Cotopaxi Partners with J-PAL to Support Global Poverty Alleviation Missions

March 8, 2023

The partnership through the Cotopaxi Foundation works to improve the agency of women in Central America

Salt Lake City, UT (March 8, 2023)/OUTDOOR SPORTSWIRE/ – In alignment with Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day, Cotopaxi, a certified Climate Neutral and B Corporation™ outdoor gear and apparel brand, is proud to announce its newest impact partner, the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab in Latin America and the Caribbean (J-PAL LAC). The partnership is centered around the agency of women in Central America — to empower women to set and achieve goals, make important decisions, and be active economic and civic participants in their communities.

J-PAL is a network of affiliated professors from universities around the world dedicated to reducing poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Founded in 2003 as a research center in the Department of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), J-PAL’s work is parallel to Cotopaxi’s founding principles and mission for global poverty alleviation as a BCorp brand.

“At the core of Cotopaxi’s being is our dedication to humanitarian causes, with the acknowledgment that actuating change comes from committed, sustainable and verified work in the global community,” expressed Cotopaxi’s Senior Director of Sustainability and Impact, Annie Agle. “Our partnership with J-PAL is part of a long term strategy to ensure that our brand and our people are putting resources and support where it will make the most impact and where need is most visible. To date Cotopaxi and the Cotopaxi Foundation have aided over 3.8 million people in extreme poverty through targeted grants to outstanding organizations with proven methodologies, an exacting representation of J-PAL’s incredibly important work and focus.”

According to Dr. Valeria Lentini, Professor of Economics at the University of Costa Rica and leader of the J-PAL LAC gender agency project in Central America; “Across the globe, women are usually less likely than men to be employed: 47% of women vs. 72% of men. In some countries in Central America like Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, less than 45% of women are in the labor market”. These statistics alone showcase the immense need for corporate philanthropic support and long term resource engagement over band-aid solutions, which is what both Cotopaxi and J-PAL are committed to, together.

“We are thrilled to work with the Cotopaxi Foundation to address some of the most pressing issues in Central America,” shared Paula Pedro – Executive Director J-PAL LAC. “This year we will focus on sharing evidence on what is effective to promote women’s agency and will help local organizations to apply that evidence, but we see this as a long-term relationship that will allow us to do much more in the region. Our work is only possible thanks to the collaboration of partners—like the Cotopaxi Foundation—that share our belief in the power of evidence to understand what really works against poverty.”

Cotopaxi’s valued and vetted partners receive funds through the Cotopaxi Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the impact-driven brand, focused on concentrating efforts in Central and Latin America’s poorest communities, investing in health, education, and livelihood, categories identified by J-PAL itself to have high potential for alleviating poverty.

To learn more about the Cotopaxi Foundation, visit https://www.cotopaxi.com/pages/our-impact.

To learn more about Cotopaxi, visit https://www.cotopaxi.com.

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Cotopaxi Press Contact: Jess Fiaschetti | Jess@OutsidePR.com | 415.565.9530

About Cotopaxi

Cotopaxi is a carbon neutral certified B Corporation that creates sustainably made outdoor gear designed to fight extreme poverty, inspire adventure, and move people to Do Good. Our Gear for GoodⓇ promise is to make gear that lasts and to have a positive social, environmental, and economic impact. By 2025, we’re committed to using repurposed, recycled, or responsible materials in all of our gear. We also allocate at least 1% of our annual revenue to the Cotopaxi Foundation, which awards grants to nonprofit partners with proven track records of alleviating poverty. Through our Foundation to date, we have reached an estimated 3.8 million individuals who live in extreme poverty. For more information please visit https://www.cotopaxi.com.

About Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab in Latin America & the Caribbean (J-PAL LAC)

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. J-PAL works closely with governments and NGOs to promote the use of evidence for designing new programs and improving existing ones, rigorously test whether these programs are effective, help scale up effective programs, and institutionalize a culture of evidence-informed policymaking. Its co-founders Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo, with longtime affiliate Michael Kremer, were awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics for their pioneering approach to alleviating global poverty. J-PAL’s work in Latin America and the Caribbean is led by its regional office, J-PAL LAC, which leverages its understanding of the local context to provide research support, capacity building, and policy outreach. For more information visit https://www.povertyactionlab.org/latin-america-caribbean

Photo Credit: Juan Arredondo/Getty Images/Images of Empowerment