At AEO, we are committed to youth and their optimism toward the future, so building a better world for generations to come is fundamental to our brands, values and purpose. This Earth Day, AEO is proud to recognize our community partners and the practices we’ve implemented to create more sustainable ways of working. Last year, AEO unveiled a comprehensive plan to be carbon neutral by 2030, with a commitment to water reduction, energy reduction and the use of more sustainable raw materials. Our sustainability goals include:
- Achieve carbon neutrality in our operations by 2030, taking full responsibility to reduce or replace all energy used in stores, corporate offices, distribution centers & business travel.
- Work with our manufacturers to reduce the carbon footprint in our supply chain by 40% by 2030 & 60% by 2040
- Reduce water use per jean production by 30%, recycle 50% of our total water used in denim laundries, and ensure factories, mills and laundries we use uphold our wastewater standards.
- Source 100% of cotton fiber from growers using sustainable farming techniques, ensure at least 50% of our polyester fiber is sustainable and commit to sourcing 100% of our viscose from sustainably managed forests.
How We’re Giving Back this Earth Day: Our Partnership with One Tree Planted
This year, AE and Aerie are partnering with One Tree Planted to underwrite and plant 5,000 trees. Since 2019, AE, Aerie and our customers have supported One Tree Planted in growing more than 155,000 trees. Our trees are being planted in locations all around the world, including:
- Mendocino, CA as part of the Redwood Valley Complex Fire Restoration Project
- The Pacific Northwest as part of the Orca Whale Project
- Ontario, Canada, to transform idle land into thriving forests
- Arkansas as part of the U.S. Forest Service’s Ozark Shortleaf Planting Project.
Why Trees? Trees clean our air, filter our water, give homes to a variety of Earth’s biodiversity, provide jobs to more than one billion people, absorb carbon and make up 25% of all medicines!
Our Community Partners
We’d also like to recognize a few organizations supported by AEO and the AEO Foundation which are empowering young people to act as stewards for our planet and are providing places of solace for our AEO associates.
- Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy – their mission is to improve the quality of life for the people of Pittsburgh by restoring the park system.
- Green Guerillas – helps grassroots groups obtain the materials, volunteers and funding they need to sustain colorful community gardens and bountiful urban farms in NYC.
- One Million Trees Mississauga– their goal is to plant one million trees by 2032.
- Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy – one of the world’s largest national parks in an urban setting, 80,000 acres north and south of the Golden Gate Bridge.
- Hazleton Rails to Trails – four+ mile long trail developed along abandoned rail beds with breathtaking views.
- Franklin County Conservation District – educates residents of Franklin County through various services and programs about natural resources in order to help create environmentally literate Kansans for the future.
Building a Better, More Sustainable World
The improvements AE and Aerie are making will contribute to a healthier planet. We don’t have all of the answers, but we’re proud of the following initiatives:
- Spearheading critical sustainability initiatives within garment manufacturing.
- Reducing the use of plastic in stores and shift to recycled plastic content where possible.
- Upholding a commitment to recycling and paper reduction in our owned facilities.
- Encouraging customers to reduce apparel waste through jeans recycling in American Eagle stores and bra recycling in Aerie stores.
- Evolving American Eagle and Aerie products to drive innovation, including the use of recycled plastic in product fabrications across both brands.
For more information and regular updates on AEO’s sustainability efforts, visit aeo-inc.com/sustainability or head over to our American Eagle and Aerie blogs.
