Olympic Gold Medalist Jessie Diggins Balances Skiing Success with Climate Advocacy
By Lila Woodruff
Even though our winters are growing warmer, Olympic skier Jessie Diggins is determined to make sure future generations can enjoy the snow that shaped her career. Cross-country skiing Olympic gold medalist Jessie Diggins has set her goals for the 2024-25 season. Although she wants to improve little things about her technique, she is primarily focused on advocating for climate change.
Diggins is a board member of the largest climate advocacy organization globally, Protect Our Winters (POW), and has been working with them for years. She plays a large role in training athletes to become climate activists and has talked to many US Senators about policies.
After Diggins became the first American to win a gold medal in cross country skiing in 2018, she decided that she wanted her medal to mean something. “It gives me an outlet where I’m doing something instead of dreading the change in the planet,” says Diggins, “I’ve seen winters change a lot in my 15 years as a pro.”
Later that year, Diggins joined POW, using her medal to grab the attention of congress people and get them to understand the issue of climate change. In 2020, she joined the POW board of directors, a position she plans to keep after retiring.
Diggins and POW have a long-term approach to reversing the effects of climate change. Diggins says, “Climate change is something we’ll be working on our entire lives. We were born into this problem and we’ll likely pass it on to our kids and grandkids, so it’s important to not burn yourselves out. Take a breath, spend time in wild places, come back to your desk refreshed and get to work.”
This year, Diggins’ goal is to “control her effort.” She says that when you are skiing, you can’t control whether you win or lose, but you can control how much effort you put in.
The same is true for climate policies. “Ultimately I’m not the senator who gets to vote, but I can make the case that it’s important,” says Diggins. “I can control the heart, dedication, and passion I put into it. Just because you can’t control the outcome doesn’t mean it’s not worth your time and effort.”