18th Expert Discussion Of The Ski Amade Academy A Success
Under the theme “Sustainability in ski regions – facts, progress and visions”, Ski amadé invited to the annual expert discussion in the Culture and Congress Center St. Johann im Pongau.
The focus of the event is the central question of what has already been achieved in ski regions in the past in terms of sustainability and how these can be made even more ecologically and economically sustainable in the long term. Respected experts in the industry will speak about current challenges, progress already made and visionary concepts for a more environmentally friendly future in winter sports. The presenting experts Univ. Prof. Dipl. Ing. Dr. Ulrike Pröbstl-Haider, Dir. Georg Bliem and Dr. rer. Pol. Michaela Hölz had exciting answers ready. The aim is to develop concrete solutions for sustainable tourism in ski regions.
The audience consisted of around 100 business people and tourism professionals from the Ski amadé region. Politicians from the region, hoteliers, managing directors and chairmen of the regional and tourism associations, managing directors and senior employees of the mountain railways and media representatives listened attentively to the speakers' presentations and exchanged experiences in the subsequent panel discussion.
After the welcoming words and a brief introduction to the topic of the evening by Ski amadé President Mag. Daniel Berchthaller and Ski amadé Managing Director Dr. Christoph Eisinger, the first speaker, Univ. Prof. Dipl. Ing. Dr. Ulrike Pröbstl Haider, starts the series of lectures. She has been Professor of Landscape Development, Recreation and Tourism at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna since 2003. Her research focuses on sustainable tourism, adaptation to climate change and nature conservation. In her lecture "Sustainable ski areas: goals, efforts and improvements achieved", she examines measures to promote ecological winter sports areas, including snow measurements, resource-efficient piste management and the protection of wildlife. She shows how sustainable mobility through public transport and carpooling can reduce CO2 emissions and offers practical solutions for environmentally friendly tourism development.
Dir. Georg Bliem, Managing Director of Planai-Hochwurzen-Bahnen GmbH, speaks in his presentation about the sustainability strategy of the Ski amadé ski area in the Schladming-Dachstein region. The company has been focusing on environmental management and innovative technologies for years. Important milestones include the electrification of the Dachstein Glacier Cable Car and the energy-saving use of direct drives in the construction of new cable car systems. With their intelligent snow management, they were the absolute pioneers - the concept has now become standard for many cable car companies. The opening of the Dachstein Energy Crystal in May 2024 and the use of photovoltaics and HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil) underline the commitment to CO2 reduction. An ISO certification in autumn 2023 confirms the high environmental standards and continuous improvement. The aim is to be 16% energy self-sufficient by 2029. Future technologies, such as floating PV systems in storage ponds, are still being researched.
In her presentation, Dr. Michaela Hölz, expert in alpine tourism and long-time sustainability consultant, will present the successes of the Ski amadé region Wagrain-Kleinarl on the way to two important sustainability certifications: the Green Destinations certification (2022) and the Austrian Ecolabel (2023). She will address the challenges and milestones, explain key learnings and present strategies for holistically sustainable tourism development. The focus is on the question of how a tourism destination can be made not only ecologically, but also economically and socially sustainable. She will also share her international experience as an auditor to shed light on the role of certification systems in a global context. Her presentation will provide valuable inspiration for regions pursuing similar sustainability goals.
