BOULDER, Colo. — March 1, 2011 — Outdoor Industry Association welcomes today’s announcement of the
formation of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition and the Coalition’s adoption of the work of the
outdoor industry Eco Index. As a founding member of the Coalition, OIA is committed to the creation
of a single, common index for apparel that drives change within the outdoor industry supply chain
and broadens the Eco Index work to allow for adoption in the broader apparel and footwear sectors.
Following three years of work by the outdoor industry, the Eco Index was released in July of
2010 and has been piloted by more than 100 companies. The development of the Eco Index is due to
the hard work of outdoor industry companies whose thought leadership in the area of sustainable
manufacturing has produced robust, transparent and open-source content which is being adopted by
other sustainability efforts.
“OIA is proud of the outdoor industry’s foundational contribution of the Eco Index to the
work of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. We are gratified to be a member of this larger coalition
that shares our values and desire to reduce the environmental and social impacts of apparel and
footwear products sold around the world. The outdoor industry is committed to the development of a
single, common index for apparel and footwear. This effort reinforces our belief that global,
industry-wide collaboration can lead to advances in sustainability that no one company, region or
sector can achieve on its own,” said Frank Hugelmeyer, president of OIA.
During 2011, members of the OIA Eco Working Group will have the opportunity to pilot the
initial version of the Coalition’s apparel tool and to participate in the development of a tool
specific to footwear. OIA is also committed to its partnership with the European Outdoor Group,
World Federation of Sporting Goods Industries and other groups to improve the Eco Index content
based on feedback from the piloting process, to share these updates with the Sustainable Apparel
Coalition and to further enhance the Eco Index’s application for outdoor gear such as tents,
backpacks, climbing and paddling gear, bicycles, skis and camping gear.
“OIA looks forward to working as a member of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition to build
robust tools for apparel and footwear that are driven by content found in the outdoor industry Eco
Index. At the same time, we will continue to support the unique ability of the outdoor industry to
lead in the work of sustainability as we complete the Eco Index content and develop environmental
impact evaluation tools and education that assist our member companies as they make sourcing,
product life cycle and purchasing decisions,” said Amy Roberts, vice president of Government
Affairs for OIA.
Posted on March 1, 2011
Source: Outdoor Industry Association
