The Climate Crisis Is Our Business
The climate crisis poses an existential threat, and every part of Patagonia’s business is implicated. We must reduce our carbon emissions by transforming how we make our products. We also use our resources to protect nature and support communities as they get off fossil fuels. And we demand systemic change from industry and government. The fight’s on every front.
Carbon Neutral Is Not Enough
Purchasing offsets to get to carbon neutral doesn’t erase the footprint we create and won’t save us in the long run. If our goal was to cut emissions from our owned and operated stores, offices and distribution centers, we’d be good. But the bulk of our emissions—95%—comes from our supply chain and materials manufacturing. We take responsibility for all of it.
Fiscal Year 2023 Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) (May 1, 2022 to April 30, 2023)
- Scopes 1 & 2: Owned and Operated – 2,963 MT CO₂e (Metric Tons CO₂e)
- Scope 3: Employee Travel – 562 MT CO₂e
- Scope 3: Transportation – 13,309 MT CO₂e
- Scope 3: Finished Goods Manufacturing – 3,404 MT CO₂e
- Scope 3: Raw Material Manufacturing – 179,119 MT CO₂e
Total Emissions: 199,357 MT CO₂e
How We Hold Ourselves Accountable
We have set ambitious goals across our company and our network of partners in alignment with a set of standards provided by the Science Based Target Initiative (SBTi). SBTi has a robust target-setting and validation process that our company underwent giving us confidence that our goals align with the latest science and the 2015 Paris Agreement’s commitment to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. SBTi uses three “scopes*” or areas of a business to help companies like ours focus their efforts.
Here is what we signed up for:
Near-Term – FY2030
- Reduce absolute Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions 80% by FY2030 from a FY2017 base year.
- Reduce absolute Scope 3 GHG emissions from purchased goods and services, upstream transportation and distribution, business travel and downstream transportation and distribution 55% by FY2030 from a FY2017 base year.
Long-Term – FY2040
- Reduce absolute Scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG emissions 90% by FY2040 from a FY2017 base year.
- Commit to reach Net-Zero GHG emissions across the value chain by FY2040 from a FY2017 base year.
We acknowledge that the latest science may change, and Patagonia is committed to adapting to the most robust targets to do our part in keeping warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. While target language may change over time, our ambition and focus on cutting absolute greenhouse gas emissions will not.
Beyond Our Business
Transforming how we do business is a crucial lever, but the climate crisis demands much more. We support community-led efforts to go fossil-fuel-free and protect nature. We also use any power and influence we have to meet climate change with systems change.
