From 2020 onwards, Endura have committed to planting one million trees annually to help reduce the quantity of carbon in the atmosphere.
As a brand, Endura are critically aware of their environmental impact and are working on a number of fronts to reduce their footprint. While Endura’s kit are built to last, the company recognises that there’s a lot of work to be done, both across the company and the wider industry.
Endura have always been taking steps towards positive change: their kit has been PFC-free since 2018, they offer a repair service, and 1% of their net profit goes to good causes – but there are much bigger challenges.
“The reality of our brand’s environmental impact lies in three main areas,” explains Pamela Barclay, Endura’s co-founder and Brand Director. “The dying of fabrics, the energy required to run factories, and product end of life.” While Endura can, and does, control dyestuff by choosing ethical mills, they cannot influence the energy infrastructure in China, nor can they single-handedly resolve the end of life issue.
Managing Director Jim McFarlane also points out, that we do not have the luxury of time. “The one thing we must focus on now is the climate emergency,” he says. “Once the ice caps have melted you’re not going to refreeze them any time soon – that’s the reason for our Million Trees initiative.”
In Mozambique, Endura’s One Million Trees project is already underway. The local community are busy planting mangroves – water-thriving trees with an enormous capacity for sucking-up carbon – along a river delta. The project is also happening closer to Endura’s home with 80,000 native birch being planted in Scotland, purely for carbon capture.
For Endura, it’s about doing the right thing. Barclay adds “We would hate to look back and think we could have done something and we didn’t –” Barclay pauses for thought – “that’s really, I suppose, what’s driving these efforts. It’s not tinkering around the edges. It’s not a gimmick. It’s not a jacket made out of fishing rope. We need to focus on the real things that will make a difference. If we don’t stop climate change, we won’t have a world to clean up.”
You can read more on Endura’s sustainability efforts here.