Sustainability at Ocun

How can you climb sustainably?

If you are passionate about climbing and nature, then you know how important it is to take care of our natural areas. As a climber, you have the opportunity to be a steward of the environment and positively influence the places you climb. Here are a few THINK GREEN tips that can help you become a more eco-friendly climber and protect the climbing areas we all love.

Leave no trace 

As climbers, we‘ve got to make sure we leave nature just the way we found it. Following the Leave No Trace principles is important in keeping our impact on the environment to a minimum. 

Choose environment friendly gear 

Choose equipment that is made from recycled or environmentally friendly materials or can be recycled or repurposed at the end of its lifespan.

Consider your transport 

Take the eco-friendly route and use public transport, bicycle or carpool to get to the crag or the gym.

 

What are we doing for sustainability?

Climbing Harnesses

In 2023, we proudly introduce Twist Tech Eco, the world‘s first eco-friendly climbing harness, with 82% recycled and eco-friendly materials.

Its unique design has won the prestigious ISPO AWARD 2023, marking a significant leap in sustainable climbing equipment.

This eco-conscious innovation changes the game for climbers, reducing their ecological footprint and maintaining a high level of engineered gear. Twist Tech Eco meets both high performance and environmental needs, offering climbers a more sustainable future while pushing their limits.

Twist Tech Eco

Twist Tech Eco is a comfortable harness with three buckles designed for all around use. It is suitable for sport climbing, alpinism and other climbing disciplines such as the increasingly popular via ferrata. This harness allows climbers to make their adventures more sustainable without compromising on comfort and quality.

 

Climbing Hardware

Not only do we stick to our motto ENGINEERED FOR CLIMBING, but within THINK GREEN & VERTICAL we strive to innovate the materials we use.

As a result, the majority of our quickdraw sets and slings are made by using Bio Based Dyneema® or recycled polyester ECO-PES. At the same time, we place great emphasis on maintaining the quality and safety of our products.

Products with ECO-PES

ECO-PES material contains at least 50% of recycled polyester and meets the Global Recycled Standards (GRS), the aim of this certification is to increase sustainability in the textile industry. You can find this material in our slings and quickdraw sets, for example Hawk QD Wire ECO-PES.

Bio-based Dyneema®

In switching to Bio-based Dyneema®, we decreased our dependence on fossil fuel sources. Its technical properties are exactly the same as those of conventional Dyneema®, in that it is extremely strong and highly resistant to abrasion, chemicals and UV radiation. The use of Bio-Based Dyneema® in our slings is another outstanding contribution to a more sustainable future and commitment to the environment.

Products with Bio-based Dyneema®

Bio-Based Dyneema® is made of fibres sourced exclusively in accordance with strict standards of circular economy. The raw material used for its manufacturing is a by-product from timber and pulp industry.

Compared to standard quickdraw slings, our unique double-layer construction increases safety and durability

Climbing Ropes

All the fibres of the sheath and core of our select ropes are treated with special PFC-free chemicals that protect the individual fibres from dirt and water.

The process does not use any C6 or C8 fluorocarbons, which are non-degradable and cause many problems for the environment.

Dynamic ropes collection

Nature friendly coated core and sheath yarns, for full water and dirt protection. Thanks to the development of this PFC-free protection, we are one of the few to achieve rope water absorption of less than 5% in the UIAA water repellent test and can boast this certification.

Chalk

We have focused to be most environmentally friendly in production of our chalk and we proudly declare that our chalk is REACH compliant through the whole production process, which has been certified by the Czech ministry of health.

We get the crude magnesite from European resources in Slovakia, then it takes the super short transport route to our partner factory in Czechia, where the final product is made and packed according to EU directives for production of cosmetic products.

Hot & cool chalk

As the name suggests, Hot Chalk is a special compound designed for warm climate conditions. During its development and testing, we focused on climbing on summer days, in the sun and in high humidity. The result is a finer texture that exactly matches the desired properties, especially in terms of maximum sweat absorption.

On the contrary, Cool Chalk offers a completely different experience. Its texture is coarser and less dusty. When you use this mixture, it leaves larger chunks in the chalk bag and the air around you won‘t be as heavily filled with white dust, which is perfect for colder conditions. Cool Chalk is a great choice for climbing in temperatures below 10°C, especially for autumn and winter outdoor climbing and bouldering. This blend is also kinder to the skin on your hands, making it ideal for climbers with dry skin.

Crash Pads

The basic material of our FTS technology, which is used in almost all of our crash pads is not newly created but obtained from waste material from other industries. Instead of ending up in a landfill, this waste gets a second chance in the form of innovative and durable boulder mats that serve climbers for many years.

FTS-technology

An important ecological step is also the fact that in recent years we have abandoned the use of materials containing PVC in the production of boulder mats. PVC is known for its long decomposition time, so this step is more environmentally friendly. Ocún‘s FTS Absorption Block is a unique solution introduced in 2011 that maximizes fall absorption. It uses a special construction block, which is made up of a combination of different foams, the main function of which is to cushion the climber‘s impact during bouldering.

Climbing Apparel

Clothing is an integral part of every climber‘s gear. In this category we are striving for sustainable innovation as well and that‘s why we have put together a collection of sustainable clothing that uses recycled or environmentally friendly materials.

Sustainable Apparel

Organic cotton is a fibre that has been grown without the use of pesticides and other chemicals. The organic cotton we use is certified by Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) and can be found in our Drago Organic, Pantera Organic and Organic T-shirt ranges.

Recycled polyamide comes from textile waste and can be found in our Noya Eco and Mánia Eco pants.

Pre-consumer recycled nylon comes from waste or excess product from manufacturing processes. Tsunami Eco is 100% made from recycled nylon.

Packaging

Packaging materials are an integral part of the production and sales process of every company. At Ocún, we try to minimize these packaging materials and possibly replace them with materials that are more environmentally friendly.

The adhesive tape we use is Bio-Based PP tape, which is made from ISCC PLUS (International Sustainability & Carbon Certification) certified polymers from natural sources that are related to the recycling of material of biological origin. The adhesive on the tape is water-based and solvent-free.

Recycled Packaging

All our crash pads are packed in packaging that is made from recycled material. By this we save around 3 tons of new packaging material every year. The same case is with packaging materials for our apparel, which we are replacing with packaging that is made from recycled material and is fully recyclable.

We substitute plastic blisters with paper alternatives, and the same applies to boxes. We try to reuse and recycle a large amount of cardboard boxes. For new boxes for our products, such as our climbing shoes, we choose cardboard that is unbleached and contains 50% recycled content and is 100% recyclable. The colours used in cardboard printing are water-soluble and eco-friendly

Check out our eco collection here >