You jog them. Compete against them. Maybe meet your friend for lunch. They add extra bounce to your steps and encourage you to go up the stairs instead of the elevator. When the last thing you want to do is wake up for that morning run, they’re there for you.
They have a special place in your closet and in your heart. They are your tennis shoes, sneakers, jogging shoes, trainers, kicks. Whatever you call them, what happens if you like them until you die?
We have a lot of life out of our shoes, but at least Americans are abandoned 300 million pairs of shoes each yearAccording to the US Department of Interior. In a landfill, it takes 30-40 years for the shoes to break down.
There are two ways to keep sneakers out of landfills: donation and recycling.
Overseas shoe market
In addition to second-hand stores that accept shoes like Goodwill and the Salvation Army, there are organizations that specialize in donating shoes. Based in Tennessee Soles4Souls I’ve collected the above 60 million pairs of shoes Since 2006, they have distributed them to children in international trouble and in the US.
Soles4Souls accepts all kinds of shoes as long as they are new or gently worn. As a 501(c)(3) organization, all contributions are tax deductible. There is Drop-off location All over the US, or you can donate them through a partnership with Zappos, including them Free shipping.
Other options for gentle use of athletic shoes:
- One world runs Send shoes in good condition to shelters, churches, Native American Reserves and military recruits in Africa, Central, South America and the US
- More basic groups They also accept gentlely used athletic shoes and sell them to fund afforestation projects in Ghana.
- Gotsneakers We provided free email-in-recycling and collected over 3.5 million shoes.
- ASICS is affiliated with Terracycle We offer free shoe recycling to our Nimbus Mirai product line.
- Asics has also partnered with Give Back Box Accepts gently used shoes and clothing. We also offer prepaid shipping labels.
- Sneakers4Good We offer a free running shoe mail-in service that prevents shoes from landfilling by recycling or donating usable PAIs to those in need.Brooks accepts used shoes Retailers and partners use Soles4Souls in their Mail-In program.
- Adidas is affiliated with Thredup Accepts all brands of unusable shoes and clothing for resale or reuse. You will need to download the app and print the prepaid shipping label.
Shoes for playgrounds and sports surfaces
If you wear these kicks on the ground, recycling is your best bet. Nike Reuse – shoe The program covers it.
Since the early 1990s, the Reuse-A-shoe program has created by collecting worn sneakers and recovered materials. Nike Grindcomposed of almost every part of the old running shoes: rubber from the outsole, foam from the midsole, fabric at the top. Nike Grind also contains pre-consumption materials, such as manufacturing scraps and shoes with manufacturing defects.
“Recycled shoes are given a new life,” says Simon Lofts, director of Nike Inc. and director of Sustainable Business & Innovation. “They are transformed into surfaces of sports and playgrounds around the world.” These surfaces range from nearby playgrounds to professional athletic surfaces. more.
Up to 10 athletic shoe brands Nearest Nike Store. Not all locations accept shoes, so check the location before you drop them off.
If you do not live near a Nike Store, you can email your athletic shoes to the following address (paying shipping fees).
Nike Recycle Center
c/o reuse-a-shoe
199 Pearson Parkway
Lebanon, 46052
Other sports shoe manufacturers also offer takebacks of their products.
Non-NIKE recycling methods for sneakers include Decompose them into four materials: Leather, foam, rubber, etc. The leather is glued to new leather sheets, foam can be recycled into carpet padding, rubber can be used for new shoes and surface materials, and other materials can be insulation.
Your shoes may leave their trustworthy place by your side, but they have enough life before them.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on July 12, 2010 and updated in March 2025. Have a question about how to recycle it as a specific product or type of material? Let us know, and we do our research and share our results with the world. you can Help us support our workToo!
