HomeIt seems like these days everyone is concerned with being green ' and with good reason! Whether or not you believe an environmental catastrophe due to global warming is right around the corner, there is no time like the present to start being more conscientious about the carbon footprint we are leaving on the planet. We should all get into the habit of recycling bottles, cans, paper, cardboard, clothes and other goods. Shoes are no exception. And while they may not be the first thing you think of when you hear the word 'recycling', there is no reason we should not attempt to recycle or find a new home or purpose for every pair of shoes we wear.
In addition to recycling our shoes, certain companies are proudly making their shoes out of recycled materials. Some shoe companies specialize in recycled shoes. The company Worn Again, for example, produces shoes that are made of 99 percent recycled materials. In another life, Worn Again shoes may have been part of parachutes, prison blankets, car seats, scrap leather or the lining and buttons of suit jackets. Jade Planet, another green-conscious shoe company, makes shoes recycled from materials as diverse as soda pop bottles, the cushioning from car seats and tire rubber. Other companies that are worth checking out include Simple Shoes, Vegan Essentials and Planet Shoes.
As far as more familiar brands go, Nike fabricates some of the soles of its athletic shoes (particularly the Air Jordan line) from a material known as Nike Grind rubber. This Nike Grind rubber is a recycled material made from donated and recycled Nike athletic shoes. (Check out www.nikereuseashoe.com to learn how you can donate your shoes.) Kenneth Cole offers you a 20 percent discount on a new pair of shoes if you donate your old pair of Kenneth Cole shoes to charity. Shoe donations are collected at Kenneth Cole retails stores and given to homeless people in need of decent footwear. And finally, Patagonia sells sandals with midsoles that are made of recycled EVA (20 percent) and outsoles that are made from natural latex produced by Hevea trees (70 percent). Patagonia also has a line of cork sandals that have outsoles made of 15-20 percent recycled material wrapped in cork.
Purchasing shoes made from recycled materials is an important step when it comes to keeping waste out of our landfills. Even your old, smelly running shoes can be 'born again' as a beautiful pair of flip-flops or sneakers.
Oddshoefinder.com, a free site that connects people with odd shoes with people who need odd shoes! Many people with feet of different sizes buy one pair of shoes for each shoe size and use only one shoe from each pair, leaving a closet full of unused shoes. The purpose of this site is to help you get those shoes out of your closet and put money into your pocket.
