{"id":85654,"date":"2019-10-22T21:01:26","date_gmt":"2019-10-23T04:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=85654"},"modified":"2019-11-05T08:44:26","modified_gmt":"2019-11-05T16:44:26","slug":"opt-outside-2019-eric-artz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/stewardship\/opt-outside-2019-eric-artz","title":{"rendered":"REI CEO Eric Artz: We Must Opt to Act"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dear co-op member,<\/p>\n

Like many of you, I have a lot on my mind this year as we head into the holiday season. As I look forward to 2020 and beyond, I find myself thinking more deeply about my role in fighting for life outdoors\u2014both as an individual and as the leader of our 18 million-member cooperative.<\/p>\n

The co-op has been around for an amazing 81 years and it\u2019s my privilege, as REI\u2019s eighth CEO, to serve you and our 13,000 employees. My job is to steward the co-op, and the outdoors, on your behalf\u2014and on behalf of the generations who follow us.<\/p>\n

Today, that future is at risk. We are in the throes of an environmental crisis that threatens not only the next 81 years of the co-op, but the incredible outdoor places that we love. Climate change is the greatest existential threat facing our co-op<\/a>. I believe we do not have the luxury of calling climate change a political issue. This is a human issue. And we must act now.<\/p>\n

By anyone else\u2019s measure, REI has been a leader in sustainability for decades. We source 100 percent green energy<\/a> for all our operations, we\u2019ve been advancing toward a zero-waste goal<\/a> for years and we\u2019ve pushed the outdoor industry to dramatically raise the bar on product sustainability through first-of-their-kind product sustainability standards<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not good enough.<\/p>\n

This year we\u2019ve watched in awe as millions of young people in dozens of countries came together to demand climate action<\/a>. And we\u2019ve seen a new generation of consumers fundamentally reject the idea of \u201cstuff\u201d as status.<\/p>\n

#OptOutside has always brought out the best in this community. For five years in a row, we have closed our stores on the biggest shopping day of the year, processed no online sales and paid employees to spend the day outside with friends and family. This year, we want to take #OptOutside a step further\u2014both in the ask we\u2019re making of you, our members, and the commitments we\u2019re making ourselves.<\/p>\n

Once again, this Black Friday, we\u2019ll be closed and we\u2019ll be paying employees to go outside with friends and family. We\u2019re still going to go outside and play\u2014but this time we\u2019re bringing our work gloves. And we\u2019re inviting you to join us.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s time to fight for life outdoors\u2014and life on this planet. We must opt to act<\/strong>. Here\u2019s how to start:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Join us on Black Friday to #OptOutside with friends and family. Enjoy the outdoors and remind yourself why protecting it is crucial for us and for future generations.<\/li>\n
  2. This year, let\u2019s take it one step further. Please consider joining one of our nationwide cleanups<\/a> with partners at the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics<\/a> and United By Blue<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. If you can\u2019t find a cleanup near you, commit to picking up trash you find while on your hike\u2014leaving our trails and outdoor spaces better than you found them. Our employees have already been doing this for the past month, and I am incredibly proud to see them leading the way for our community. In fact, so far they\u2019ve picked up 4 tons of trash.<\/li>\n
  4. Sign up for our new 52-week Opt to Act plan<\/a>\u2014sourced from tips shared by our employees\u2014and take the small steps throughout the year to reduce your environmental footprint and create habits that last a lifetime.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    As we ask you to steward the outdoor places you love this Black Friday, we\u2019re also announcing a series of our own commitments. We\u2019re rethinking the future of retail and finding ways for every REI member to take part in the circular economy<\/a> with more used<\/a> and rental gear<\/a> choices. We\u2019re tackling waste in our own operations and in communities across the country. And we\u2019re redoubling our efforts to eliminate unnecessary packaging in our industry. You can read more about these commitments here<\/a>, and we\u2019ll share even more in the coming months about the ongoing ways we\u2019ll be stepping up the fight for life outdoors.<\/p>\n

    As a single company, our impact is limited, but as a community, we can drive change that powers meaningful action beyond our walls. As a co-op, we know that many people taking many small steps together can add up to big changes. Collective intention will drive collective impact.<\/p>\n

    Because when the next generation asks us what we did when the outdoors and the world needed us most, I want to be able to say, \u201cwe did our best.\u201d<\/p>\n

    This is only the beginning, but I hope you will join me and opt to act.<\/p>\n

    Eric Artz<\/p>\n

    President & CEO, REI Co-op<\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Dear co-op member, Like many of you, I have a lot on my mind this year as we head into the holiday season. As I look forward to 2020 and beyond, I find myself thinking more deeply about my role in fighting for life outdoors\u2014both as an individual and as the leader of our 18 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":90932,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[637],"tags":[466,682,480,591],"internal-tag":[],"class_list":["post-85654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stewardship","tag-optoutside","tag-rei-news","tag-stewardship","tag-sustainability"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/stewardship\/opt-outside-2019-eric-artz","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"REI CEO Eric Artz: We Must Opt to Act","url":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/stewardship\/opt-outside-2019-eric-artz","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/stewardship\/opt-outside-2019-eric-artz"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/10\/Shea_091619_0414.jpg?resize=150%2C150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/10\/Shea_091619_0414.jpg?fit=2000%2C1100"},"articleSection":"Stewardship","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michelle Flandreau"}],"creator":["Michelle Flandreau"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Uncommon Path \u2013 An REI Co-op Publication","logo":""},"keywords":["optoutside","rei news","stewardship","sustainability"],"dateCreated":"2019-10-23T04:01:26Z","datePublished":"2019-10-23T04:01:26Z","dateModified":"2019-11-05T16:44:26Z"},"rendered":"