New projects move ahead despite budget constraints

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At a meeting in Paris in mid-May, the executive councils of the UIAA formally agreed to go forward this summer with efforts to develop further the UIAA Training Standards label and to lay the groundwork for a new Mountain Protection label.

image: Nelson Chenkin

The Executive Board (EB) and the Management Committee (MC) approved a plan to introduce a system for training experts, assessors and trainers. A UIAA Training Standard label will be awarded to Federations that meet the UIAA standards. The idea of the standards is to promote good practice in the training of voluntary mountaineering leaders and instructors.

The UIAA Mountain Protection Commission has been developing a label over the past year which would be awarded to tour operators and mountain recreation organisations which commit themselves to acting according to high mountain protection standards.

Deficit

The Board and Management Committee chose to move forward with these projects, despite budgetary and operational setbacks. The UIAA is currently operating with a higher than expected deficit. The MC chose in particular to criticise the high travel expenses incurred by UIAA President Mike Mortimer. The MC agreed to perform an internal audit.

The EB voted in favour of adjusting the 2011 budget to prevent an additional decrease of reserves without having to reduce funding for the essential work of UIAA Commissions. The EB agreed to define the 2012 budget before its July meeting.

Strategic Plan

The MC was presented with the first results from a poll sent to all UIAA Member Federations. The Strategic Plan survey is aimed at better defining what UIAA members expect of the international body so that a plan of action can be drawn up. A draft is to be presented at the UIAA General Assembly in Kathmandu in October.

Executive Board, Management Committee members and Commission presidents, May 2011, Paris (image: Robert Pettigrew)