The fall season really brings out nature’s most beautiful qualities. The falling leaves, the crisp air, the refreshing weather – you really can’t complain. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t always take care of our planet, and I think we can all think of a time we weren’t completely eco-friendly. Whether it’s shopping at fast fashion brands, forgetting to recycle, or using single use items instead of reusable ones, there’s always more we can do to help protect our planet – especially during one of the most beautiful times of the year.
Patagonia is doing just that.
Patagonia’s founder, Yvon Chouinard, has gone to the next level and sold his $3 billion company to a trust/non-profit focused on combating climate change. The company, known for its hiking gear and athletic wear, now prides itself in the fact that “Earth is [its] only stakeholder.”
This isn’t the first time Patagonia has done something like this. For example, Patagonia once released a campaign called “Don’t Buy this Jacket” for Black Friday. This concept revolved around the idea of over consumption – we buy so much stuff that we don’t need that just ends up becoming waste. The company’s site explains that “Everything we make takes something from the planet we can’t give back” so instead of buying things just for the sake of buying them, shop sustainably and consciously and don’t buy this jacket unless you really need it.
Few large brands have been able to meet the high bar that Patagonia has set. Many brands will ‘greenwash’ – portraying themselves as eco-friendly with half-hearted campaigns or smaller ‘eco-conscious’ lines to distract from their truly harmful practices. However, Patagonia has shown that it is possible to include the planet in your business plan.
But don’t get me wrong – I’m not expecting you to go out and donate all your life savings after reading this article. But we can all make an effort to take care of our Earth a little more for the next generation, and the one after that, and the one after that…
So the next time you’re thinking of just tossing your recycling into the trash on campus because it’s closer, or you’re just going to grab a plastic water bottle because it’s faster than filling up your reusable one, take the extra time to take care of our planet because it’s the only one we get. We can only take so much from our planet, but we can always keep giving back to it.