This earth Day, we want to take some time to showcase and celebrate the sneaker brands who are doing their bit in becoming a lot more sustainable and environmentally-friendly. Whether it’s introducing brand new materials to their collections or completely reworking the manufacturing process from the ground up, these companies are injecting a lot of their time, money, and resources in buy to create a greener future for all of us, and this absolutely should have a spot of recognition.
So, if you want to learn a lot more on what your much-loved brands like adidas and Nike are doing to minimize their carbon footprint, we’ve rounded up some of the industry’s greatest names and taken a look at what exact they’re doing to be a lot more environment-friendly and ethical! While you’re here, here are some environment-friendly trainers that you can get ideal now!
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adidas
To kick things off, adidas are hands down one of the most sustainable brands in the game. For the past 20 years the German gigantic has been provided in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, and we’re honestly not surprised. Last year, adidas created around 20 million pairs of shoes with Parley ocean plastic such as the Ultra Boost. In 2019, the brand collected the equivalent of 4.5 billion plastic bottles for its recycled apparel range.
That’s not all though, as the three stripes aims to only use recycled polyester from 2024 onwards and minimize their greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030. This massive commitment is supported by the introduction of various new projects, including the Stan Smith Mylo which is crafted from mushrooms and Kanye West’s ever-popular Yeezy Foam RNNR that’s partially made with algae.
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Converse
Converse are certainly no stranger when it pertains to environmentally-friendliness. The One star brand recently launched its Renew Collection which features a series of one-of-a-kind sustainable trainers and environment-friendly clothing. Made in collaboration with U.K.-based beyond Retro, each piece is made from 100% polyester from plastic bottles.
As the imprint falls under the Nike umbrella, they can also take advantage of the Beaverton brand’s critically acclaimed Crater Foam which uses about 12% Nike Grind rubber that’s collected from factory floors. This is just a single part of their commitment to design towards a waste-less future.
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New Balance
New balance has big plans for the future. While lots of other brands are focusing on their products, the Boston-based company plans to rework their entire business. By the year 2025, all operations owned by NB will be powered by 100% renewable energy. They also want to completely eliminate the use and discharge of hazardous chemicals and achieve zero waste to landfill in their footwear factories as well – that’s a lot to do in the space of four years!
Going back to their sneakers, collaborations with Jaden Smith have resulted in the highly desired Vision Racer which is crafted from a newly-developed Spinnex material that uses a minimum of 30% surplus textile waste. The upper is infused with scrap TPU, while the midsole features 5% reground EVA foam. This is just one of the lots of sustainable silhouettes that new balance are working on for a greener future.
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Nike
Without a shadow of a doubt, Nike is the greatest and a lot of successful sneaker brand out there, and they’re certainly doing their bit to become a lot more sustainable and eco-friendly. In 2019, the Beaverton-based company introduced the step To Zero initiative where they’re aiming towards a zero carbon and zero waste future. By the year 2025, they want to operate on 100% renewable energy. Additionally, Nike plan to divert 99% of all footwear manufacturing waste from landfills and use a lot more than 1 billion plastic bottles per year to create yarns for new jerseys and uppers for Flyknit shoes.
Many of these sustainable processes are already being implemented into their current product line. From the Air VaporMax to the space Hippie, these are all crafted from recycled materials without compromising on design and usability. The newly-announced Cosmic Unity is also playing a major role in this, with at least 25% of the entire shoe being made from reused materals.
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PUMA
PUMA is as ambitious as it gets. Not only have they given themselves environmental targets to achieve by 2015, they’re also got aims to get better in health and safety and human rights. Embedding human rights and compliance to ILO Core Conventions in all of their operations and suppliers, the German brand have also made sure that their products are manufactured under safe, fair, legal, and humane working conditions.
The result are products such as the Rider and the Suede being created with sustainably sourced materials that will absolutely make a massive difference in the long run.
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Vans
Vans has been a heavy hitter in the industry for quite some time now, and they’re committed to minimizing their impact on the planet through a number of steps. From completely eliminating the use of single use plastics to reimagining the life cycle of their products, the Anaheim company are taking it one step additionally by supplying the Vans family with resources and education to be a lot more sustainable in the choices they make each day, both personally and in the business.
A few highlights of Vans’ journey to a greener future include removing all plastic shopping bags from retails spaces by the end of this year, expanding their shoe recycling program globally by 2023, operate exclusively with renewable energy by 2025, and make core materials 100% regenerative, renewable, or recycled by 2030. This decade-long road map showcases the label’s commitment to become a lot more eco-conscious.
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VEJA
VEJA is, hands down, one of the most sustainable footwear brands today. rather than just checking out their final product, the French footwear company looks at the entire process from start to finish. how much are labourers paid? how much does an organic cotton producer earn? What are the chemicals used in each pair? These are all things that VEJA considers when creating their sneakers, that’s why they cost five times a lot more to produce than other brands.
Through the use of fair trade and organic raw materials, they’ve also teamed up with Atelier Sans Frontières to supply well-paid jobs and personalised social support to each and every worker. This results in delighted shoes made by delighted people.