With coral reefs dying, ice shelves collapsing and the ozone layer continuously depleting, now more than ever it’s important to have an environmentally-conscious mindset.
The fashion industry contributes to global pollution more than any other industry. It produces more carbon than international flights and maritime shipping combined. In fact, the fashion industry produces 10% of all the world’s carbon emission. The fashion manufacturing industry is the second-largest consumer of the world’s water supply.
There is an equivalent of one garbage truck full of clothes burned or dumped into a landfill every second, with approximately 4 liters of water used to produce a single shoe and about 1.49 kg CO2 emitted per shoe. This alone is equivalent to emissions released when driving 8 km.
As a leader in the retail space and the top footwear company in the world, Nike is one of the few companies making an effort to leave a more environmentally-friendly footprint on the planet. For this reason, in the last few years, they’ve been putting out more sneakers that are focused on sustainability.
Nike Sustainability. Move to Zero.
Starting with its ‘Move to Zero’ initiative, Nike’s approach to sustainability has been a big one, as they aim to use recycled materials when manufacturing their sneakers.
Stepping in the right direction, they have taken up several measures of Corporate Social Responsibility and begun to source cleaner materials for their shoes.
The brand is focused on developing a business model that reduces its overall carbon footprint while also improving product innovation. With Nike making big moves toward sustainability, the entire supply chain has followed suit and begun to reposition itself. Sustainability in fashion has now become an incentive for strategic growth.
For example, in 2015, Nike used and converted 54 million pounds of factory scrap to use for high-quality material in their sneakers. Furthermore, the introduction of Nike Flyleather in 2017 was another leap toward sustainability, as the product used 50% recyclable leather fibers, 90% less water, and had 80% less carbon footprint. Nike has also introduced a water-free dyeing process called ColorDry.
Shop Nike Space Hippie Collection on Novelship
In early 2020, Nike went a step further in combining innovative design and sustainability by introducing the popular Space Hippie Collection. Adding a futuristic aesthetic to its design, the collection held four different sneakers that were made entirely from recycled material, setting the stage for other footwear brands to step up their sustainability game.
Shop Nike Air Jordan 1 High Zoom ‘Space Hippie’ on Novelship
Besides the Space Hippie collection, the Nike Air Jordan 1 High Zoom ‘Space Hippie’ is another example of Nike going out of its way to create a sneaker entirely from recycled materials. Constructed from recycled polyester, sitting on top of repurposed Nike foam, the sneaker also has recycled rubber with sustainable speckled design and stitched up Nike swoosh.
Nike Dunks Go Sustainable
In the last several years, the Nike SB Dunk has made a resurgence in popularity. First released in 2002 as a sneaker for the skater world, the Dunks were believed to have lived out their trendy run.
Yet, in time, with modern artists like Travis Scott releasing highly-popular collaborations with the brand, such as his Travis Scott x Nike SB Dunk Low PRM QS ‘Cactus Jack’ the classic silhouette has made their comeback in the digital era, proving its timelessness. While many iterations of the Nike Dunks have come out over the decades, it wasn’t until the last few years where the silhouette began to align with Nike’s move to zero for sustainable sneakers.
Shop Nike Dunk Low SP ‘Lemon Wash Community Garden’ at Novelship
The Nike Dunk Low SP ‘Lemon Wash Community Garden’ is proof of that. While the sneaker itself is not part of the SB line, the silhouette and design are undeniably similar. Made out of recycled canvas, the sneaker takes some lessons from the aforementioned Travis Scott ‘Cactus Jack’ design and shies away from the conventional mono-dual tone aesthetic. Full of various colours and patterns, Lemon Wash sports a blend of polka dot, floral and tie-dye design.
Shop Nike Dunk Low Pro SB ‘Crater’ on Novelship
The anticipated release of the Nike Dunk Low Pro SB ‘Crater’ is another Dunk release that acts on Nike’s Swoosh Sustainability movement. Made from recycled materials, the sneaker is made of gray textile and navy blue synthetic leather. With a stripped-down minimal look, the sneaker boasts coloured sprinkles across the shoe, signifying its sustainable approach. The grey NikeGrind midsoles are evidently made of recycled rubber. Much like the Sashiko Pack that came out earlier in the year, the Nike swoosh is minimal in design, displaying a simple stitched appearance.
Sustainability is Everything
Sustainability at Nike is not just a single-product approach. According to the company, environmental awareness is part of their business ethos, infused into every brand and product range within the company. Nike is set on creating a culture of sustainability moving forward.
To ensure that every sustainable sneaker they release meets global environment and sustainability standards, Nike has put their shoes through various sustainability indexes like the Material Sustainability Index, Apparel Sustainability Index, and Footwear Sustainability Index, which measures sustainability. This helps the brand identify their sneaker’s environmental profile and make smarter decisions in material selection, product planning, and development.
Kicking things off with their classic Dunks, Nike has proven that they are serious about sustainability, focusing on ensuring this influences the overall business process and decisions of the future. Enabling more of this approach across the company and industry as a whole is exactly what the world needs to unify and overcome the environmental challenges ahead.
