REI Co-op is closing 2025 by doubling down on climate action, rolling out new renewable energy projects, nature-based climate solutions, and lower-impact materials that link its outdoor business model directly to the health of the planet. The Seattle-based co-op is using its scale as the nation’s largest consumer cooperative, with 24 million members, to push cleaner power, circular textiles, and community-centered climate education across the United States.
Clean energy in local communities
A major focus for REI Co-op in 2025 has been backing clean energy in the same communities where it operates stores and partners. One headline project is a new 2.5MW community solar array in Woodbury, Minnesota, developed with US Solar, which will enable nearly 500 low to moderate-income households to subscribe to renewable power and cut utility bills near the co-op’s Bloomington store.
The co-op also entered an aggregated Virtual Power Purchase Agreement, or VPPA, with Carhartt and other partners that will add 18.5MW of solar energy to the grid in Texas, accelerating new renewable capacity that individual brands might struggle to unlock alone. In South Carolina, REI Co-op celebrated the launch of another renewable energy project with Ever.green, building on earlier investments to keep adding clean power to regional grids.
Partnerships that make climate action “more real and lasting”
For REI Co-op, partnerships are the engine behind this climate progress. Andrew Dempsey, Director of Sustainability at REI Co-op, said, “When companies come together, climate action becomes more real and more lasting,” highlighting how shared projects can move faster and scale bigger than isolated efforts.
Over the past year, REI extended its relationship with Sol Systems and Nester Hosiery (one of its largest U.S. manufacturing partners) through a new three-year renewable energy certificate purchase agreement. That deal helps match factory electricity use with renewable generation, tying REI Co-op’s supply chain more closely to its climate goals.
Investing in climate education for young leaders
In 2025, the co-op’s partnership with Sol Systems expanded beyond energy infrastructure into hands-on climate education. Through the Community Impact Program at Florida Atlantic University’s Pine Jog Center, up to 48 high school students will join immersive, college credit residential programs built around climate resilience and ecosystem science.
Participants gain field experience in South Florida’s wetlands, rivers, and coastal ecosystems, work with environmental scientists, and then return home as ambassadors for climate resilience in their own communities. REI Co-op frames this as proof that clean energy investments can support both people and planet when they are paired with education and local impact.
Nature-based carbon removal and healthier ecosystems
Beyond solar and certificates, REI Co-op is backing climate solutions rooted in nature. In 2025, the retailer became the first retail company to join the Symbiosis Coalition, a group focused on accelerating nature-based carbon removal projects such as reforestation and agroforestry.
These solutions pull carbon from the atmosphere while restoring forests, soils, and habitats, helping to maintain healthy ecosystems as well as unlock climate benefits. By joining the coalition, REI Co-op aims to broaden access to credible nature-based projects for organizations of all sizes, not just large multinationals.
Cutting impact with circular materials
On the product side, REI Co-op is tackling the emissions and waste tied to textiles by shifting its own brand materials mix. The co-op signed a three-year agreement with Ambercycle to purchase 200 tons per year of cycora® regenerated polyester, which uses recycled textile waste as feedstock for new, high-quality fibers.
By integrating cycora® into REI Co-op brand products, the company expects to cut emissions, divert waste from landfills, and move closer to a circular lifecycle where old garments feed into new materials instead of becoming trash. This push on materials sits alongside the co-op’s ongoing work to reduce the footprint of the gear and apparel it sells, from design through end of life.
Climate strategy woven into the co-op model
All of these moves flow from REI Co-op’s broader climate strategy, which is built around cooperative action and long-term care for the outdoors that members love. With more than 24 million members and a national network of stores, the co-op is using its platform to normalize clean energy deals, nature-based carbon removal, and circular material innovation in mainstream outdoor retail.
By pairing local renewable projects with community education and next-gen fabrics, REI Co-op is showing how a purpose-driven retailer can turn climate ambition into concrete, measurable steps year over year. Shoppers can explore more about this work and track future commitments through the co-op’s dedicated impact hub at rei.com/impact.
