News

Three people hiking down a trail

My #OptOutside Tradition

In 2015, REI Co-op closed its stores on Black Friday for the first time, giving its employees the day off to #OptOutside and encouraging others around the count...
Two hikers walk in the shadow of massive trees.

What Are Old-Growth Forests?

As a certified forest therapy guide who helps people experience how healing immersion in nature can be, I often invite my forest bathing participants to share a...
A swimmer is shown halfway submerged underwater, with their head above the surface.

In Praise of Playing Hooky

A deceptively wise young man in Wayfarer shades once reminded us how quickly life goes. “If you don't stop and look around once in a while,” Ferris Bueller says...
A hiker in a puffy vest reaches out to touch the bark of an old tree in the woods

In Praise of Favorite Trees

Nature is often the backdrop for the stories we tell. It’s the glacier lake we jump into; the pillowy snow we send our skis down; the wind that whips at our ten...