The Fédération Française des Clubs Alpines et de Montagne (FFCAM), a UIAA member association, were delighted to have recently had the opportunity to meet with the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, during his Presidential visit to the Mont Blanc range.
Owing to the Federation’s excellent relationship with the prefecture and local town halls, President of the FFCAM, Nicolas Raynaud, was invited by the Prefecture of Haute Savoie to attend a working lunch (13 February) at the top of the Bettex Ski Lift in Saint-Gervais. Also present at the lunch were the Minister of the Ecological and Solidarity Transition, Elisabeth Borne; Secretary of State to the Minister of the Ecological and Solidarity Transition, Emmanuelle Wargon; the Mayor of Saint-Gervais, Jean-Marc Peillex; the Mayor of Chamonix, Eric Fournier; the Mayor of Les Houches, Xavier Roseren; the President of the regional council Laurent Wauqiez as well as deputies from the sector and various actors of the mountain region such as local guide companies and the French Ski School.
Around 30 people in total attended the lunch, with no press present. Mr Raynaud was able to express his concerns to Mr Macron regarding the current problems in the Mont Blanc massif related to mountaineering and the theme of refuges in the Pyrenees, an area the Mr Macron knows well;, in particular the valley of Campana de Cloutou, where he spent time walking as a child. Mr Macron expressed his wish to accompany the President to the region in order to witness the issue for himself and to take steps not only to address the renovation of the refuge but of Pyrenean refuges generally.
Further Reading
FFCAM
UIAA Members Directory
Main photo courtesy of FFCAM