Association Recreative Milton-Parc
We talk a lot about conserving places and enabling people when it comes to our community contributions. Focusing on these two elements helps us to keep space for adventure by supporting organizations that are up to some pretty awesome things. This focus on places and people also extends to our sustainable practices. Our desire to lessen our environmental impact and improve the lives of those we work with is woven into the way we do business, and underlines our design process.
In 2013, we supported and accomplished a lot in our community and sustainability efforts. So to start this year off, here are some of our major highlights from last year:
0 – Number of times a single-use bag was handed out in one of our stores
1 – “Outstanding Partnership” award from the Conservation Alliance for our support of CPAWS
1 – Fair Labour Association accreditation for our work in improving the lives of workers in our supply chain
12 – Number of provinces and territories that received funding through the MEC community involvement program
27 – Skiers whose trips were supported by the MEC Expedition Support program
53 – Percentage of bluesign®-approved material in MEC apparel
60 – Number of kayaks, canoes and stand up paddleboards we donated to groups committed to getting kids out on the water
448 – Kilometres of trails built, maintained and improved across Canada
525 – Number of PFDs donated to Ontario Parks for their Lifejacket Lending program
740 – Instagram photos of people having fun in the water shared on #InSummerWeSwim
1165 – Passengers on Parkbus, a regional partner of MEC and non-profit organization dedicated to developing sustainable tourism to key outdoor destinations in Ontario. For 70% of riders, it was their first time to a park.
100,000 – Dollars we donated to the Ontario Access Coalition to help purchase a parcel of land, crucial to the access of the Old Baldy climbing area
12,389 – Kilometres of self-propelled and sustainable commutes logged by MEC staff during a week-long Commuter Challenge
12,700 – Votes submitted to the $10,000 MEC Wild Bucks giveaway
41,659 – Dollars given out through our Grassroots Product Donations, a program designed to help grassroots groups raise funds or reward volunteers
It’s your purchases that make this support possible. As a member of 1% For the Planet, MEC donates 1% of our annual gross sales to Canadian environmental causes. Since 1987, we’ve invested over $26 million in this country’s environmental and outdoor communities though our community involvement program.
Harrison Hut Route, shot by Roland Burton