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One of the big brakes that has held many athletes back from speaking out on climate change is the fear of being branded a hypocrite on social media. This is largely due to their outsized personal carbon footprints which result from having to fly hundreds of thousands of miles annually to play their sports.
Kyle Clark is committed to dramatically reducing those aviation-related carbon impacts, paving the way for more athletes to raise their voices in support of climate action.
A Northern New Englander, Clark was a tough yet cerebral hockey player who played for Harvard, in the minor leagues, and was drafted by the Washington Capitals of the NHL. He also is an aeronautical engineer. In fact, while his teammates slept or played cards during long minor league hockey bus trips from places like Portland, Maine to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Clark would sketch designs for electric aircraft.
Fast forward 22 years and Clark’s drawings have become the inspiration for the electric airplanes made by Beta Technologies, the Vermont-based company he founded in 2017 and for which he serves as CEO. His vision is to accelerate the scaling up of electric aviation to make air travel safer, cleaner, and more cost-effective.
That is why EcoAthletes, the nonprofit that inspires and coaches athletes to lead climate action, has named Kyle Clark as the 2024 inductee to its Hall of Fame.
As EcoAthletes’ founder and CEO, I can say that Clark’s was the clear choice to be this year’s Hall of Fame inductee. He combines his hockey skill sets — the ability to overcome imposing obstacles and the vision to, in the words of Wayne Gretzky, ‘skate where the puck is going to be, not where it has been’ — with serious aeronautical engineer chops, and an ecopreneur’s drive to reduce carbon emissions at scale. The faster Clark and Beta Technologies’ increase the size and range of their electric planes, the faster athletes’ fears of speaking out on climate will decrease. That’s what I call sparking the #ClimateComeback.
“It’s a real honor to be inducted into the EcoAthletes Hall of Fame alongside an impressive group of climate leaders and former athletes,” Clark offered. “I want to thank EcoAthletes for recognizing electrifying aviation and shedding light on the importance of making this industry more sustainable for our future.
The fifth member of the EcoAthletes Hall of Fame, Clark joins Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, a long time stalwart supporter of climate action and a former Stanford football player; Dr. Katharine Hayhoe, world-renowned climate scientist, climate communicator, and believer in the role sports can play in driving climate action; Dr. Allen Hershkowitz, a Founding Father of the Green-Sports movement; and Leigh Steinberg, legendary sports agent and climate advocate.
Below is my recent interview with Clark about his journey from hockey grinder to aeronautical engineer to Beta Technologies founder to EcoAthletes Hall of Famer.
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