Athletic Brewing and the Two For The Trails program: funding the restoration of natural areas through non-alcoholic beer

At the heart of this initiative is the “Two For The Trails Milestone Edition IPA,” a limited-edition non-alcoholic beer created to celebrate the trail restoration program the brand has been leading for the past eight years. By helping to preserve these natural trails, Athletic Brewing is helping to protect the wider range of flora and fauna across much of the United States.

This commitment to nature extends to the brewing process itself, as the beer is brewed using barley and hop varieties from the Hopsteiner breeding program, which have a significantly lower carbon footprint than traditional varieties.

Insights into the brand's environmental financing

How much does Athletic Brewing invest in nature?

Launched in 2018 with an initial grant of $6,000 awarded to a single partner, Two For The Trails has become the industry’s largest annual environmental grant program. The brand now distributes up to $2 million annually to support conservation and nature access projects, while prioritizing sustainable and low-carbon practices. To date, in 2026, the program has invested a total of $8.4 million in projects related to trails and natural spaces.

What kinds of projects are supported?

Funds are allocated to local organizations to carry out targeted initiatives on the ground. Athletic Brewing has funded, among other things:

1. The creation of trails accessible to all-terrain wheelchairs stretching for several kilometers within Burnham Brook Preserve, a park located in Connecticut.
2. The restoration of fragile ecosystems, such as endangered grasslands in Florida or degraded trails in California and Wisconsin.
3. Cleaning up waterways, as well as habitat restoration projects and efforts to eliminate invasive species.

What is habitat restoration? It is a process of human intervention aimed at rehabilitating a degraded, damaged, or destroyed ecosystem in order to restore its original biological structure, biodiversity, and natural ecological functions.

What is an invasive species? It is a non-native animal or plant species (introduced from outside its natural range) whose rapid proliferation threatens local biodiversity, disrupts ecological balance, and displaces native species.

How can we measure the impact of Two For The Trails?

The program's actual impact is measured using specific geographic and community-based performance indicators:

• More than 500 recipients (nonprofit organizations, local parks, and sponsorship programs) have received direct grants since 2018.
• 46 U.S. states and 3 countries are now implementing projects funded by the brand.
• A digital integration developed in partnership with AllTrails, the world’s largest hiking guide platform, allows consumers to locate on a map the sections of trails that are protected and maintained thanks to funding from Athletic Brewing.

“The trails, parks, and waterways we depend on don’t preserve themselves,” says Bill Shufelt, co-founder and CEO of Athletic Brewing. “Two For The Trails highlights our commitment to preserving access to nature, because if we don’t actively contribute to it, we risk losing the places and experiences that bring us together.”

More than just a limited edition, the annual campaign celebrates nature restoration and marks the evolution of this seasonal beer, which has grown from an annual tradition into one of the most impactful environmental initiatives in the craft non-alcoholic beer industry.

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