Environmental Leader

Patagonia launched its Vote The Environment campaign this week, in advance of the presidential election this November. The three-part campaign asks customers to register to vote, educate themselves on the environmental records of candidates and place the environment at the top of their priority list when voting.

“We’re not endorsing any specific candidates on the executive, federal or local level,” said Patagonia’s CEO and President Casey Sheahan in a statement, “Patagonia’s just saying that our customers can and should dissect the candidate’s environmental voting records and vote accordingly.”

The campaign could be criticized for its strong environmental slant, but the company says it’s willing to face the consequences.

Vote The Environment will be promoted in retail stores, wholesale accounts and on the Web. It will also go on tour with singer Jack Johnson this summer. Apart from targeting the company’s traditional customer base, the campaign will specifically target individuals aged 18 to 25, a group that will make up to one-third of the U.S. electorate by 2015. Vote The Environment tees will be also sold with $5 from the sale of each contributed to the League of Conservation Voters.

Last year, Patagonia began tracking the carbon footprints of five of its products and is expected to add 10 more this year.