The Eastern Snow and Avalanche Workshop (ESAW) is a one-day professional development seminar, held on Nov. 7 this year at the Omni Mount Washington Resort in New Hampshire, for those working in avalanche safety. It provides a venue for avalanche workers to listen to presentations and discuss new ideas, techniques and technologies with their colleagues. The meeting is intended for avalanche forecasters, ski guides, avalanche education instructors, ski patrollers, students, and researchers, but the meeting is open to anyone interested in furthering their knowledge of avalanche safety.

The 2015 ESAW is collaborating with the families of Ronnie Berlack and Bryce Astle to expand the conversation about avalanche safety both in the United States and internationally.

The Jan. 5, 2015 avalanche that killed Ronnie and Bryce should motivate all winter sport enthusiasts to dig deeper into the risks associated with our beloved mountains. It has also inspired ESAW to grow this one-day workshop and continue educating the grizzled veterans and new athletes on the complex nature of snow in the mountains.

Following the ESAW sessions and social, a dinner in true Omni Mount Washington Resort style will commence. The dinner is in memory of Ronnie and Bryce with opening comments from their families. The goal is to bring more attention to the understanding of international avalanche warning systems and to work on connecting all avalanche advisories and warnings. This will be briefly presented followed by the keynote address by Rudi Mair, the Director of the Tyrol Avalanche Crisis Center in Innsbruck, Austria, who will present on the topic: How do we deal with avalanches and their mortal dangers when we can’t understand the risks in their whole complexity?

Proceeds from the 2015 Eastern Snow and Avalanche workshop benefit White Mountain Avalanche Education Fund,  a mechanism to help educate visitors before they arrive in the mountains.

Registration for the dinner is open through Nov. 3, and interested parties can sign up here.