TKE: Using business to save the planet, with Beth Thoren, Patagonia

When Yvon Chouinard became a member of the Southern California Falconry Club in 1953, he was taught how to abseil down cliffs to view the birds’ nests and it sparked a lifelong love of climbing and the outdoors. Twenty years later he founded the clothing company Patagonia. Today it’s a billion-dollar business whose mission statement reads: “We’re in business to save our home planet.” Patagonia is at the forefront of a host of initiatives from recycling to renewable energy. It gives money to grassroots environmental non-profits, repairs garments and supports 64,000 workers through Fair Trade.  They publish films and books, fund environmentally and socially conscious start-ups, campaign and innovate in organic and regenerative farming practices. Patagonia is a living, breathing embodiment of a values-driven business. In this episode, Mary talks to Patagonia’s environmental action and initiatives director Beth Thoren about the brand’s vision for the future - and just how critical good business is to the fight to save the planet. To get in touch with team Portas, email us at: kindnesseconomy@portasagency.com Subscribe to the Portas POV Newsletter for musings, provocation insights and inspiration. Want to keep up-to-date with all things Portas? Follow us here: Instagram ** Linkedin ** Twitter

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Beautiful Misfits don’t accept the status quo. They know instinctively the way we’re living today is broken. But they believe the world can be a better place. And they fearlessly take the imaginative leap to change it. Join Mary as she talks to the authors and businesspeople, designers and poets, who are using their unique perspective to create a better, more beautiful, future. Their life lessons are sometimes funny, at others moving, but always insightful. And one thing is clear: we’ve never needed these beautiful misfits more. A Pixiu production.