Bally’s commitment to cleaning up Mount Everest is getting even more serious as the Swiss company extended its pledge to the local environment and communities through 2030.
Unveiled in tandem with International Mountain Day on Sunday, the initiative promoted by the Bally Peak Outlook Foundation advances the company’s pledge launched in 2019, which included the first clean-up expeditions to Mount Everest, followed by two additional missions in 2020 and 2021 that targeted other peaks.
“As we approach the 70th anniversary of the first successful ascent of Mount Everest, during which Sherpa Tenzing Norgay wore Bally boots, I am proud to be able to announce our commitment to cleaning the world’s highest mountain through 2030,” said Nicolas Girotto, chief executive officer of Bally.
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“In the past three years, we have made great strides in safeguarding this fragile mountain habitat by removing more than seven tons of waste, enabling the building of flood barriers and sponsoring educational programs for the Sherpa community. Our important work doesn’t stop there. We are dedicated to long-term support and action,” he added, highlighting the company’s tie with the mountains.
Paying homage to the 70th anniversary since Sherpa Tenzing Norgay wore bespoke Bally reindeer boots on the expedition that took Sir Edmund Hillary to the summit in 1953, Bally will unveil a dedicated capsule collection in 2023 comprised of a limited-run ready-to-wear item featuring memorabilia motifs.
All proceeds from the collection, to be launched at Bally stores and online in April, will be channeled into charity projects geared at mountain communities, including via the creation of the Sagarmatha Buffer Zone Tenzing Norgay Heritage Center in Namche Bazaar, Nepal.
Bally’s alpine preservation programs have provided funding to remove waste also from other Himalayan peaks higher than 8,000 meters, including mounts Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Kanchenjunga, Dhaulagiri, Manaslu and Annapurna, and to create flood barriers, meant to help offset the impact of global warming on melting glaciers.
The activities have been carried out in partnership with local Sherpa communities, including Dawa Steven Sherpa, who led the Bally Peak Outlook expeditions in 2019.
“The extreme altitudes make restoring the pristine landscape between Everest Base Camp and its iconic peak a formidable feat. However, cleaning up the volume of waste that gets left behind is critical to supporting this majestic and fragile habitat. For this reason, I’ve now led three expeditions in partnership with Bally Peak Outlook and I’m incredibly proud of my team from the Sherpa community for their intrepid dedication to cleaning up Everest and the other Himalayan peaks,” he said.
Bally laid out its Sustainability Roadmap in 2020, based on four pillars: transparency, quality, collaboration and progress. By 2050, the company, a signatory of the Fashion Pact, aims to have net-zero carbon emissions.