou Ba for his assistance in using R during the manuscript revision.

This work was carried out thanks to the financial support of Labex ITTEM (ANR-10-LABX-50-01) within the framework of the “Investissements d’Avenir” program managed by the National Research Agency.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche and Labex ITTEM.

Notes on contributors

L. Gruas

Léna Gruas is lecturer and researcher in sports sociology affiliated with LABERS laboratory at the Bretagne Occidentale university. Her research focuses on nature sports participants’ profiles. Specifically, she investigates the intricate relationship between sociodemographic characteristics, engagement in the activities, and the connections that participants have to the natural environment. Through her work, she seeks to gain a deeper understanding of the complex interactions between human beings and the environment in the context of sports and recreational activities.

C. Perrin-Malterre

Clémence Perrin-Malterre is an associate professor in sociology affiliated with EDYTEM laboratory at the Savoie Mont Blanc University. Her research focuses on mountain sports and recreational activities. She studies the environmental management of these activities in protected areas, the tourist diversification of mid-mountain territories, and the evolution of professional practices among sports service providers.

O. Hoibian

Olivier Hoibian is an associate professor at the Faculty of Sports Science at the University of Toulouse 3. As a historian and sociologist, he is affiliated with the FRAMESPA laboratory (UMR 5136) at the Jean Jaures University - Toulouse 2. His research focuses on the processes of legitimisation of physical practices and the structuring of mountain activity professions in Western societies during the contemporary period. He is particularly interested in socially differentiated uses of the body in the field of nature leisure and school physical education. He founded the cross-border Observatory of Pyrenean Refuges.