Higher Ground: How the Outdoor Recreation Industry Can Save the World

Luis Benitez is the emerging face of the outdoor industry’s political movement. The son of an Ecuadorian aerospace engineer and an American primary school art teacher, Benitez, is a former international mountaineering guide. In 2001, he guided famed blind mountaineer Erik Weihenmayer to the summit of Mount Everest, the world’s tallest peak. He reached the summit of Everest five other times and has led expeditions to the highest peaks on every continent. In 2015, Benitez was appointed director of the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office by Colorado governor John Hickenlooper, a significant step in what many see as a political career leading to the Colorado governor’s office and beyond. In 2019, he was hired as vice president of governmental affairs and global impact for VF Corp, parent company of outdoor industry giants The North Face, Smartwool, and Eagle Creek, a foray into the business world he believes will put him on stronger footing to lead the public sector in the future.