What if the saying “Many hands make light work” applied to inspiring real, lasting policy change for life outside? Well, good news: It does, thanks to the REI Cooperative Action Network, a change-making platform where co-op members mobilize toward our shared goals of protecting spaces we love, expanding outdoor access and supporting initiatives that tackle climate change.
Since 2021, the Cooperative Action Network has equipped more than 350,000 people—REI Co-op Members, staff, customers, nonprofit partners and more—with the resources and information they need to raise their voices and make a difference. Together, we’ve sent more than 1.25 million messages to legislators and other decision-makers, resulting in astounding wins for both people and the planet.
Here are just a few of the REI Co-op Member community’s victories.
Better Trails
Get ready to run and ride on improved local trails thanks to $45 million in funding for the Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program (ATIIP), which provides grants to help communities build and connect trail networks for pedestrians, cyclists, wheelchair users and more. These trail improvements will help reduce car dependency across communities and provide safe, clean ways for more U.S. residents to get where they need to go, all while reducing traffic and pollution and helping people be active outdoors.
Together with our partners from Rails to Trails Conservancy, the Cooperative Action Network mobilized more than 18,000 REI Co-op community members to support the creation and full funding of this program by Congress – building on existing infrastructure to make sustainable transportation and recreation a reality.
Healthier State Parks
State parks in Texas welcome nearly 10 million annual visitors, and yet the state has ranked 35th in the nation for park acreage per capita. In 2023, voters in Texas said yes to the future of their state park system by voting to create the Centennial Parks Conservation Fund, a $1 billion fund to expand and improve public lands across the state, all without increasing Texans’ taxes. This fund will help protect land and water resources, address areas strained by overcrowding, and generally improve parkgoers’ access and experience in these beautiful places.
In partnership with the Texas Coalition for State Parks and 90 other organizations, REI Co-op Members have helped guarantee that future generations of Texans and tourists can enjoy world-class parks and protected natural areas throughout the Lone Star State.
New and Expanded National Monuments
America’s wild spaces are more than just beautiful; they’re culturally, historically and spiritually meaningful to countless Indigenous people who have stewarded them for centuries, and to diverse nature-deprived communities across the country. For more than a century, establishing, expanding and protecting these sites with national monument designation has been a powerful way to conserve these places for the enjoyment of all.
“The mountains need to be protected, because they are our operators for our prayers,” says Carletta Tilousi, Grand Canyon Tribal Coalition Coordinator and Havasupai tribal member. “They are our antennas, so that our prayers can reach out into the cosmos and onto the heavens.” The Havasupai have lived in the Grand Canyon for centuries, and were among several tribal and conservationist organizations that REI Co-op partnered with to encourage monument designation for seven significant sites:
- Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni–Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument
- San Gabriel Mountains National Monument Expansion
- Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument Expansion
- Chuckwalla National Monument and Expansion of Joshua Tree National Park
- Great Bend of the Gila
- Dolores River Canyon
- Sáttítla–Medicine Lake Highlands
“A monument designation would mean that our animals will be protected,” Tilousi continuessays. “And also, our ancient trails and our ancient burial sites.”
In 2024, President Biden awarded national monument designations or expansions to Baaj Nwaavjo I’ta Kukveni–Acenstral Footprints of the Grand Canyon; Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument and Molok Luyuk; and the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument. You can still use your voice to support the remaining monuments by joining the REI Cooperative Action Network, tribal leaders and nonprofits across the country in supporting the Mobilizing for Monuments coalition.
E-Bike Incentives
Reducing our dependency on car travel can bolster our planet’s health as well as our own safety and well-being: Transportation accounts for nearly 30% of greenhouse gas emissions annually in the United States, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported 42,795 motor vehicle accident–related deaths in 2022. The growing popularity of e-bikes is allowing more people to travel efficiently without needing to fill up their gas tank, and electric-bike technology makes traveling over longer distances and challenging terrain more accessible. However, e-bikes are considerably more expensive than traditional bicycles, which can make them out of reach for many.
The REI Cooperative Action Network has championed a host of city and state measures to reduce the cost of e-bikes. In 2023, legislators in Minnesota and Washington, D.C., passed incentive programs covering or reimbursing a percentage of e-bike purchases; in June of 2024, the Atlanta city council passed its own e-bike rebate pilot program.
This fall, voters across the country approved nearly $26 billion in local bike projects, including e-bike incentives. Yet there are still opportunities to support programs to expand access for people of all income levels access to low-carbon transportation: Take action today by telling Congress to pass the E-BIKE ACT and offer a 30% federal tax credit of up to $1,500 on the purchase of new e-bikes, or if you live in New York and Oregon, let your leaders know you support e-bike incentives for residents.
Investing in Outdoor Futures
According to the Trust for Public Land, more than 100 million folks in the U.S.—particularly those with lower incomes, those living in urban areas, or who lack accessible transportation—struggle to enjoy outdoor spaces close to home. To combat this, REI Co-op has invested in and partnered with community organizations who actively work to protect public lands, create more local parks and improve access for millions of people across the country.
In New Mexico, the passage of the bipartisan Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund, established the first-ever dedicated source of permanent funding for statewide conservation programs. Thanks in part to the advocacy of our community, a total of $400 million will be dedicated to supporting and improving existing projects and infrastructure.
“The legacy fund is set up to be kind of like a retirement account,” explains Western Resource Advocates policy manager Brittany Fallon, Ph.D., who teamed up with the Cooperative Action Network team in advocating for the project. “It generates compound interest over time, just like your retirement account. The more we invest, the more resources we’re going to have for on-the-ground projects that affect New Mexicans, and this includes things that affect literally everyone in the state.” A noncomprehensive list includes wildfire and drought mitigation, initiatives to improve river health and ensure New Mexicans have clean drinking water, wildlife habitat and population protection, trail and other recreation infrastructure maintenance, cultural and historic site preservation, and expanded access to the outdoors for all children in the state.
REI Co-op was founded on the idea that we can accomplish far more when we work together, and we continue to be a different kind of company, dedicated not only to enjoying our time outdoors, but to protecting and improving access to it for future generations.
Outdoor Recreation for All
Short for “Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act,” the bipartisan EXPLORE Act is one of the most consequential outdoor recreation acts proposed since 1963. It’s designed to enhance and expand outdoor recreation opportunities across the nation, from adaptive trails to long-distance biking to rock climbing and beyond. Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-AR) introduced the package—which took more than a decade to draft in full—to the House in November 2023, and it there in April 2024—with zero opposition. The EXPLORE Act passed in the Senate Dec. 19 during the post-election “lame duck” session that’s used by a sitting Congress to address urgent bills and other matters before the elected officials take office. REI Co-op—alongside the National Recreation and Park Association, PeopleForBikes, Outdoor Alliance, Access Fund, International Mountain Biking Association, Outdoor Alliance for Kids and Trust for Public Land, among others—has been a critical player in the creation of this massive policy package.
EXPLORE builds on the momentum for outdoor policy, which has skyrocketed over the past 10 years thanks to increased awareness about the myriad social, emotional, mental and physical benefits of spending quality time outside.
In sum, the EXPLORE Act will improve access to our nation’s public lands and waters by:
- Improving outdoor access for current and past military service members, individuals with disabilities, and kids.
- Streamlining the permitting process for outfitters and guides, and reducing fees for small businesses.
- Coordinating federal agencies to support and promote outdoor-based missions, from recreation to conservation and management.
- Protecting rock-climbing in some of the sports’ most iconic places and creating new long-distance bike trails.
- Addressing outdated and lacking infrastructure in gateway communities, and funding outdoor infrastructure in underserved communities.
Learn more about the EXPLORE Act here.
What will you accomplish with the REI Cooperative Action Network next year?
Visit REI.com/act to learn more and join us in making positive change for the outdoors.