See our 2020 Sustainability Report for a recap of our most recent efforts and milestones.
It is Peak Design’s job to take responsibility for the impact we have environmentally and socially. This means understanding and accounting for a product’s entire lifecycle, from complex supply chain to design that extends usefulness as long as possible. It also means policies and advocacy that aim to improve the lives of our employees, contractors, customers, and people the planet over.
Our Environmental and Social Responsibility Strategy is a natural outgrowth of our mission.
EMISSIONS
We offset all carbon emissions Peak Design is responsible for.
Climate Neutral Certified
We believe all businesses can and should be entirely carbon neutral. We cofounded Climate Neutral, a nonprofit that helps businesses measure, offset, and reduce their entire carbon footprint.
Scope 1, 2, and 3 Offset
We offset the entire carbon footprint our business activity generates, from resource extraction to finished product delivery - not just the parts that are convenient to offset. These are called scope 1, 2, and 3 carbon emissions.
Historical Carbon Offset
We hired 3rd party experts to calculate our total historical scopes 1-3 carbon emissions from 2011 to present. We purchased verified offsets for all emissions, plus an additional 20%.
OIA Climate Action Core
Members commit to emission reductions and collaborative sharing of information and processes.
Committed to Science Based Targets
Climate Based Targets sets greenhouse gas reduction targets in line with latest climate science.
MATERIALS
We avoid materials that are bad for the planet.
Recycled Textiles
Our primary bag fabric is a nylon/poly blend that uses 100% post consumer recycled polyester and 100% post industrial recycled nylon. To date, the equivalent of 3 million water bottles of recycled plastic have been used for our outer fabric with our partners at Repreve.
Recycled Aluminum
We continue to transition to a higher content of recycled aluminum across our hard goods supply chains.
Recycled Papers and Plastics
Our packaging uses recycled materials in its construction and is mostly recyclable, with plans to transition to entirely recyclable packaging by the end of 2021.
Thoughtful Recycling
We vet recycled materials for impact to overall carbon emissions before adopting. In many cases, recycled materials are the correct option, but in some cases the environmental impact may be greater than that of virgin materials.
Restricted Substances List
We’ve adopted the Bluesign Restricted Substances List (RSL), which specifies banned or restricted materials and exceeds many regulatory requirements. No bad shit in, no bad shit out.
BLUESIGN SYSTEM PARTNER
We're working towards Bluesign Certification by partnering with Bluesign to source sustainable materials across our soft goods supply chain.
Solution Dyed Fabrics
Over 60% of our fabrics are solution dyed through our partners at e.dye, a process that uses significantly less water and has a smaller carbon footprint than traditional dying processes.
Product Life Cycle
Products that last longer are better for the environment. Avoiding short-lived trends, using excellent build-quality, and an infrastructure for used gear help keep Peak Design products out of landfills.
Leather Working Group
We used leather that has received a gold rating from Leather Working Group.
FACILITIES
We help our factories run clean and treat workers well.
Factory Code of Conduct
We adopted official standards for worker treatment, pay, safety, and conditions, and help our partner factories meet or exceed them.
Environmental Compliance Benchmarks
We are implementing new Environmental Compliance Benchmarks in our factories to track and mitigate our impact in areas including energy, carbon emissions, water, biodiversity, and waste.
3rd Party Audits
We invest in 3rd party on-site social & environmental audits to keep us and our factories accountable to meeting worker treatment standards.
Advocacy
We join, we speak up, we give
Certified B Corp
We are a Certified B Corp which means we meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability to all of our stakeholders.
1% FOR THE PLANET
As 1% For The Planet members, we donate 1% of our annual revenue to grassroots environmental nonprofits.
Storytelling
We support photographers and filmmakers in storytelling around conservation, environmental responsibility, and social justice. Notable projects include Grizzly Country, Irreparable Harm, and This Land. Read more in our Field Notes.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion
We advocate for inclusivity through marketing collateral, hiring practices, and giving.
CONSERVATION ALLIANCE
As Conservation Alliance members, we fund and advocate for initiatives to preserve wild places, and lobby D.C. politicians to protect public lands.
Camber Outdoors
As Camber Outdoors members, we are committed to accelerating diversity in the workplace as a strategic business imperative.
The Pledge
We are a proud signatory of the Outdoor CEO Diversity Pledge and believe in increasing diversity in outdoor recreation and conservation.
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
We encourage voting and policy literacy, participating in lobbying efforts, paying our fair share of taxes (local, state, federal).
Now make it yours
Our strategy is a living and breathing collection of memberships, certifications, and policies. We’ve borrowed parts of this strategy and made other parts up ourselves. We’d love nothing more than for you to start putting your own sustainability strategy together! Here’s where we recommend you start:
01. Better your business. Begin working towards becoming a Certified B Corp by taking the online B Impact Assessment. The assessment provides a detailed framework for changes you can make to become a better business.
02. Tax yourself. Join 1% For The Planet, and commit to donating 1% of your revenue to environmental nonprofits.
03. Offset your footprint. Offsetting your historic carbon emissions and all emissions moving forward is cheaper and easier than you think. We recommend you go Climate Neutral and join OIA’s Climate Action Corp.
04. Become an expert yourself. Read OIA’s Social Responsibility Guide.
05. Look under the hood. Audit your factories for worker safety and pay. We use and recommend Arche Advisors.
06. Set the bar. Develop a code of conduct and environmental benchmarks for your factories to adhere to. Invest in audits to hold you and your partners accountable. You can use our code of conduct and environmental benchmarks as a template.
07. Reduce your impact. Use the Higgs MSI product tool to see how your materials add up in terms of impact. Review the Restricted Substances List with your design and manufacturing team. Get a lifecycle assessment of your current materials through BlueSign. Reducing impact is a critical part of any sustainability strategy, but it takes time. A strategy focused solely on reducing is one that ignores the immediate actions you can take.
