Will Patagonia founder’s plan to give away brand to fight climate crisis be enough?

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “We are going to give away the maximum amount of money to people who are actively working on saving this planet.” The move not only funnels the company’s roughly $100m a year in profit towards environmentalism, but locks in an ownership structure the family says is designed to ensure the company continues running in a sustainable way, with commitments like going carbon neutral and only using renewable or recycled materials by 2025. She said in an email Patagonia is ushering in a “welcome conversation in an atmosphere of rampant sustainability claims and one that is long overdue,” but notes that the company’s carbon footprint keeps growing nonetheless. Other, more indirect, categories of emissions only ticked down, the company said, “largely due to a decrease in our product inventory and the operational shutdowns due to COVID.” open image in gallery A diagram illustrating Patagonia’s new ownership structure, which will funnel profits into fighting the climate crisis Indeed, even with Wednesday’s announcement, the company noted in a press release it will keep reinvesting some money into its business. “We do need to keep asking questions about the nature of business, how the profits are made and what ecological and social impacts are incurred in making them.” Though Patagonia has a long history of inspiring new best practices in the clothing industry and beyond, it’s unlikely many companies will repeat their most recent feat of directing most of their earnings towards activism.