As REI delivers on its commitment to introduce innovative products and better serve our members and communities, corporate travel remains important to our business model. Travel connects REI employees with our industry partners, community partners and each other.

To measure the climate impact of corporate travel, we count the impacts of transportation (air flights or train trips, rental car usage, and mileage driven by employees while on REI business). We do not currently include indirect impacts, such as the energy used in the hotel where the employee stays.

RESULTS

Traveling REI employees increased our GHG emissions by 46.4 percent, comparable to the frequency of travel pre-recession. In 2010, we did not assign divisional accountability in managing CO2 related to corporate travel.

LOOKING AHEAD

The company is expanding its video conferencing capabilities at our headquarters and distribution centers, to serve as a resource for employees who do not need to travel for business meetings and interact in person with vendors.