AE x ME Council: The 2019 Recap

AE x ME COUNCIL: THE 2019 RECAP

In 2019 we launched the AExME Council, our first-ever group of young advocates and change-makers. And they kept it real all year long, inspiring AE and the world with their voices and actions.

Together, we tackled issues from environmental sustainability to mental health awareness, youth homelessness to equality for women and the LGBTQ+ community.

And with the AExME Council, customers like YOU helped us raise more than $3.5 million for various causes – a company record!

Just a few highlights:

OLD JEANS = NEW TREES?!?

“A ship in port is safe, but that’s not why we build ships.” – Joseph Touma, Bridge the Divide Co-Founder

With the AExME Council, we launched the denim recycling program on Earth Day 2019, and through your donations, planted more than 155,000 trees to help with the wildfire devastation in California. Recycling is still going strong, so bring your pre-loved jeans into any U.S. store and help build a better future!

IT REALLY DOES GET BETTER

If you’re going through pain, it is only temporary.” – Edith Cruz, Immigrant Rights Activist

In celebration of Pride, we partnered with It Gets Better, which uplifts, empowers, and connects LGBTQ+ youth around the world. We donated 100% of sales from our annual Pride collection to the nonprofit, and were inspired to open up donations to customers at checkout, too. In total, you donated $1,347,766 – the largest donation in It Gets Better’s history!

COMBATTING YOUTH HOMELESSNESS

“People remember the way you make them feel. And if you can make them feel loved, then we can make a better world.” – Peyton Klein, Global Minds Initiative Founder

Inspired by the AExME Council, we partnered with Delivering Good over the 2019 holiday season to help YOU take action against something that affects 1 in 10 young people, ages 18-25: homelessness. Between donations at checkout and sales from the collection, customers like you donated $1,544,895 – the largest donation in Delivering Good’s history!

Now let’s see how many records we can break in 2020…

See more style.

The Buddy Project

The Buddy Project

THE BUDDY PROJECT This Mental Health Awareness Month, we’re shining a light on the Buddy Project, a suicide and self-harm prevention nonprofit created by AExME Council member Gabby Frost. As Gabby says, “1 in 5 people have a mental illness, but 5 in 5 people have mental health. Mental health matters for everyone.” Whether you’re dealing […] SEE MORE
Schuyler Bailar

Schuyler Bailar

A recent graduate of Harvard University and tireless advocate for inclusion, Schuyler is the first transgender athlete to compete in any sport on an NCAA Division 1 men’s team. By 15, he was one of the nation’s top-20 15-year-old breast-strokers and by 17, he set a national age-group record. Follow Schuyler: “When we ask companies for […] SEE MORE
Peyton Klein

Peyton Klein

A high school student in Pittsburgh, Pa., Peyton is founder of the Global Minds Initiative – a for-youth, by-youth organization that combats cultural intolerance and discrimination in schools internationally. It is now in 25 schools in two countries, and impacts 2,600 students. Follow Peyton: “Our generation is in search of community. We are striving for […] SEE MORE