THE HARD FACTS
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“The scientific evidence is unequivocal: climate change is a threat to human wellbeing and the health of the planet. Any further delay in concerted global action will miss a brief and rapidly closing window to secure a liveable future.”
- The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
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In 2019, 66.6 million pairs of shoes were manufactured every single day – adding up to a total of over 24.3 billion pairs annually.
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Sneakers are complex objects made of materials like plastic and rubber from fossil fuels, metal, cotton, foam, toxic glue, and leather. They are eating up Earth’s limited resources, creating intolerable levels of pollution and toxic waste.
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The evidence shows we must cut greenhouse gas emissions IN HALF by 2030, yet looking at sales targets, the sneaker industry has nothing but growth in mind – they are going in the completely opposite direction.
According to Statista, the sneaker market is expected to grow annually by 7.95% (CAGR 2022-2027)
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A typical pair of running shoes generates approximately 13.6 kilograms of CO₂ emissions.
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Despite Adidas’s Allbirds collaboration producing running shoes using 75% less CO2 - lower than 3.0 kilograms CO2e per pair – the big brands cannot be trusted on their eco-claims. Channel 4 recently found adidas misleading people about making shoes from ‘ocean plastic’ – only 20% of the upper is made from recycled plastic and none of it has been taken out of the ocean.
Channel 4 Dispatches The Truth About Nike & Adidas, May 2022
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And you can’t even trust the official reports of industry progress - because of a ridiculous climate loophole large brands are able to report their emissions are decreasing even when they are rising!
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Nor do the big brands score highly on being transparent with customers – there is no way to know just how bad your shoes are for the planet. In the Fashion Revolution Transparency Index, Adidas, Converse, Nike, and Reebok only score 51% - 60%.
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And when it comes to footwear being thrown away, experts estimate 90% of shoes are NOT recycled.
Foot Work, Chapter 7