Awareness is growing as to the extent to which we have polluted the oceans of the world, but there is a lot of work to be done.
Now Adidas has come up with a novel way of re-using some of the tons of plastic which is choking our waterways. The sports apparel company has manufactured a new running shoe made from recycled plastic, writes Brooks Hays for UPI.
Activists collect fishing nets to make running shoes
The latest design has not yet been named, but its upper is made completely from ocean waste, or more specifically yarns and filaments from illegal fishing nets.
Adidas collaborated with Sea Shepherd and Parley for the Oceans on the project. Activists on board the Sea Shepherd, an environmentalist ship, collected the nets as they tracked an illegal poaching vessel in the waters off the coast of West Africa.
Eric Liedtke, a member of the executive board at Adidas, said: “We are incredibly excited to join Parley for the Oceans as they bring the cause of the oceans to the attention of the United Nations. Adidas has long been a leader in sustainability, but this partnership allows us to tap into new areas and create innovative materials and products for our athletes.”
Other products are planned, and the idea is to raise awareness of the problem. Adidas hopes that the project will inspire long-term solutions.
Further plans for partnership
“At Parley for the Oceans, we want to establish the oceans as a fundamental part of the debate around climate change,” said Cyrill Gutsch, founder of the New York-based conservation group. “Our objective is to boost public awareness and to inspire new collaborations that can contribute to protect and preserve the oceans.”
“We are extremely proud that Adidas is joining us in this mission and is putting its creative force behind this partnership to show that it is possible to turn ocean plastic into something cool,” Gutsch added.
The shoe was unveiled at the United Nations headquarters in New York last week, where Adidas and Parley revealed future plans for their partnership.
Adidas also told attendees that it would end the use of plastic bags in its retail stores.
