Patagonia, Inc have long been one of the most established names in eco-friendly clothing, the company founded in 1972 have always focused on outdoor wear with an emphasis on hiking, biking, cycling, swimming and surfing. It was fairly natural that they would be one of the earliest companies to lend lasting support to environmental initiatives both in their product line but also in the practices of the company. They’ve been involved with donating 1% of their total sales to environmental groups since 1985 over which time more than $25 million has been donated to different organizations. They also co-founded the ‘alliance 1% For the Planet’  for like-minded businesses and won the 2008 ‘Eco-Brand of the Year’.

Perhaps more importantly the company has strict environmental practices in place when it comes to the products that they manufacture, assessing raw materials and considering environmental impact for all products that they sell. The company also takes part in the ‘Common Threads Initiative’ (a  recycling program) and the ‘Conservation Alliance’. The company has now introduced another avenue to support environmental funding with the launch of “Patagonia Music”.

Now their website will sell songs donated by artists for 99 cents each with the entire proceeds from each sale going to an environmental cause just as selected by the artist. The launch will feature 22 tracks by different artists and then a further four songs will be added on a weekly basis. In addition to downloads the compilations also be available as physical CDs (remember them?) at retail outlets.

More than 100 artists have already elected to contribute music to the campaign including Pearl Jam, Los Lobos, Drive By Truckers, Ziggy Marley, Maroon 5 and many more. The founder and owner of Patagonia stated in a press release:

“Patagonia is hopeful other musicians will see that by just donating a song they can easily provide their favorite environmental group with a new stream of financing.”

It’s a novel way for artists to support a cause that their fans will embrace while paying more than lip service to environmental issues. Now that the campaign has launched you can find out more plus purchase and download songs via the Patagonia.com website, an iPhone app or directly via each artists website in association with the company.