SUSTAINABLE CHANGES IN THE SPORTS SHOE MARKET

We continue the second part of our sustainability and fashion series by examining sustainable designs in the sneaker market.

Fitness experts recommend runners replace their shoes every 500 to 800 km. This means that the average runner will buy and throw away two to four pairs of running shoes per year.

According to estimates, more than 200 million running shoes are thrown away every year.

This shows that sneakers have a great impact on environmental pollution.

An estimated 80 percent of all sneakers end up in landfills.

MIT's Material Systems, published by Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2013 Results of a study led by lab chief research scientist Randolph Kirchain and research scientist Elsa Olivetti< /a> revealed that the production of a pair of sneakers requires more than 360 processes and 65 separate parts consisting of various chemicals, dyes and toxic adhesives.

Researchers share that a large part of the production of sports shoes with so many steps and materials is produced in China and nearby developing countries, which provide their electrical energy with coal; They found that more than two-thirds of a running shoe's carbon impact can come from manufacturing processes, with a smaller percentage coming from sourcing or mining raw materials.

In the production of a pair of running shoes, 30 kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions are produced, which is equivalent to keeping a 100-watt light bulb on for a week.1 pair of sneakers = 30 kg of carbon emissions released into the atmosphereThis being the case, it becomes understandable that the sustainable textile studies we have read the most lately are about new generation sports shoes made of recyclable materials at different rates, which companies such as Adidas, Salomon, On Running will offer for sale in 2021.

-adidas' Futurecraft.Loop-Salomon's Index.01i-Like the Cyclon subscription system established by On Running ...

Adidas, a German Brandadidas< /strong> Futurecraft. Let's examine the loop.

With futurecraft.Loop, adidas aims to produce the same shoe by using materials from the transformation of the old shoe in the production of new shoes.

Adidas produced 200 prototypes for this project in April 2019 and collected the shoes they offered to users in 2020 after use. It announced that it will offer shoes using materials recycled from recycled shoes for sale in 2021.

Salomon, a French brandSalomon and Index.01 produced from 100% TPU. It incorporates materials obtained from recycling into the production of a ski boot.

Neither company has yet shared information on what percentage of the materials obtained from the recycling of these products are included in the recycling and what percentage are used in the second product. < span style="color: textColor0;">But whatever the rates, the studies look very promising for the future.

WWD' Sharing her views on circular sneaker designs with Cathrin Schaer from shoe industry futurist and Footwearology's director, Nicoline van Enter, on this subject comments. According to Nicole van Enter, these products and the designed systems are currently 'Circular' instead of ' networked economy' Expressing it as provides a more accurate expression.

Let's come to the Swiss Brand On Runninge

On Running has a different perspective. The company has taken Sustainability as a philosophy of life. It offers a life design that includes running to make our lives sustainable, not the product. In addition, more than 50% of the materials used in the production of the product used biological products and castor seeds. As can be understood from the material structure used, carbon emissions are very low in terms of production.

What is the Cyclon subscription system? How does it work?

- You subscribe to the system for $29.99 per month. (pre order)- You do not make any more payments until your shoes are delivered to you.- When they finish your shoes, you receive an update e-mail. If you still want your shoes, you confirm the update. After your approval, your shoes are sent to you and your monthly payments start when you receive your shoes.

- If you do not approve the update, your first payment of $29.99 will be refunded to your account.- The shoe has a lifespan of 6 to 9 months or 600 km. At the end of this lifetime, you send a notification via e-mail to the Cyclon system of which you are a member; They also send you your new shoes.

- You put your old shoes in the box your new shoes came in and send them back.

That's all.

You will pay for the shoes within a year according to their determined lifespan.

For $29.99 x12= $359.88, you will be served two pairs of shoes during the year.

When we consider that the main problem in cyclic production is retrieval

It seems certain that the subscription model designed by On Running will inspire many manufacturers in the coming years.My personal opinion: The system established by On Running will be one of the structures that will shape the future.

Going back to the research at the beginning of my article, all these sustainability studies carried out by companies on materials are really promising for the future of our world…

With all this, scientific research shows that production processes should change before materials, so that the effects of textile production on environmental pollution can be rapidly reduced, so that our children and grandchildren can cool off under the shade of a tree and enjoy the water they drink to their heart's content.Finally, I would like to end with a statement by Vikas Khanna from the University of Pittsburgh, in which he wants to draw our attention to the effects of production methods on carbon emissions.

"It is important to keep in mind that material replacement strategies alone may not be sufficient to reduce the environmental impact of products." says. “For example, switching to renewable material sources alone may not be sufficient for products with high production energy requirements.”My next article will be about newly designed sustainable products to reduce the waste rate in our long-haul flights, which we have not been able to do for a long time due to Covid-19...Wishing you to stay with love and health,Evrim BERRAK