REI & Patagonia Team Up for the Wild Olympics

Wild Olympics, WA Photo: American Whitewater

Conservation Alliance founding member companies REI and Patagonia have banded together to call attention to the effort to protect wilderness and wild rivers on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula. The two companies are working with The Conservation Alliance to highlight their shared commitment to protecting wild places. In 1989, the brands teamed up with The North Face and Kelty to launch The Conservation Alliance as a vehicle for outdoor industry companies to work collectively to protect wild places for their recreation and habitat values. Both companies have supported the Wild Olympics campaign on their own, and are now doing so together.

The effort went live last week at an event at the REI flagship retail store in Seattle. Patagonia has a “shop-in-shop” in that store, which now has Wild Olympics imagery and messages integrated throughout the space. Customers can learn more about the campaign and sign post cards in support of the proposed protections. A highlight of the space is a map artfully painted onto the floor that shows the rivers and mountain ranges of the Olympic Peninsula.
The Wild Olympics Campaign seeks to protect 126,000 acres of Wilderness and 19 rivers adjacent to Olympic National Park. Senator Patty Murray and Congressman Derek Kilmer have introduced legislation into both the House and Senate to secure the protections. The measure is broadly supported on the peninsula, and throughout Washington State. Check out the online story map that highlights some of the places proposed for protection. And REI wrote a beautiful piece on their blog about the effort.
Big thanks to REI and Patagonia for calling attention to this important campaign!