Established in 1993, the Golden Eagle Awards are the highest honors bestowed on a ski area for environmental performance. The awards have been updated over the years to reflect changes in sustainability best practices and highlight the importance of climate change action and advocacy. These awards are designed to benefit the entire industry by raising overall environmental excellence standards and promoting the latest best practices in sustainability.
In May 2025, Sun Valley Resort was named the first-place recipient in Climate Change Impact for the 2025 Golden Eagle Awards, in recognition of our ongoing commitment to environmental stewardship and the exceptional performance of our geothermal snowmelt system at Warm Springs Lodge.
This honor highlights Sun Valley's dedicated investment in climate-forward infrastructure, most notably our geothermal project that harnesses naturally heated water from a nearby hot spring to power the snowmelt system for the 21,674-square-foot Warm Springs Lodge patio. The system eliminates the need for traditional natural gas heating, reducing the resort’s Scope 1 emissions by approximately 101 metric tons of CO2e annually—the equivalent of taking nearly 24 gas-powered vehicles off the road each year.
The award also recognizes Sun Valley’s broader sustainability achievements, including:
The FIS Nature & Biodiversity Protection and Restoration Award aims to recognize and reward innovative projects that protect and enhance nature and biodiversity in winter sports. This award is grounded in the principles of the Sports for Nature Framework, encouraging sports organizations to actively engage in protecting and restoring natural habitats while inspiring positive action for biodiversity.
The Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation (WPEF) is committed to educating people about the importance of whitebark pine in high-elevation ecosystems and the numerous threats this threatened tree species currently faces. What better place to do this than where many people experience whitebark pine—on a ski hill. The WPEF has created a certification program to encourage ski areas to conserve and restore whitebark pine. The Whitebark Pine Friendly Ski Area (WPFSA) certification program was launched in 2016.
Sun Valley Resort officially earned certification as a Whitebark Pine Friendly Ski Area from the WPEF in 2025. Through collaborative efforts with experts from the resort, WPEF, and the U.S. Forest Service, we've implemented meaningful conservation strategies and educational initiatives. Last fall, our dedicated team participated in planting 500 whitebark pine trees on Baldy—a significant step toward preserving this important species!
Established in 1993, the Golden Eagle Awards are the highest honors bestowed on a ski area for environmental performance. The awards have been updated over the years to reflect changes in sustainability best practices and highlight the importance of climate change action and advocacy. These awards are designed to benefit the entire industry by raising overall environmental excellence standards and promoting the latest best practices in sustainability.
In 2020, Sun Valley Resort's Matt Robinson was the recipient of the Golden Eagle "Hero of Sustainability" Award. Robinson, the manager of the Konditorei Restaurant at the time, was given this award in recognition of outstanding leadership, initiative, and vision in making the Konditorei the first restaurant in the ski resort industry, and the second in the state of Idaho, to be awarded a 3-Star certification by the Green Restaurant Association (GRA), a national nonprofit organization helping restaurants to become more environmentally sustainable.
.png)