Amy Roberts is leaving Outdoor Industry Association
She's headed to The North Face as its new senior director of communications and corporate social responsibility.
Get access to everything we publish when you sign up for Outside+.
When Congress passed a historic public lands package or when Outdoor Retailer moved to Denver, Amy Roberts had something eloquent and impactful to say about it as executive director of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA).
But after four years leading the organization, and shepherding through big industry wins like the #VoteTheOutdoors campaign and the BEA’s recognition of outdoor recreation, Roberts is stepping down at the end of September to join The North Face as senior director, communications and corporate social responsibility.
“I am grateful for the opportunity that I have had to serve the outdoor industry and to be a part of the wins that the OIA team has achieved, including securing more funding for parks and trails, establishing state offices of outdoor recreation, building tools to help our members drive sustainability in their own businesses and launching our revised Thrive Outside participation strategy,” Roberts said in a release. “More than anything, I am thankful for the hardworking OIA staff and the support and engagement of our membership. I look forward to helping the board and staff welcome new leadership for an organization I have had the pleasure to serve.”
Before her most recent stint at OIA, Roberts was MEC’s director of sustainability from 2012 to 2015. She joined the Canadian retailer after serving as OIA’s vice president of government affairs from 2005 to 2011.
Roberts told Outside Business Journal she is most proud of her team and their ability to hone in on the organization’s three pillars of participation, sustainability, and advocacy, and also facilitate the industry’s powerful collaboration—evident in the Together We Are A Force campaign. In the next few months, Roberts is focused on finishing well, such as fundraising for the Outdoor Foundation’s new Thrive Outside initiative.
“Amy has served OIA in various capacities over the past decade including leading the industry’s government affairs and sustainability efforts before taking on the executive director role in 2015,” said Nora Stowell, OIA board chair and W.L. Gore fabrics sales and marketing divisional leader. “She led OIA during the difficult trade show move to Denver, and with great finesse and skill, she developed a renewed organizational strategy focused on the three pillars of business sustainability, advocacy and outdoor participation. She built a strong team at OIA to support the development and execution of these efforts. During her tenure, Amy drove the OIA brand through the ‘Together We are a Force’ campaign which led to increased membership, satisfaction and engagement in OIA’s efforts. We are forever grateful for Amy’s service, steady leadership and dedication to the industry,” said Stowell.
The OIA Board and an executive search firm have already begun searching for Robert’s replacement. They plan to share more about the process in the coming weeks.
