Have you heard of Outdoor Afro? This incredible organization was featured in the September 2020 issue of O Magazine, where they offered exclusive gifts to anyone who donated to support their work. Klean Kanteen was proud to provide Outdoor Afro branded reusable gear for any donation of $150 or more - if you’d like to donate, head over to Outdoor Afro today!
Read MoreOur partnerships go beyond transactional. Our roots as a family and employee-owned business are founded in creating strong, lasting relationships with every new partner. Hear from our friends at Leave No Trace about how together, we've cultivated a community for change.
Read MoreMajestic Lake Tahoe is nestled in our backyard high in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Our very own Kasey Judge set out for an airborne expedition over the lake and captured some rare moments along the way.
Read MoreHere at Klean we take a holistic approach to understanding and managing the environmental footprint of our products —from sourcing raw materials to manufacturing, packaging, shipping, daily use, and end-of-life disposal. We call this Measuring What Matters.
Read MoreAs we continue to celebrate Women this month, we wanted to take the time to spotlight a woman that has made Klean Kanteen possible and has been the heart of this company for over 17 years. We sat down with Michelle Kalberer to ask about the challenges women in leadership are facing and her excitement for the future.
Read MoreHave you heard of OARS? Since 2014 Klean Kanteen has been a proud partner with OARS to help eliminate single use products while exploring our beautiful rivers and beyond. Learn more below on who they are and their history of supporting both conservation and river stewardship.
Read MoreKlean Food Solutions are inspired by stories of people who reimagine the role clean, healthy food plays in their lives. Farmer, Amanda Scott and her family run 63rd Street Farm in Boulder County, Colorado. With a focus on sustainability and education, they take pride in offering everyday food solutions for their community.
Read MoreOur people are what make us tick and we like to think of Klean as being closer to a family than anything else. At Klean, we have built a company culture that fosters trust, instills respect, and creates inspiration. Caring for our people is as easy as breathing. It comes naturally because it’s derived from love.
Read MoreEvery time you use your Kanteen, you’re taking a stand against disposable design. Using a Klean Kanteen regularly for just three years can prevent a lot of single-use waste. Manufacturing a long-lasting product has an environmental footprint, we encourage you to use the same bottle for as long as possible.
Read MorePartner Spotlight: 5 Gyres Words: Klean Kanteen / Images: 5 Gyres It's Plastic Free July! For Klean Kanteen, this month of action is a great way to recommit to one of our four core pillars: preventing plastic pollution. Each year, humans produce about 400 million tonnes of plastic, and less than 10% of that gets recycled. We’re proud to partner with 5 Gyres Institute, a nonprofit that is dedicated to empowering action against the global health crisis of plastic pollution. What does 5 Gyres do? Founded in 2009, 5 Gyres uses science, education, and adventure to fight against plastic pollution and inspire positive change. Co-founders Marcus Eriksen and Anna Cummins met on a sailing expedition to research pollution in the North Pacific Gyre (click here to learn about gyres if you don’t already know!), where they decided to dedicate their lives to solving the global problems with plastic.Over the years, Marcus and the 5 Gyres team have researched, written, and published over 25 peer-reviewed scientific studies. They were among the first to identify microfibers and coin the term, “plastic smog.” Their research has led to numerous policy changes, including the Microbeads-Free Water Act of 2015. More recently, 5 Gyres teamed up with the San Francisco Estuary Institute to conduct a three year project aimed at measuring microplastic levels in the San Francisco Bay.The work that 5 Gyres does has always been rooted in science and data. They invented their own trawlers and tools for measuring plastic pollution and are among the leading researchers who collect and track global data on both macro and micro plastics. They’ve led 19 research expeditions in all 5 subtropical gyres as well as several of the world’s lakes and rivers. In 2017, the United Nations Economic and Social Council named 5 Gyres as special consultants to help with Sustainable Development Goal #14. Klean Co-owner Jeff Cresswell picks up plastic pieces on the beach as part of a 5 Gyres Expedition. How Klean Kanteen Makes An Impact With 5 Gyres For both Klean Kanteen and 5 Gyres, the movement against plastic pollution is about more than keeping our planet clean. It’s about community, and the wellbeing of all people who live on this planet, too. We love that 5 Gyres includes compassion, equity, and fun in their core values, because that’s what we value, too!As our Nonprofit Outreach Manager Caroleigh Pierce puts it, “5 Gyres was really one of the first organizations to bring people together to collaborate on campaigns and use a collective voice for change.” We get to work together with 5 Gyres on collaborative campaigns, like #BreakFreeFromPlastic, an international movement fighting plastic pollution while sharing the common values of environmental protection and social justice. 5 Gyres’ community collaboration was also instrumental in the #BeadFree movement that resulted in legislation banning microbeads in personal care products across the US. 5 Gyres sailed from Bali to Komodo in Indonesia, studying plastic pollution and picking up garbage in the oceans. Volunteers send a message with plastic found on the 5 Gyres' Coral Triangle Expedition. We have worked with 5 Gyres since 2012, advocating together for restoring healthy, plastic-free oceans. A number of our staff have joined crews of like-minded activists, scientists, and ocean lovers on multiple 5 Gyres expeditions to collect plastic, bolster legislation, inspire young minds, and spread the word about the severe damage caused by plastic in our oceans and waterways. A core piece of their work, the 5 Gyres expeditions offer an amazing opportunity to experience the science firsthand. Klean owner Jeff Cresswell says that his 2013 expedition to Bermuda was profoundly eye-opening, while Caroleigh Pierce says that her 2015 journey with 5 Gyres and Jack Johnson (during which he filmed the documentary Smog Of The Sea) was one of the most monumental experiences of her life. In order to bring this kind of education to the next generation in the movement against plastic pollution, we contributed to a scholarship that allowed a youth leader to go on an expedition with 5 Gyres. We also work with 5 Gyres to provide education and inspiration on land. Two of our Klean staff are 5 Gyres ambassadors who speak at lectures, present at fun and educational events, participate in online campaigns, and create inspirational content to fight plastic pollution. Together with 5 Gyres, we work together to build relationships across brands and nonprofits in the industry to help find better solutions to plastic pollution. One of our favorite projects with 5 Gyres is the Project Green Challenge Finals, hosted by our partner Turning Green. The project brings youth leaders from around the world who are working on environmental conservation projects in their own community to learn, connect, and grow their ideas. Klean partners Surfrider and Lonely Whale have participated in this project as well. Our partnership with 5 Gyres is a perfect example of how we try to go beyond the check when it comes to giving back." Caroleigh Pierce, Klean Nonprofit Outreach Manager and 5 Gyres Ambassador. 5 Gyres works towards solutions to the problem of plastic pollution. Klean Nonprofit Outreach Manager, and 5 Gyres Ambassador, Caroleigh Pierce collects samples on an expedition. What Working With 5 Gyres Means to Us Working with 5 Gyres is an incredible partnership for Klean. Not only do we get to collaborate closely with like-minded folks and build relationships across industries, it’s also an important way that we get to support real change. Unlike us, 5 Gyres has the scientific research and leverage needed to put pressure on corporations and governments to make lasting policy changes. As Marcus Eriksen points out in an interview with Business Green, “what’s needed is extended producer responsibility: if you make something with plastic, you’ve got to have a lifecycle plan for it.” Remediating plastic pollution through individual consumer action is a part of the solution, but alone, it cannot solve the bigger problem. We need policy to stem the flow of plastic and make sustainable personal choices more accessible for everyone.
Read MoreA Letter From Our Owners Words: Klean Kanteen / Images: Rudy Alceda Since the beginning, being a force for good has driven everything we do at Klean Kanteen. We’ve worked tirelessly to build awareness surrounding the unnecessary waste and harmful impacts single-use items and plastics have on our environment. We’ve seen the conversation surrounding sustainability change through the years and we’ve witnessed the positive impact individuals and businesses can make through leading by example. Today, we’re pleased to announce the next step in our goal of being the best environmental steward we can be by joining forces with Climate Neutral to achieve a carbon neutral footprint as of February, 2020.Using an independent and rigorous certification program, Climate Neutral verifies a company has achieved carbon neutrality for their entire greenhouse gas footprint through a combination of emissions reductions and offsets. Like many companies that produce consumer goods, raw material production, manufacturing and transportation are Klean’s biggest emission sources. We are reducing these emissions by engaging our factory partners to increase use of renewable energy. In addition, we’ve made reductions in packaging material use, increased packaging recycled content, and our team continues to analyze and plan for future emissions reductions across our business operation.We know emissions reduction is the most important action for tackling climate change. While offsets are not a strategy in and of themselves, purchasing offsets is a meaningful action we can take immediately as we work toward reductions that require more time. As long as offset procurement is part of Klean’s climate strategy, we will ensure our investments meet the criteria for quality offsets: real, permanent, quantifiable, verifiable, enforceable, and additional; and verified by an independent, third-party.As business owners, we recognize the effect producing and shipping goods can have on the climate and have been working to measure and reduce our carbon footprint since early 2009. Together with Climate Neutral, we have publicly measured, reduced and offset our carbon emissions because it’s the right thing to do for current and future generations. We are now 100% carbon neutral in our manufacturing and delivery of products worldwide.Social responsibility is a guiding principle in every decision we make at Klean Kanteen as a family and employee-owned company. We are committed to continually reducing our impact on our environment, especially as we grow. Going forward, you’ll see a Certified Climate Neutral logo on all new Klean Kanteen products to empower socially conscious purchasing. This is our way of paying it forward because we believe a responsible business is one that gives more than it takes. What is Climate Neutral? Climate Neutral is a nonprofit organization working to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon world by recruiting companies to publicly measure, reduce, and offset their carbon emissions. Klean has completed a rigorous three-step process and are now 100% carbon neutral in the manufacture and delivery of our products worldwide. "We are committed to continually reducing our impact on our environment, especially as we grow."
Read MoreMarch is B Corp month and Klean Kanteen is proud to be a Certified B Corp. The “benefit” part of our mission is a big deal to us. From the products we make to the nonprofit partnerships we forge and the way we show up in our communities, B Corps are on a mission to make a positive impact in the world.
Read MoreRunning late or just feel like a refreshing snack, give this quick and easy recipe a go.
Read MoreOne word that means a lot. We sat down with Nicole Lee, International Sales and Customer Specialist at Klean and her partner Ryann Howard, to chat about pride and inclusivity in the workplace, and what it means to them.
Read MoreBreast Cancer Fund works tirelessly year after year to help eliminate the environmental toxins that lead to breast cancer. As a proud partner of the organization, we do our part every day to support these efforts in any way we can. Of course, we do this by making products that the general public can trust; all Klean Kanteen bottles are entirely BPA, BPS and liner-free, which provides consumers with a toxin-free solution to BPA-laden water bottles, to-go coffee cups and plastic food containers. Additionally, we participate in Breast Cancer fundraising whenever possible. This year, our very own Michelle Kalberer, co-owner of Klean Kanteen, is going to Climb Against the Odds. Between now and June, she'll be training to climb 14,179-foot Mt. Shasta in Northern California, all the while fundraising in support of Breast Cancer Fund. We asked Michelle why this particular effort is near and dear to her heart, and here's what she told us: "I’ve held my mom’s hand -- and recently the hand of my best friend -- through breast cancer. I am saddened, scared and frustrated that only half of those diagnosed with breast cancer experience the disease as a result of genetics; the other half of breast cancer diagnoses can be linked to toxins in our environment. That’s one of the reasons it’s so special to me to support the Breast Cancer Fund. They connect the dots for consumers around what we can do to lessen our exposure, and they go to bat for us to make real change happen. Conquering Mount Shasta is just icing on the cake! I’ve got my boots, I love a good challenge and I will summit that mountain with determination.” Unfortunately, we live in a time when stories of personal connection to the battle against breast cancer are incredibly common. Fortunately, organizations such as Breast Cancer Fund are doing their part to make all of this a part of our history, not our future. If you'd like to donate to Michelle's Climb Against the Odds, please visit her fundraising page and do just that: here. We'll be sharing updates about Michelle's training and her climb up through June right here on the Klean Blog, so stay tuned!
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