Tompkins Foundation donates a million acres for two new national parks in Chile
The foundation created by the late creator of U.S. clothing brands Esprit and The North Face turned over 407,000 hectares (1 million acres) of forest, mountain, lakes and glaciers in Patagonia to the government of Chile on Friday, the Tompkins Conservation Foundationsaid. The gift makes final a plan that began with Douglas Tompkins, a U.S. businessman turned conservationist who purchased the land piecemeal from ranchers and others over several years. It was the largest ever private donation of conservation…