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AllGear Launches ‘Comprehensive Sustainability Score’

November 19, 2021

GearJunkie, Switchback Travel, and other AllGear publications to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions

NOV. 19, 2021 | LOS ANGELES, CALIF. /OUTDOORS SPORTSWIRE/ –  AllGear, a division of Lola Digital Media, today announced an initiative focused on sustainability. The Comprehensive Sustainability Score (CSS) rates products and manufacturers based on multiple metrics, from materials used, to shipping practices, to packaging waste.

“We developed CSS to serve as a benchmark for companies and as a tool for our readers,” said Sean McCoy, Editorial Director at Lola Digital Media. “It’s a proprietary system built from the ground up within Lola, and you’ll soon see it roll out across multiple sites.”

AllGear’s portfolio of publications, including GearJunkie, Switchback Travel, ExplorersWeb, and BikeRumor, will begin implementing CSS on reviewed products this month. CSS will be listed alongside other common industry stats like price, weight, and materials used.

The Comprehensive Sustainability Score will distinguish a product’s impact on the environment on a 1-to-100 scale. A graphic icon denotes a CSS number for each product listed in articles to help guide a readers’ purchasing decision.

McCoy explained that CSS was designed to be “quantitative, research-based, and prominent in published articles,” adding it will be “a key determinant of which products Lola editors recommend” in many articles.

“Our sustainability initiative will help consumers purchase products that have the least impact on the environment,” said Eric Phung, CEO of Lola Digital Media. “It will hopefully give our readers the chance to minimize their carbon footprint.”

GearJunkie, Switchback Travel, ExplorersWeb and BikeRumor, plus other AllGear publications review and recommend thousands of products each year. McCoy said he believes CSS will encourage more manufacturers to consider their impact on the planet.

“Each CSS icon and rating is a small step,” McCoy said, “but I believe that more transparency around impact is needed, and, at scale, these kinds of efforts can truly move the needle toward change.”

ABOUT LOLA DIGITAL MEDIA: Lola Digital Media owns and operates best-in-class media brands that fuel readers’ passions. Based in Los Angeles, the company was founded in 2018 and runs a portfolio of digital publications and media brands across its AllGear and Lifestyle divisions.