REI Wild! Sends Money to Wilderness Preservation Groups.

Business Editors

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 24, 2000

Seven groups striving to protect Wilderness areas -- from Tumbledown Mountain in Maine to desert landscapes in Utah -- will gain visibility and cash support through a Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI) initiative that will give each group $1 for every pair of the REI Convertible Sahara pants purchased in September at its 58 stores or online at REI.com.

"REI members have reminded us time and time again that they care about Wilderness protection," REI President and CEO Dennis Madsen said. "We're pleased to provide a way for our members to target support to these Wilderness groups."

The initiative, called REI Wild!, is a new outreach and giving strategy that allows REI customers to participate in directing REI's charitable donations. REI sets aside a portion of its profits each year for support of conservation and recreation causes. In 1999, REI donated more than $923,000 in support of such causes and has given $7.5 million since the founding of its giving program in 1976.

"We hope that this retail and online effort will reach customers in a new way and raise awareness of the great work these groups are doing," Madsen said. "Wilderness designation allows for a special outdoor experience in a unique, pristine environment. These exceptional places are set aside for the pure enjoyment of natural beauty."

The REI Convertible Sahara pants are REI's most popular clothing item. The legs of the pants zip and slide off over boots, so as the day heats up a hiker can stay cool without the inconvenience of changing into shorts.

These are the non-profit groups receiving support from the REI Wild! and what they are trying to achieve:

Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC): The AMC's mission is to promote the protection and enjoyment of the mountains, rivers, and trails of the Appalachian region. AMC will work to conserve three outstanding outdoor treasures in Maine: Moosehead Lake, the Debsconeag Lakes/Baxter Gateway and Tumbledown Mountain by convincing the state to designate conservation and recreation areas, and, with the help of federal government and others, acquire critical lands or access rights. For more information contact Gary Gresh 617/523-0655 ext. 310, or visit www.outdoors.org.

California Wilderness Coalition (CWC): CWC is coordinating the California Wild Heritage Campaign, an effort to protect millions of acres as legally designated Wilderness and hundreds of miles of free flowing rivers as wild and scenic. Short-term goals for CWC include defending potential Wilderness areas and wild rivers from immediate threats, securing administrative protection for these areas until legislative protection is achieved and building a broad base of support for wildlands and river protection. For more information contact Paul Spitler 530/758-0380, or visit www.calwild.org.

Colorado Environmental Coalition (CEC): CEC is a leader in the campaign to protect 1.4 million acres of Colorado's Canyon Country as Wilderness. CEC's 2000 Wilderness Inventory Project is a key element of this effort. The coalition will complete the inventory of proposed Wilderness areas outlined in the Citizens' Wilderness Proposal; inventory additional potential Wilderness areas not previously reviewed; develop an electronic database of information, photos, and activist testimonials on each area and mobilize a constituency for the protection of these lands. For more information contact Elise Jones 303/534-7066 ext. 204, or visit www.cecenviro.org.

Northern Forest Alliance: The Northern Forest Alliance coordinates grassroots mobilization and direct advocacy in support of land acquisition projects and related public funding. Current priorities are support of an intensive grassroots campaign in Maine for protection of the West Branch and Penobscot River Lands and the Moosehead Lake Lands; and advocacy in Washington, D.C., for major land acquisition in the Northern Forest through the Land and Water Conservation Fund and Forest Legacy Program. For more information contact Andrea Colnes 802/223-5256, or visit www.thenorthernforest.org.

Oregon Natural Resources Council (ONRC): ONRC seeks wilderness designation for five million acres of Oregon's most pristine forest groves. Watershed recovery areas provide additional protection to salmon streams and community drinking water sources. The Oregon Wild campaign builds coalitions with environmentalists, businesses and local elected officials while staunchly defending threatened ancient forests and endangered species. For more information contact Regna Merritt 503/283-6343 ext. 214, or visit www.onrc.org.

Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA): SUWA's goal is to protect as Wilderness approximately 9 million acres of Utah's unique desert landscapes under the 1964 Wilderness Act. In a three-year grassroots effort organized by SUWA, in conjunction with the Utah Wilderness, volunteers walked every square inch of Utah's public lands and documented which ones qualify as Wilderness under the 1964 Wilderness Act. SUWA intends to protect these irreplaceable landscapes through an aggressive grassroots and media campaign. For more information contact Amy Irvine 801/486-3161, or visit www.suwa.org.

Washington Wilderness Coalition (WWC): The objectives of the coalition's campaign to protect wildlands are to educate the public about the values and benefits of Washington State's roadless areas, raise national awareness of the threats facing our remaining wild forests, build support by promoting the economic, recreational and spiritual value of protecting Washington's wildlands and gain interim protection through administrative action for unprotected wildlands until Congress provides permanent protection. For more information contact John Leary 206/633-1992, or visit www.wawild.org.

REI was established in 1938 by a group of 23 Pacific Northwest mountaineers seeking climbing equipment. The group formed a consumer cooperative to ensure quality products for its members, and today REI has grown into the nation's largest, with more than 1.7 million active members.