Outdoor gear brand and certified B Corporation, Cotopaxi announced it will respond to the devastating earthquake in Syria and Türkiye by matching up to $30,000 in customer donations to the Mercy Corps’ Syria Earthquake Response and has donated 920 sleeping bags to earthquake victims in Türkiye via the Turkish Consulate General of Los Angeles, which is mobilizing donations alongside the Turkish Consulate General of New York.
“The sheer scale of this crisis is staggering. Over 40,000 people have lost their lives, and many, many more have been displaced by this historic 7.8-magnitude earthquake. Displacement — whether by natural disaster or conflict—is a major driver of global poverty, which is the core issue of our work with the Cotopaxi Foundation,” said Davis Smith, CEO & Founder at Cotopaxi. “As a company, we are dedicated to addressing these issues not only at moments of crisis, but day in and day out.”.
From February 14 through March 2, 100 percent of customer donations to the Cotopaxi Foundation will go directly to Mercy Corps, to support the earthquake response efforts in Northwest Syria. Mercy Corps has worked in Syria since 2008 and is provides clean water and other essential supplies to earthquake-affected communities.
Cotopaxi’s foundational purpose is to empower people with greater access to economic opportunities through the products it sells. It acts on its purpose by partnering with vetted impact partners who invest in health, education, climate and livelihoods which are categories identified by MIT’s Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) to have high potential for alleviating poverty. While its long-term focus lies in the Americas, Cotopaxi supports its impact partners when significant and unprecedented humanitarian needs arise.
Cotopaxi’s fundraising efforts are focused on Northern Syria, which faces a crisis upon a crisis. For 12 years, some 13 million Syrians here have been impacted and displaced by ongoing conflict, and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) warns that more than 5 million Syrians may be displaced by the earthquake. Many of these families already were refugees of the nation’s on-going civil war. The chronic food insecurities there only will be amplified by the earthquake.
To learn more about Mercy Corps, Cotopaxi’s partnership, and ways you can support the Syria and Türkiye Crisis, visit Cotopaxi’s blog, or donate here.
