Douglas Tompkins, the founder of the North Face and Esprit clothing brands and a noted conservationist, died Tuesday after a kayaking accident in the Patagonia region of Chile. With a deep bond to Patagonia and Chile, Tompkins dedicated his life to nature and environmental conservation, inspired by the book Deep Ecology: Living as if Nature Mattered. "A review of a multispecies reintroduction to restore a large ecosystem: The Iber Rewilding Program (Argentina)". Tompkins believes in deep ecology, an absolutist version of environmentalismwhich contains little to surprise a North American reader. [30], In northeastern Argentina, Tompkins managed cattle ranches in Corrientes Province and polyculture grain and fruit farms in Entre Ros Province. Other conservation projects that Tompkins spearheaded include: Envisioning "conservation as a consequence of production," Tompkins developed models of sustainable organic farming, which maintain soil health and ecological integrity at the same time that they provide for families and support the local economy. Sign up for exclusive offers, original stories, activism awareness, events and more. Last edited on 13 February 2023, at 01:35, 180 Degrees South: Conquerors of the Useless, International Conservation Caucus Foundation, "Douglas Tompkins, 72, Founder of North Face, Dies in Kayak Accident", "This idea proved less wild than it first appeared", Pleistocene Park emerges from Patagonia's rescued grasslands, "Chile's new 'route of parks' aims to save the wild beauty of Patagonia", "Nacionalidad por gracia: Comisin revoca por unanimidad reconocimiento al cardenal Ezzati", "Douglas Tompkins, The North Face Founder, Dies After Kayaking Accident", "The North Face Unveils Global Retail Strategy with Opening of New SoHo Location", "How The North Face Founder Went From High School Dropout to Millionaire Conservationist", "North Face co-founder turned 'eco baron' Douglas Tompkins is killed in Chile kayaking accident", "The Entrepreneur Who Wants to Save Paradise", "North Face founder Douglas Tompkins dies in kayaking accident in Chile", "Kris Tompkins North Face Founder Doug Tompkins' Wife", "Pgina/12:: Sociedad:: Reclamos en los esteros", "Chile creates five national parks over 10m acres in historic act of conservation", "(Re)Born to Be Wild: Coaxing Patagonia Back to Its Natural State", "Founder of The North Face Dies After Kayaking Incident in Chile, Apparently With Other Outdoor Legends", "Pgina Principal Patagonia Chilena Sin Represas! In particular, many locals in Chile and Argentina expressed resentment and distrust for the duo's massive land purchases. By Adam Chandler Douglas Tompkins shakes hands with Chilean President Ricardo Lagos in 2003. No one else was seriously injured in the accident. He flew airplanes, he climbed to the top of mountains all over the world, his daughter told The New York Times. Besides his wife and daughter, he is survived by his mother Faith Tompkins and brother John Tompkins, both of Millbrook, N.Y.; daughter Summer Tompkins Walker of San Francisco; and five grandchildren. Douglas Tompkins, a noted conservationist and the founder of the North Face and Esprit clothing brands, died on Tuesday after a kayaking accident in the Patagonia region of southern . Learn more about our environmental and social responsibility program. Please read this powerful piece, Douglas Tompkins: A Force for Nature, to learn about his legacy. Ive never ever tried to make life easy for myself, Tompkins told The Guardian in a 2009 interview. According to a 2012 profile in Earth Island Journal. and the mark he left in terms of conservation and vision will live on. The proposed park, which would total 700,000 hectares, would be the largest national park in Argentina and home to hundreds of bird species, giant anteaters, and macaw parrots. No one else was seriously injured. Also in 1997, Tompkins Buell filed a lawsuit against Esprit, seeking about $4 million in reimbursements from the company for tax payments she made after selling much of her stake in the company to investors.[7][8]. He returned to his hometown in Millbrook, but did not graduate from high school. Above:Doug Tompkins, Rick Ridgeway, Yvon Chouinard on the summit of Cerro Kristine in 2008. Tompkins poses at his property in Ibera, in Corrientes Province, Argentina, in 2009. After selling his interest in Esprit, Tompkins turned his efforts toward southern Chile, where he had spent much time climbing, kayaking, and skiing, to focus on land conservation and environmental activism. "Then we got this side wind, so we had huge waves coming in on either side.". Many believe sustainability is becoming an urgent need, whilst others see it first and foremost as a duty. But in December, the 72-year-old Tompkins and Chouinard, along with climber Rick Ridgeway and three others, were on a five-day, 50-mile kayak paddle in southern Chile when the group ran into what Chouinard calls a perfect trap. He was 72. Douglas Tompkins, the entrepreneur and environmentalist who co-founded outdoor equipment giant The North Face almost 50 years ago, has died in a kayaking accident in the Chilean wilderness . Chilean officials told The Associated Press that Tompkins had been boating with five other foreigners on General Carrera Lake when strong waves caused the groups kayaks to capsize. Soon enough, he came back and landed and everything was fine. In the course of his career as a conservationist, Tompkins, originally from Ohio, had preserved some 2.2m acres of land in Chile and Argentina with his wife, Kristine McDivitt Tompkins, former CEO of Patagonia. This article was amended on 15 December 20 15. In 1966, Tompkins opened a brick-and-mortar retail shop in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood, next to an infamous strip joint called the Condor. Credit: Daniel Garcia/Getty Images. It is an ecocentric view that rejects the idea of inherent human superiority and instead gives equal moral weight to all elements of naturefrom the living to the inanimate. Tompkins bought more than 2 million acres of land and set about creating private parks that kept rainforests from development across Chile and Argentina before his death at 72 on Tuesday. Instead, in his own kayak, Boyles held on to Tompkins body and grabbed a short rope dropped from the helicopters door. Anyone can read what you share. He was 72. [7], Tompkins spent the years between 1960 and 1962 ski racing and rock climbing in Colorado, Europe, and South America. Tompkins, who founded The North Face and co-founded the Esprit clothing company, lived a life of such relentless adventure, and in the company of such illustrious friends including Tom Brokaw and the novelist Thomas McGuane that he was a near-legendary figure in the outdoor world. Mr. Tompkins was described as an adventurer and risk taker who employed his brilliant imagination both in business and in trying to save the Earth. He died from hypothermia at a nearby hospital. The path was not always smooth, however. She is also noted for her close friendship with Bill and Hillary Clinton and her status as a . The Conservation Land Trust (a U.S. environmental foundation) donated these protected lands to Fundacin Pumaln (a Chilean foundation), for their administration and continual development as a type of National Park with public access under a private initiative. E-mail: pfimrite@sfchronicle.com. donor", "Partisans, Wielding Money, Begin Seeking to Exploit Harassment Claims", "Who Is Susie Tompkins Buell? "For a while, he and Kristine had to live in the American embassy to hide out.". Douglas Thompson. Those close to him recall a brilliant man with an absolute passion for nature. At Beijing 2022 politics and superpower rivalry are dominating the headlines. Doug Tompkins millionaire philanthropist and co-founder of the clothing companies North Face and Esprit shared a two-person kayak with Rick Ridgeway, 66, a veteran mountain climber and environmentalist who made the first American ascent of K2. The second best result is Doug Thompson age 50s in Lakeland, FL in the Camphor neighborhood. A local prosecutor, Pedro Salgado, told radio Bo Bo that the lake was known for unpredictable weather conditions. [11], In 1964, Doug started The North Face, Inc. as a mail order and retail company, selling rock climbing and camping equipment. Growing increasingly concerned about the ecological impacts of the fashion industry, Tompkins decided to leave the business world in the late 1980s. [14] They put up a new route on Mount Fitzroy, and - together with filmmaker Lito Tejada-Flores, who also made the ascent - made an adventure film, Mountain of Storms, about their experience. Most cattle and internal fences were removed, and a land management program was developed to restore native vegetation and habitat. This is what we can do. These parks are our life's work, not the clothing chains we created, selling people clothes they don't need. Both men described it as the best and most important expedition of their lives. In 1989, Susie bought him out of Esprit for $170 million, and Tompkins turned all of his intensity, and most of his new wealth, toward conservation. Tompkins designed tents that were some of the first to avoid a pole in the middle, by using bendable rods threaded through exterior sleeves instead. As a teenager, he got kicked out of his Connecticut prep school and took off for South America to train with the U.S. ski team. The two had two daughters and co-founded the Esprit clothing company. Butler said he felt fortunate to have spent 10 years as part of the whirlwind of work surrounding Tompkins, whom he described as an inspiring, exhausting, sometimes exasperating leader, a brilliant man with an absolute passion to saving wild nature. The 72-year-old, well-known as an outdoorsman and . 2. With them were river conservation advocate Weston Boyles, 29, and Laurence Alvarez-Roos, 49, co-owner and guide at Bio Bio Expeditions, an adventure travel outfitter based in Chile and California. Although the couples environmental activism won them many accolades and praise, they also encountered controversy and criticism. Mr. Tompkins, who also co-founded Esprit with his then-wife, Susie Tompkins Buell, capsized while paddling with five other people on General Carrera Lake in the Patagonia region, according to reports confirmed by North Face officials. By the time the craft had towed the two to shore, Tompkins had been in the water for more than an hour. Tompkins' eventual movie, Mountain of Storms, never achieved commercial success, but it inspired a generation of outdoor-adventure road-trippers. It is known for spectacular geological formations, unpredictable weather and cold water, generally below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Iber Provincial Reserve, established in 1983, encompasses 1,300,000 ha of wetlands, grasslands, forest, and rangelands, including both publicly-owned lands and private cattle ranches. COYHAIQUE, CHILE (DECEMBER 8, 2015) (TVN - NO ACCESS CHILE/CNN/CHILE WEBSITES) Oxfam report reveals that since 2020, for every dollar earned by those in the poorest 90 per cent of humanity, a billionaire has earned 1.7 million. At the time Chouinard, who first met Tompkins climbing as a teenager, was a private in the Army and stationed nearby. Everything we make has an impact on people and the planet. They appeared to be clad in windbreakers instead of wetsuits. That same year, Tompkins suggested a trip to Patagonia to his friend Yvon Chouinard, who was at that time making climbing hardwear. [10] They married in 1964 in San Francisco, where Tompkins borrowed $5,000 from a bank to set up The North Face, now a global retailing company. In the process of buying up land for what he hoped would be 12 national parks, he reforested denuded acres, cultivated sustainable farms, built visitor centers and established hiking trails. The Brazilian government has started evicting illegal gold miners, responsible for the health emergency that has hit the Yanomami people. [20] The Tompkinses' conservation efforts focused on preserving wild landscapes and biodiversity. See Photos. Often it is brandished as an accessory, sometimes it is used as a gateway, others still it is considered merely a credential. In 1999, William Langewiesche provided The Atlantic with one irreplaceable piece of writing on Tompkins ideological shift, which led him to sell his stake in Esprit and move to South America and denouncing the consumerism that built his fortune. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PHYSICIAN, CARLOS SALAZAR, SAYING: This is a guy who was a world class mountaineer, multiple first ascents on many continents and multiple first descents as a whitewater kayaker. [9] She led Clinton's fundraising efforts for 2008 in the San Francisco Bay area. Nature lover and adventurer, he founded The North Facein 1964. Around the lake, mountains rise up on all sides forming a highly variable microclimate the weather can turn from sunny and calm to snowing with gale-force winds in a matter of hours. Kris Tompkins continues the work they started together as president of Tompkins Conservation. But with the case of Douglas Tompkins, the headlines and context dont match up. Rarely appearing outdoors without a collared shirt or a cashmere sweater, Tompkins seemed determined to prove that no specialty clothing was needed on an adventure. [37], In Brazil, the environmentalist Douglas Tompkins was specially honored during the celebrations of 30 years of the Society for the Protection of Wildlife with the video A Natureza do Brasil with images of Haroldo Pallo Jnior and the Brazilian pianist Salete Chiamulera.[38]. The Iber project advocated for enhanced protection of government-owned floodplain lands, and in 2009 the provincial government created Iber Provincial Park on 553,000 hectares of public land in the reserve. Get a beanie on orders $125+ for XPLR Pass members. Owner at Doug Thompson Hypnosis. Mr. Tompkins attended Pomfret School in Connecticut but never graduated and did not attend college, said Tom Butler, a spokesman for the Foundation for Deep Ecology, which Mr. Tompkins founded in 1990. , his daughter told the Guardian in a 2009 interview responsibility program on to Tompkins body and grabbed short. The accident his property in Ibera, in 2009 to leave the business in. 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