Shoe Boxers

Got a pair of old sneakers that are not worthy enough to give to charity? Nike will recycle any brand of athletic shoe through its Reuse-a-Shoe program. Nike processes and recycles the footwear to make sports surfaces for basketball courts, tennis courts, running tracks, and playgrounds. They have collected shoes to make athletic surfaces for New Orleans, to help get kids back out on the courts even as the city rebuilds. To date, about 20 million pairs of athletic shoes worldwide have been recycled through the program. Shoes that you recycle are ground up by NIKE® and made into carpet padding, basketball courts and track surfaces. NIKE® Reuse-A-Shoe , from outsoles and manufacturing byproducts, helps make football, baseball and soccer fields, as well as golf products, and even weight room flooring, as well. Nike Grind Foam, from midsoles, is used in synthetic basketball courts, tennis courts and playground surfacing. Nike Grind Fluff, from textile and leather uppers is used for padding under hardwood basketball floors. Since the Reuse-A-Shoe program began in 1993, Nike has helped donate more than 150 sport surfaces to communities around the world.

On average, Nike recycles between one and two million pairs of athletic shoes each year. Since 1993, more than 15 million pairs of shoes have been processed in their Oregon recycling plant. They recently began a partnership with the National Recycling Coalition (NRC) and their community member affiliates; NRC manages the logistics of getting the shoes back from their community, and Nike recycles the shoes. Nike’s short-term goal is to have at least one athletic shoe collection center in every state in the continental U.S.

Product Stewardship is about more than recycling, it’s about sustainability! Programs like Nike’s Reuse-A-Shoe challenges us to reduce the life-cycle environmental effects of products. In doing so, it taps the shared responsibility of business, consumers and governments to become better environmental stewards.

Try one of the following recycle programs:

• Reuse-A-Shoe
c/o Nike Recycling Center
26755 South West 95th Street
Wilsonville, Oregon 97070
United States of America
Phone: (800) 292-6453, (800) 352-6453, (503) 671-4726
Web: www.nike.com
Recycled to: athletic surfaces (running tracks, etc.)

• Up & Running
United Kingdom
Phone: +44 (0)1423 562162
E-mail: enquiries@runningshoes.co.uk
Web: http://www.upandrunning.co.uk
Recycled to: Variety Club, ‘the greatest children’s charity in the world’

• Recycled Runners
c/o Cool Running Sports Company
GPO Box 2473
Sydney, New South Wales 2001, Australia
Phone: +61-2-9456-1284
E-mail: kevin@recycledrunners.com.au
Web: http://www.recycledrunners.com.au/
Recycled to: needy runners (and others) in the Australia and Pacific region