EOCA looks back on record year
The European Outdoor Conservation Association (EOCA) has announced it received €280,885 from members and donations during 2014, the first year EOCA had enough money to stage a second funding round in September.
Around 90,000 votes were cast for the spring and autumn funding rounds; the website notched up 200,000 unique visits.
Tanya Bascombe, joint general manager of the association, said: “It has been an absolute pleasure to be able to award more money to conservation this year. The awareness within the industry, and among consumers is most obviously increasing, and conservation organisations are spreading the word as well.”
From January 2015, a group of ‘sustaining members’ have pledged an extra €10,000 per year for three years The seven are: OutDoor (Messe Friedrichshafen), Pertex, KEEN Footwear, Nikwax, ISPO (Messe München), Patagonia and the European Outdoor Group (EOG), which is also the founder member of the association.
Since the start of EOCA’s work in 2006
• €1,540,664 has been spent on conservation
• 64 projects in 36 countries supported
• 468,946 trees planted
• over 220km of trails restored and maintained
• nearly 30,000 hectares of wilderness permanently protected
• over 100 tonnes of litter removed from mountains and waterways
