I wanna be like Yvon

There was a time when you could be like Mike. Buy some Jordans and fly to the peak of cool retail. And then keep buying, get the next year’s update, keep ahead of the game and the people you’re trying to impress. The sneaker market is now a full blown trader environment. Now, though, we want to be like Yvon. Or should we say: we NEED to be like Yvon.

The team at Blue Earth Summit are outdoor aficionados, lovers of the salty realm and persistent checkers of the swell and wind. In the outdoor industry, Patagonia occupy a much-admired position amongst a passionate community all stoked by the elements and geographic potential. So Yvon feels like one of our own and his company a high-water mark of inspiration and example.

His announcement about the future of the company and how the profit will be dispersed has made waves throughout the business world and beyond; rightly so. We now exist in extreme times and this demands action. And leadership.

Yvon Chouinard has always led by example, not a man to seek attention or grandstand unlike some other faces of America. The brash politics and endless news cycle are in stark contrast to the serene majesty of the country’s real wealth. Vast plains, endless coastlines, mangroves for miles and soaring peaks. A continental feast of nature.

Let My People Go Surfing was a landmark publication written by Yvon as a mission statement detailing an inclusive, employee-empowered way of conducting business with nature as the vital ingredient. If you work in the outdoor industry it’s a bible or rite of passage as you climb the ladder of authenticity. Patagonia is not perfect, and they’ll be the first to say, or rather it is one of many brands in an industry serving a species that needs clothing. Like food, cars, you name it, production and extraction of materials impact-free is not possible at scale. The book is more of a guide to a healthy work-life balance, not a route to zero impact business.

His announcement around the future of Patagonia is hugely important. And not because it’s a novel approach, as similar models have been in existence for years. Rutger Bregman posted this about steward ownership, a purpose-driven movement started in Germany in 2015. One of our summit partners Ecosia has donated 100% of profits to nature since 2018.

It’s important because he has acted. He has led in a time and space when we as a species are in dire need of the right kind of leadership. We are awash with the wrong kind of ‘leaders’: politicians, media barons, oligarchs, dictators and the dark room lobbyists controlled by the hand of big corporates. The absurd levels of self-interest draw our attention like the eye of Mordor. Yvon Chouinard is the balm for our straining vision.

A humble leader in a position he would rather not be in. A species struggling to come to terms with the position we cannot afford to have. Like Yvon, we must lead ourselves and each other onto the right paths, the right lines up this mountain we have built. We must ACT.