Former fashion mogul Doug Tompkins and his wife Kris have preserved (and donated) more wild rainforest than any other private individuals on the planet, more than a million acres of irreplaceable nature.

In terms of conservation philanthropy, they are the Rockefellers of their generation, true Eco Barons, whose network, influence and support for green causes has stretched throughout the United States and the world, particularly in the temperate rainforests of Patagonia in South America.

A lifelong outdoorsman, mountain climber and skier, Tompkins died this week at age 72 in a kayaking accident in the Patagonia wilds he loved and saved. Click through to read a brief excerpt from my book Eco Barons, a look at how Doug Tompkins reinvented himself from CEO of the fashion giant Esprit into one of the most influential and honored conservationists of his era.