The next time you buy a T-shirt you could be planting a tree. This unusual gift-with-purchase is the concept behind local clothing line Casual Industrees.
Dan and Brendan Reid, owners of the brand, hope Seattleites will sport their duds in order to sprout new trees. "For every product we sell, we are going to plant a tree," explained Dan Reid. This program began Friday, April 7.
When looking for "a benefit besides satisfying fashion appeal," Reid discovered that "there are a lot of sites in Seattle that are in need of reforesting."
Hoping to replenish Seattle's vanishing urban forests, the Reids teamed up with the Green Seattle Partnership.
According to Katie Moller, an urban forester with Seattle Parks and Recreation, the Green Seattle Partnership was formed in 2004 between Cascade Land Conservancy and the city of Seattle.
The "overarching goal" of this alliance, said Moller, "is to restore 2,500 acres of forested parkland by the year 2025."
This ambitious $52 million project draws funding from the city and private donors, and is "the largest urban forest-restoration program in the country," said the Seattle forester.
The 2,500 acres of woods are dispersed throughout the city, but much of the land is in North Seattle. Some of the sites being worked on are Carkeek Park, Llandover Woods, Golden Gardens, Licton Springs, Ravenna Park, the Thornton Creek Watershed and the Burke-Gilman Trail, said Moller.
While Seattle's parks may seem lush to the casual visitor, Moller warns that the city's big-leaf maples and red alders will not stand much longer. Planted between 1890 and 1940, these trees are now at the end of their 50- to 100-year life spans.
"The urgency," cautions Moller, "is that most of the forested parklands, over 70 percent, are at maturity, and we are at risk of losing them to invasive plants."
Rampant growers such as ivy and blackberries "can bring about an early death," she said.
These invasive plants carpet the ground, making it tough for new trees to sprout up as the old ones fall.
Looking to get the word out about Seattle's arboreal crisis, the Green Seattle Partnership stumbled on Casual Industrees.
The lifestyle clothing line's products, aimed at the surf, skate and snowboard crowds, were a big hit with some members of the Green Seattle Partnership.
As Seattle's tree savers fawned over Casual Industrees' environmentally conscious designs, such as a T-shirt featuring the Seattle skyline etched into a tree, Dan Reid happened to be looking for a way to "give back to the community."
"We wanted to do something besides making clothing," he said.
"We had a graphic we called the Johnny Tree, and one of the people with the Green Seattle Partnership called up and said, 'We loved your graphic,'" recounted his brother.
Soon the Johnny Tree was the Green Seattle Partnership mascot, but the pair wanted to do more than just share graphics. They wanted to plant trees.
"When we first started, we were really environmentally minded, but we kind of lost that. So it's really fortuitous, because it really brings us back to our roots," said Brendan Reid.
The brothers dreamed up the business at Mount Baker in the winter of 1998. "We were living out in the woods, not working, snowboarding. We were living the dream," recounts Reid.
By the end of the season "we were tired of all of the logo-driven stuff we saw," said Dan Reid.
When the brothers left the mountain that spring, they decided to create their own clothing line. "We wanted to represent the Northwest," Dan added.
"We used our damage deposit and threw it into hoodies and T-shirts," added his brother.
When the gear sold, the brothers put their money toward more Tees and sweatshirts. Gradually the pair upped their inventory, selling their line in local snowboarding shops.
They dubbed their brand "Casual Indus-trees, like trees," said Dan Reid.
They intended the name to be more than just a clever spelling. He explains: "When people bought any article of clothing, we gave them (an actual) tree, but that only lasted about a year."
"It was hard to keep that going. Most of the trees didn't get planted," said Reid.
The pair has a new approach for their new "Industrees" program.
Instead of passing saplings onto customers, "We will be obtaining trees" and then "recruiting people to plant trees," explained Dan Reid.
Casual Industrees is not the only business concerned about Seattle's aging forests.
Starbucks, Microsoft, REI and many other organizations have related programs.
"Safeco has a day of caring where they send hundreds of volunteers to city parks," said Moller.
The efforts of local companies, both big corporations and tiny two-person operations like Casual Industrees, are crucial, added Moller.
With the efforts of local residents and businesses, Moller says that the plan to replenish Seattle's forests can succeed. Just last year Seattleites put in over 60,000 volunteer hours yanking out invasive plants and planting new trees.
"There are a lot of ways for citizens to get involved," added the forester. "Some people never touch a shovel, but they bring huge resources to the park."
Those who want to stay clean while making a difference can find Casual Industrees products at Snowboard Connection, Evo Gear, the Mount Baker Snowboard Shop and at www.casualindustrees.com.
[[In-content Ad]]
