2Sustain

Brooks Sports, Inc. released its first corporate responsibility (CR) report earlier this month.

Brooks Sports, parent of leading running brand Brooks and women’s active lifestyle brand Moving Comfort, aptly titled the report Running Responsibly and is using it to:

• highlight the company’s environmental and social performance in 2009 and 2010 and
• outline challenges and key focus areas for the future.

Among the sustainability achievements, Brooks has:

• modified materials used in the manufacture of the vast majority of Brooks shoes. For example, virtually every component of the Cascadia 6 has an environmentally-friendlier feature, such as materials made of recycled content, soy-based foams and water-based inks and adhesives.
• reduced packaging materials needed and waste generated in the manufacture of its shoe boxes.
• reduced the use of hazardous substances in the manufacturing process. I n 2010, Brooks listed 193 chemicals on its restricted substance list and actively tracked 67 of the highest risk substances. All 49 of Brooks’ footwear component and material suppliers, and contract factories have enlisted in its Restricted Substances program to help make Brooks products as safe as possible.

With regard to factory and supplier performance, Brooks:

• uses audits to monitor factories. Brooks began auditing its contract factories in the early 2000s, driving steady and meaningful social improvements.
• provides supplier training.  At Brooks’ annual training conference, the company educates its factories and component suppliers, free of charge, about its CR program, human rights, environmental issues  and worker health and safety.

According to its website, the last few years have been a transitional period for Brooks Sports as the company embarked on understanding and measuring its environmental and social impact.

“Working toward sustainability is a journey and while we’ve taken a number of important steps, we are acutely aware that we’ve only just begun,” the introduction to the CR report (written by “the people who make Brooks go”) states. “For us, there is no finish line. We are committed to running responsibly, so that our employees, partners, and customers can run in cleaner environments within stronger communities.”

A copy of the full report is available here.