REI Formalizes Net-zero Aims, Looks to Renewable Energy
REI Co-op is furthering its commitment to decarbonizing its supply chain.
The Science Based Target Initiative (SBTi) — which approves a number of fashion emissions reduction targets — has approved the co-op’s net-zero targets as of Wednesday. REI joins some 2,400 signatories with net-zero commitments.
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In this latest stride, the outdoor retailer committed to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across its value chain by 2050. To do so, REI said it will reduce its owned Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 47 percent by 2030, and pledged to help key suppliers set their own science-based targets by 2025. These suppliers are said to represent 41 percent of value chain emissions. In the long term, REI has committed to reduce absolute GHG emissions by 90 percent by 2050. This is the first time REI has formalized its science-based targets and trails recent SBTi removals in fashion (among them Amazon and Kohl’s).
This decarbonization pathway begins with one U.S.-based supplier responsible for socks. Since 1999, Mount Airy, N.C.-based Nester Hosiery has been one of the largest U.S. producers for the outdoor retailer. REI is funding 11,000 renewable energy credits for the supplier per year, signing a three-year clean energy contract with Sol Systems. The renewable energy credits go toward local renewable energy procurement for the facility sourced from a newly built solar plant in North Carolina. The effort signals REI’s attempts to boost supplier aims in decarbonizing product manufacturing.
Chris Speyer, chief merchandising officer at REI, likened the move as a way to share responsibility for REI’s collective impact.
“Purchasing clean energy to make our electricity consumption 100 percent renewable sends a strong message to our employees, customers, suppliers, investors and local community about our priorities,” Kelly Nester, chief executive officer of Nester Hosiery LLC, said in a press statement. “We’re acknowledging our impact and — with the help of REI — investing in a more sustainable operation.”
Alongside its newly formalized goals, REI is expanding its climate leadership ambitions around renewable energy while strengthening its alliance with international business coalitions. For one, the company recently partnered with Climate Neutral to provide 15 brand partners free access to its Path Ahead Ventures Programs as well as its “business emissions evaluator” for a streamlined way to calculate impact.
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