Patagonia will send ten employees weekly to affected costal regions in the gulf to work with long-term Patagonia grantee, the Louisiana Bucket Brigade, in oil-spill relief efforts. All employee wages and expenses will be paid in full during volunteer time. The company has also pledged $100,000 to be given to a small handful of grassroots environmental activist groups in the Gulf region.

Patagonia, who traditionally matches all employee donations to charitable organizations, will also match any employee donations to groups working on oil spill response efforts at a 2-1 rate between now and July 30th.

“The Gulf Oil Spill is a tragedy,” said Casey Sheahan, Patagonia’s CEO. “We knew we had to do something extraordinary to help with response efforts and our friends at the Louisiana Bucket Brigade needed volunteers immediately. This company has a history of direct environmental action and of allowing our employees to work on the front lines of environmental efforts. Beginning this month, we are going to send ten employees to the gulf every week to be trained by the LABB and go into the communities with local volunteers to lend a hand.”

Patagonia employees will be working with the Louisiana Bucket Brigade’s outreach program that is currently assessing and reporting what is happening in terms of 1) the immediate needs of the communities, 2) health effects of the oil spill, 3) environmental degradation and 4) cultural loss.

Employees will be working in the communities of Lafitte, Grand Isle and towns within Plaquemines Parish and will create reports, gather stories from local residents, and photograph/video oil sightings and impacted wildlife. All documentation will be uploaded into a comprehensive “Oil Spill Crisis Map” – a living document of the effects of the spill that will serve as an open source of information for NGOs, government agencies, state and local wildlife agencies and the general public to show where help is needed most.

“After the spill, we received numerous requests for funds from our environmental partners in the Gulf, so we decided to pledge $100,000 for their immediate efforts,” said Lisa Pike Sheehy, Patagonia’s director of environmental initiatives, “To be frank, we literally sat down with our company budgets and said, ‘What can we cut so we can give $100,000?’ We also wanted to double-down on any financial contributions our employees might make. So if an employee sends $100 to a group, Patagonia will send $200 – and that group will then have $300 to work with. Our hope is other companies follow suit and find ways to assist in the relief effort. As businesses, we can really help make a difference.” 

Please note: Employees will not be working on direct oil clean up or removal. Working with toxic oil from the spill is being heavily controlled by BP and required hazardous waste material training and protective gear. Patagonia’s long-standing environmental grant program and relationship with the Louisiana Bucket Brigade is what has allowed Patagonia this unique opportunity to send its employees to the front lines of the oil spill.