Geartrade Signs On As Member Of Climate Action Corps

In January of 2020, the Outdoor Industry Association announced the Climate Action Corps as a way for the outdoor industry to collaborate and to lead on climate action. In joining, companies commit to measure, plan and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and to share their progress annually. Geartrade signed on to the Climate Action Corps in August 2020 because we recognize that climate change poses a risk to our business and that collaboration is key. The Climate Action Corps pathway provides us an avenue to measure our carbon footprint and to set targets, while also receiving guidance in line with science and global best practices. Geartrade President Aaron Provine says, “Our motivation in joining the Climate Action Corps is that we are striving to be part of the institutional change, collective change, not just individual action—ultimately Geartrade wants to be part of the solution.”

The Climate Action Corps process involves several steps:

• Measure: Calculate the entire carbon footprint of Geartrade.
• Plan: Set an ambitious Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction target and build a company-specific plan to ratchet up actions over time.
• Reduce: Take immediate and ongoing action to drive down carbon emissions.
• Share progress annually: Let the world know we are part of the climate solution.

Foundationally, as a hub for the circular economy, Geartrade is in a good place. We provide buyers and sellers of outdoor gear a pathway that reduces their (and our) impact on the environment. We’re also by all accounts a smaller business, which is why now is the time to make a plan—the more complex a business becomes, the more intertwined with energy consumption it becomes. As a business that is not participating in production and manufacturing, Geartrade also has very low emissions. But we’re not without culpability, as part of the first phase of assessing, we’ve identified that the main impact of the Geartrade carbon footprint is from server loads, office space, and limited commuting by staff. The office's carbon footprint consists of gas heating and electricity for power and lights. Provine says, “My hope is that we have a good grasp on our numbers, have a plan and action to allow Geartrade to be carbon neutral by the end of the year.” As Geartrade grows and expands, we’re grateful for the roadmap provided by Climate Action Corps to ensure the business is aware and accountable for our emissions impact. Looking ahead, Geartrade hopes to expand our accountability to take into consideration third-level emissions components such as the software providers we work with, and the peer-to-peer marketplace shipping. We’ll look to better understand how to make these tertiary aspects of our business greener. The Climate Action Corps is a gateway for the Outdoor Industry to affect change collectively. Geartrade is proud to be part of this collective action that we’re hoping ultimately results in institutional change. Annie Fast writes about winter sports and outdoor adventures from her home in Bend, Oregon.You can read more about her and her work at anniefast.com