Curious about how Vail Resorts is transforming the future of skiing and riding, creating a more sustainable future and supporting local communities? Our teams are working together to create a more inclusive sport, fighting climate change, expanding access to mental health services and more. We would love to share our stories with you. If you are interested in speaking with one of our experts, email news@vailresorts.com.
 |
Vice President of Environmental & Social Responsibility
Kate Wilson has over two decades of experience in climate change and sustainability strategy, ESG program development and reporting, and change management. Kate leads responsibility and sustainability at Vail Resorts and is also a co-lead of the Women & Allies Employee Resource Group of Vail Resorts.
Before her role as Vice President of Environmental & Social Responsibility, she served as the Senior Director of Sustainability. Under Kate’s leadership, Vail Resorts is positioned to reach our Commitment to Zero goal, a zero net operating footprint across all 41 resorts by 2030. She currently chairs the National Ski Areas Association’s Environmental Committee. In 2019, Kate led sustainability discussions at the Bloomberg Sustainable Business Summit, Google’s Travel Summit, Colorado Governor’s Tourism Conference, and MT2030 – a coalition of mountain towns. Kate was also recognized by the Denver Business Journal in 2020 on the “40 Under 40” for her work at Vail Resorts.
Prior to this role, she developed and led the greenhouse gas & sustainability strategy practice at The Cadmus Group for 10 years and earned her M.A.S. in Environmental Policy and Management from the University of Denver, and a B.A. from Colby College in Environmental Policy.
Areas of Expertise: Commitment to Zero, Sustainability, Responsibility, ESG
 |
Wellness Director
Corey Levy is a clinical psychologist and the Wellness Director at Vail Resorts. Over the last eight years, Corey has worked to create employee wellness environments at Vail Resorts through destigmatized, easily accessible and practical means. Corey is passionate about community psychology, mental health equity and empowering employees to proactively support the emotional wellbeing of their friends, family and coworkers.
Prior to joining Vail Resorts, he trained and worked as a university psychologist and as the Assistant Director of the Counseling Center at CU Boulder where he established his foundational understanding of community psychology. Corey loves to ski and spend time outside with his family.
Areas of Expertise: Community Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Crisis Management, Peer Support, EAP programming
 |
Senior Director: Community Impact, Inclusive Access and EpicPromise Employee Foundation
Nicky DeFord has been a member of the Vail Resorts team since 1999, and now leads community impact and the Epic Promise Employee Foundation as the Senior Director. In her role, she directs $24 million in annual contributions to nonprofits and community engagement programs, and grants $1.6 million to employees through the EpicPromise Employee Foundation.
Through her role, Nicky cultivates thoughtful partnerships with nonprofits within local communities and collaborates with community leaders to partner on solutions for local challenges. In 2019, she expanded the company’s access work, launching Epic For Everyone Youth Access, a program that provides gear, skiing and snowboarding lessons, mentorship, and access for youth at resorts located near urban centers. In 2016, Nicky led the creation of a separate 501c3 – the EpicPromise Employee Foundation – to help employees bridge unexpected challenges and provide educational grants.
Areas of Expertise: Community Impact, Epic Promise, Community Giving, Inclusive Access, Volunteering, Community Engagement
 |
Senior Manager of Inclusive Access
Travis Tafoya leads Vail Resorts’ Inclusive Access & Community Impact work across resort communities in North America. His work is centered around diversity, equity, and inclusion within the outdoor industry, making the outdoors more accessible for all.
A first-generation college student, Travis holds a Master of Educational Leadership from DePaul University where he focused on educational institution public-private partnership for youth success in historically marginalized communities.
Travis was introduced to snowsports through Vail Resorts’ youth access programs, participating in SOS Outreach for nine years where he first discovered his love of snowboarding at Vail Mountain and Beaver Creek. He went on to expand SOS Outreach to Wilmot and Chicago based youth and now serves on their Board of Directors.
Areas of Expertise: Inclusive Access, Youth Access Programs