REI Releases Stewardship Report

September 14, 2009
SGB Update

REI released its third annual stewardship report that provides an evaluation of the co-op’s social and environmental efforts in the 2008 calendar year. The report updates progress toward short and long-term goals, including the co-op’s environmental aspiration of being carbon-neutral and zero-waste-to-landfill by 2020.


The co-op’s Community initiatives included maintaining 14,481 acres of land and 6,520 miles of trail through investment in nonprofits. There was a total of 1.6 million volunteer hours donated by 130,347 individuals through REI’s nonprofit support. REI also helped 182,834 youth through the Promoting Environmental Awareness in Kids (PEAK).


On the environmental front, REI attained LEED Gold certification for REI’s Boulder, Colo. store and a second green building prototype store in Round Rock, Texas, featuring solar panels and special lighting, materials and design strategies. REI purchased 85.1% of all paper from “acceptable sources” according to REI’s paper policy, including 25.6% that was certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. Finally, 84.8% of the operational waste generated – such as cardboard, wooden pallets, cans and bottles – was recycled.


REI milestone regarding its People included an 86% employee engagement score through the company-wide annual survey, underscoring REI’s ranking as #12 on the FORTUNE magazine “100 Best Companies to Work for in America” list. The company also created a new recruiting strategy to ensure REI’s staff is reflective of the diversity of its communities. 95% of the dollar value of REI-brand products had a third-party factory audit under the co-op's compliance program to ensure factories manufacturing REI products provide appropriate working environments.

REI Releases Stewardship Report

September 8, 2009
SGB Update

REI released its third annual stewardship report that provides an evaluation of the co-op’s social and environmental efforts in the 2008 calendar year.


 


The report updates progress toward short and long-term goals, including the co-op’s environmental aspiration of being carbon-neutral and zero-waste-to-landfill by 2020. REI is also committed to increasing outdoor participation, especially among youth, and ensuring natural spaces are available for all to enjoy.


 


“REI’s stewardship report is an important part of our commitment to share our progress and opportunities with our employees, members and communities,” said Sally Jewell, REI’s president and CEO. “While we are proud of our accomplishments, we embrace the challenges that remain on the long path ahead.”


 

REI’s 2008 stewardship report content is structured into three sections – Community; Environment; and People. Highlights include:

 


Community:




  • 14,481 acres of land and 6,520 miles of trail maintained through the co-op’s investment in conservation and recreation nonprofits.


  • 1,573,138 volunteer hours donated through the “sweat equity” of 130,347 individuals through REI’s nonprofit support.


  • 182,834 youth learned how to recreate outdoors responsibly through the Promoting Environmental Awareness in Kids (PEAK) program via REI’s partnership with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics.

 


Environment:




  • LEED Gold certification for REI’s Boulder, Colo. store and a second green building prototype store in Round Rock, Texas, featuring solar panels and forward-thinking lighting, materials and design strategies.


  • 85.1% of all paper was purchased from “acceptable sources” according to REI’s paper policy, including 25.6% that was certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.


  • Recycling 84.8% of the operational waste generated, such as cardboard, wooden pallets, cans and bottles.

 


People:




  • An 86% employee engagement score through the company-wide annual survey, underscoring REI’s ranking as #12 on the FORTUNE magazine “100 Best Companies to Work for in America” list.


  • A new recruiting strategy to ensure REI’s staff is reflective of the diversity of its communities.


  • 95% of the dollar value of REI-brand products had a third-party factory audit under the co-op's compliance program to ensure factories manufacturing REI products provide appropriate working environments.

 


REI’s 2008 report is the co-op’s third stewardship report.  The co-op’s first report, which highlighted efforts during the 2006 calendar year, established a process of milestones, metrics and data, and storytelling surrounding the company’s stewardship commitments in its headquarters, retail locations, distribution center and supply chain manufacturing. All past REI stewardship reports are archived and maintained with open access for future reference.


 

REI Releases Stewardship Report

March 27, 2007
SGB Executive SGB Update
by

Recreational Equipment, Inc. released its first stewardship report. The report, available online at www.rei.com/stewardship, provides a review of the co-op's social and environmental priorities and efforts for 2006, and includes short and long-term aspirations for improvement.

“Our 2006 stewardship report represents an effort to provide a comprehensive look at many areas of our business such as cooperative giving and volunteerism, employee benefits, environmental impacts and responsible sourcing,” said Sally Jewell, REI president and CEO. “Through the process of developing our report, we committed to establishing baseline metrics and setting ambitious goals. We look forward to providing updates to our employees, members, communities and others on our progress.”

The full report is being published online for convenience and in consideration of the required resources in printing a full report. To supplement the online content, a brochure that summarizes the co-op's actions will be available in REI stores starting April 2. The brochure can also be downloaded from REI's website, or requested by emailing stewardship@rei.com.

Highlights from REI's 2006 stewardship report include:

  • Giving back – Distributing more than $4 million dollars to nonprofit organizations in support of conservation, recreation and youth programs.
  • Volunteering – Inspiring nearly 24,000 volunteers in REI-sponsored and supported service projects, and caring for 4,395 miles of trails – approximately the distance between REI's Anchorage and Atlanta stores.
  • Reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) – Purchasing renewable energy for 20 percent of the co-op's total electricity usage, reducing GHG emissions from electricity by more than 30 percent. The co-op is targeting a reduction of one third in total GHG emissions from its 2006 baseline level by the end of 2009, and has the aspiration to be climate-neutral by 2020.
  • Green building – Earning U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)® LEED-CI Silver certification for REI's Pittsburgh store. The co-op is committed to building stores and a distribution center with this standard.
  • Paper sourcing and purchasing – Introducing a new paper purchasing policy and tracking the origin of REI's paper through the adoption of a full “chain of custody” model.
  • Managing waste – Recycling an estimated 67 percent of the company's retail waste by volume – or 82 percent by weight. REI aspires to be a zero waste company by 2009.
  • Ethical sourcing and manufacturing – Auditing more than 50 percent of REI's contract factories representing 94 percent of the dollar value of the REI branded products. REI also collaborated with outdoor industry peers to develop and introduce a toolkit to help companies pursue factory sourcing in consideration of appropriate standards for workers and working conditions.
  • Workplace excellence – Extending healthcare benefits to all part-time employees regardless of the number of hours worked. The co-op was named by FORTUNE magazine as one of “100 Best Companies to Work for in America” for the tenth consecutive year.

The report also offers an opportunity to provide feedback on the report and the company's progress.

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