He was a passionate advocate for the environment, and his legacy of conservation is one that we hope to help continue in the work we do every day. In 2006, Thompson won in a landslide, defeating Robert Fowler with 85% of the vote. If youre not willing to take the political heat, then you shouldnt get into the game of land conservation, especially on a large scale., Douglas Tompkins, 72, North Face Founder, Dies in Kayaking Accident, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/business/douglas-tompkins-72-north-face-founder-dies-in-kayaking-accident.html. In 1991 he bought the Reihu farm, a semi-abandoned farm at the end of the Reihu Fjord, planning to set aside 42,000 acres (17,000ha) of this unique forest from possible exploitation. Im incredibly saddened by this, but he lived on the edge, said Tompkins Buell, who remained close to her ex-husband. Doug Tompkins, known for founding outdoor gear company The North Face, has died of hypothermia in a kayaking accident in Patagonia. If you are using a screen reader and having difficulty please call us at 1-800-638-6464. Doug was special to many of us. 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. Ends 2.28, while supplies last. Tompkins origins as an environmentalist lie in the early 60s, when the high-school dropout spent several years climbing and skiing everywhere from Colorado to South America. While Tompkins was gone, his wife, Susie, started the company that became Esprit. He also writes about the cannabis industry, outdoor adventure, Native American issues and the culture of the West. Tompkins also became a skilled whitewater kayaker, claiming first descents of rivers in California, Africa, and South America. In 1989, he sold his share of the American company back to Susie, from whom he had separated, putting most of his profits into land conservation. 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. The path was not always smooth, however. Tompkins's first major conservation project was Pumaln Park in the Palena Province of Chile, an 800,000-acre (320,000ha) area of Valdivian temperate rain forest, high peaks, lakes, and rivers. Before the rescue, Tompkins spent a considerable amount of time in waters under 4 degrees Celsius, or under 40 degrees Fahrenheit, The New York Times reported, citing a local news story. Il surfista cileno, ambasciatore di Patagonia, si batte per proteggere Punta de Lobos e per trasformarla in una riserva naturale per il surf. The second best result is Doug Thompson age 50s in Lakeland, FL in the Camphor neighborhood. Tompkins co-founded The North Face in 1964 to make and sell outdoor equipment, according to his conservation website. 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. Tompkins' eventual movie, Mountain of Storms, never achieved commercial success, but it inspired a generation of outdoor-adventure road-trippers. We believe that humans have an ethical obligation to share the planet with other species, and that we must reorient our values and activities so that all forms of life can flourish. Sitting together in a scene from 180 Degrees South, Chouinard described his good friend as a more worried incarnation of himself: Hes more bothered, probably, about the end of society and mankind and stuff than I am because he wants to do something about it. On December 8, 2015, Tompkins was kayaking with five others (including Patagonia, Inc. founder Yvon Chouinard) on General Carrera Lake in southern Chile when strong waves caused their kayaks to capsize. He founded the North Face Inc, co-founded Esprit and various environmental groups, including the Foundation for Deep Ecology and Tompkins Conservation.[3]. [30], In northeastern Argentina, Tompkins managed cattle ranches in Corrientes Province and polyculture grain and fruit farms in Entre Ros Province. San Francisco socialite Summer Tompkins Walker, the daughter of North Face and Esprit co-founder Douglas Tompkins, has lost another bruising round in her battle to claim a portion of her late . He was rescued but later died from severe hypothermia. An early adventure junkie, he opened the North Face in 1964 with his first wife, Susan. Were in business to save our home planet. Because we know prioritizing durability results in consuming less energy, wasting less water and creating less trash. Tompkins spent a "considerable amount of time" in 40F (4C) waters. Sign up for exclusive offers, original stories, activism awareness, events and more from Patagonia. Giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), collared peccary (Peccary tajacu), South American tapir (Tapirus terrestris), pampas deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus), and red-and-green macaw (Ara chloropterus) have been reintroduced to the wild, and a captive breeding program for jaguars (Panthera onca) was created to support reintroduction of jaguars to the parks.[24]. He said that Mr. Tompkins had spent considerable amount of time in waters under 4 degrees Celsius, or under 40 degrees Fahrenheit. These parks are our life's work, not the clothing chains we created, selling people clothes they don't need. ". Several years later the couple, along with a third partner, Jane Tise, started selling plain Jane dresses out of a station wagon. Doug was a dear mentor to our company and a good friend to many of us here at Patagonia. It is named in honor of the pumas that roam the parks virgin forests. The retail store named after the coldest, most unforgiving side of a mountain was founded in North Beach as a way to equip mountaineers, explorers and climbers. Rumors now range from the conspiratorial to the phantasmagorical: Tompkins is creating a second Israel in South America; he is siphoning off the worlds last freshwater resources for other American millionaires; he is building bunkers for a pending nuclear war. National Geographic photographer and film-maker Jimmy Chin said Tompkins was still on fire when he undertook an expedition for the 2010 film 180 Degrees South, which recreated the 1968 trip he and Chouinard made to Patagonia. In 2005, then-president Ricardo Lagos accepted this proposal, and the 726,000-acre (294,000ha) Corcovado National Park was born.[16]. 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 . Tompkins, who grew up in Millbrook, New York, is survived by his wife, Kristine, and his two children, Summer Walker and Quincey Imhoff. They split their time between homes in Chile and Argentina, concentrating their conservation efforts in both countries. [1], She attended primary school at the Convent School of the Sacred Heart, Ojai Valley School, and Miss Burkes School. He must have felt the frustration of an environmentalist who heard himself sounding like the very developers he wanted to stand against.. The pair tried repeatedly to right the boat. [3] In 2010, Thompson won two thirds of the vote in his ward, defeating Mark Scharfe and Bob Masaro. By the time Tompkins reached the hospital in the town of Coyhaique, he had stopped breathing, and his body temperature had dropped to 19C (66.2F). When that failed, they swam. Doug and Kris were responsible for expanding a natural reserve covering 400 hectares of forest in Chile to almost 890,000 hectares divided between Chile and Patagonia. [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. hey were on the fourth day of what was supposed to be an easy five-day paddle around the north side of Lake General Carrera, the vast turquoise-watered glacial lake which straddles the border of Argentina and. Shop The North Face Canada End of Season Sale for winter deals on jackets, backpacks, coats, shoes, hoodies, and other outdoor gear for men, women, and kids. He met his first wife, Tompkins Buell, while hitchhiking. They appeared to be clad in windbreakers instead of wetsuits. [11] Tompkins Buell held a fundraiser for David Brock's Media Matters at her San Francisco home. "It's almost as if we've had a subconscious wish to invite catastrophe so we can try to get out of it. 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! Douglas Tompkins started The North Face in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood in 1966. 3. In an extraordinary example of womens empowerment, a market in Indias Manipur state has been run entirely by women for the past 500 years. We are deeply saddened to learn of Doug Tompkins' death. To the group sitting in their sea kayaks, only millimeters from the water, the waves must have looked like mountains. Marble Caves at Lake General Carrera, Puerto Tranquilo, Aysen region, Chile. In particular, many locals in Chile and Argentina expressed resentment and distrust for the duo's massive land purchases. "The presidents of Argentina and Chile called," says Chouinard, "and said, Hey, let's get the rest of these parks done.' " says Chouinard. Doug Thompson. Mr. Tompkins, an experienced kayaker, and his fellow paddlers capsized after being hit by large waves in bad weather, according to reports from the Chilean army. This Walking Pad treadmill made getting 10,000 steps a HOKA dropped a brand new version of their most popular shoe, Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). I want him down at the baseball diamond right now!' 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. In 1997, CEO Jay Margolis banned Tompkins Buell and all members of her family from entering Esprit's headquarters. With all eyes currently fixed on the war in Ukraine, Paralympians competing in Beijing can show us the bright side of international cooperation. He was 72. The high-school dropout turned outdoors-loving mogul turned eco-baron devoted the last quarter of his life to conservation advocacy. The Brazilian government has started evicting illegal gold miners, responsible for the health emergency that has hit the Yanomami people. 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