Initiatives

The North Face, as a company, takes their global success seriously, and around the world, that they have made known for themselves, their consumers and their suppliers.

Nepal being the country of the Himalayas, The North Face Nepal, together with its other quality products, has been highly popular here for its mountaineering gears. Therefore Sherpa Adventure Outlet, The North Face dealer for Nepal, as a part of its Corporate Responsibility, has supported many environmental initiatives in the Everest region.

The North Face in Nepal, has continuously supported iDEAS (Initiative for Development and Eco Action Support), in some of its vital projects, which have been in order to ensure ecological balance, control pollution in the Himalayas and bring about awareness among the public for such needs.

The Eco Everest Expedition:

The North Face has been one of the major sponsors of Eco Everest Expedition garbage collection program, on an annual basis, since 2008. The event  is organized by iDEAS. The focus of the expedition is to bring down old garbage and all human waste produced on the mountain to base camp. Over the years, it has been a successful endeavor that has brought down tons of garbage from the Everest trail.

Every year, the collected garbage gets ferried down to the Base Camp. The biodegradable portion of the garbage is handed over to the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee to be disposed of.  The non-biodegradable portion gets brought down to the Kathmandu Valley to be discarded appropriately.

In 2010 alone, 6000 kilos of garbage was collected from Camp 2 and below, under the “Cash for Trash” program. Additionally, 1000 kilos of garbage from above Camp 2 was brought down under the ”Cleaning up Everest” program. Cleaning the trails above 6500 was a much more challenging venture which involved a specialized team of 10 support staff.

Beat the GLOF Action Run:

The North Face has been a major sponsor for Beat the GLOF Action Run. The event is organized by iDEAS in collaboration with Sherwi Yondhen Tshokpa (Sherpa Students Network). It has been initiated since 2009 to show the world what lies in the path of destruction should there be a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) of the Imja Tsho (lake), situated South-West of Mt. Everest.

The theme of the event is to showcase the Mountain Communities’ cultural heritage, their lifestyle and their crucial role in maintaining and protecting their mountain environment. Invitees include international institutions who share their studies in this  field with the communities and formulate realistic action plans together.

In June 2010, 112 people participated in the action run, including 79 males and 33 females. It was a 10 kilometer route that started from Khumjung (3790m) and passed through Kyangjuma (3550) –Namche (3440m)-Phurte (3390m) -Thamo (3842m) – back to Phurte (3820m) – Syangboche (3720m) – Khunde (3840m) and ended back in Khumjung (3790).