{"id":3123,"date":"2026-01-15T13:46:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T13:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/2026\/01\/15\/recycling-mystery-how-to-recycle-your-tennis-shoes-2\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T13:46:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T13:46:09","slug":"recycling-mystery-how-to-recycle-your-tennis-shoes-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/2026\/01\/15\/recycling-mystery-how-to-recycle-your-tennis-shoes-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Recycling Mystery: How To Recycle Your Tennis Shoes"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"bsf_rt_marker\"><\/div>\n<p>You jog in them. Compete in them. Maybe even meet your friend for lunch in them. They add an extra bounce to your step and urge you to take the stairs instead of the elevator. When the last thing you want to do is wake up for that morning run, they are there for you.<\/p>\n<p>They have a special place in your closet and your heart. They are your tennis shoes, sneakers, jogging shoes, trainers, kicks. Whatever you call them, what happens once you\u2019ve loved them to death?<\/p>\n<p>Even though we get lots of life out of our shoes, Americans throw away at least <a href=\"https:\/\/nothingnew.com\/pages\/virtuous-circle-program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">300 million pairs of shoes annually<\/a>, according to the U.S. Department of Interior. In a landfill, it takes 30 to 40 years for shoes to decompose.<\/p>\n<p>There are two methods for keeping sneakers out of landfills: donation and recycling.<\/p>\n<h3>The Overseas Shoe Market<\/h3>\n<p>In addition to secondhand stores that accept shoes\u00a0\u2014 like Goodwill and Salvation Army \u2014 there are organizations specializing in shoe donation. Tennessee-based <a href=\"https:\/\/soles4souls.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Soles4Souls<\/a> has collected more than <a href=\"https:\/\/soles4souls.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023-Annual-Report_R2-1.pdf\">60 million pairs of shoes<\/a> since 2006 and distributed them to children in need internationally, as well as in the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>Soles4Souls accepts all types of shoes \u2014 as long as they are new or gently worn. As a 501(c)(3) organization, all donations are tax-deductible. There are <a href=\"https:\/\/soles4souls.org\/get-involved\/give-shoes\/dropoff-locator\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">drop-off locations<\/a> throughout the U.S., or you can donate them through a partnership with Zappos that includes <a href=\"https:\/\/www.zappos.com\/e\/soles-4-souls\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">free shipping<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>More options for gently used athletic shoes:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.oneworldrunning.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">One World Running<\/a> sends shoes in good condition to Africa, Central, and South America, as well as to shelters, churches, Native American reserves, and military recruits in the U.S.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.morefoundationgroup.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">More Foundation Group<\/a> also accepts gently used athletic shoes and sells them to help fund reforestation projects in Ghana.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/gotsneakers.com\/\">GotSneakers<\/a> provides free mail-in recycling, and has recovered more than 3.5 million shoes.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.terracycle.com\/en-US\/brigades\/asics\">ASICS has partnered with Terracycle<\/a> to provide free shoe recycling for its Nimbus Mirai product line.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.asics.com\/us\/en-us\/give-back-box\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Asics also partnered with Give Back Box<\/a> to accept gently used shoes and clothing. They also provide a pre-paid shipping label.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sneakers4good.com\/\">Sneakers4Good<\/a> offers a free running shoe mail-in service that will keep shoes out of landfills by recycling or donating usable pais to people in need.<a href=\"https:\/\/support.brooksrunning.com\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/360037955572-Recycle-your-old-shoes\">Brooks accepts used shoes<\/a> at its retail stores and partners with Soles4Souls on a mail-in program.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adidas.com\/us\/giveback\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Adidas has partnered with thredUP<\/a> to accept all brands of out-of-use shoes and clothing for resale or reuse. You&#8217;ll need to download their app to print the pre-paid shipping label.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Shoes Into Playgrounds and Sports Surfaces<\/h3>\n<p>If you\u2019ve worn those kicks into the ground, then recycling will be your best bet. Nike\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nike.com\/help\/a\/recycle-shoes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Reuse-A-Shoe<\/a> program has you covered.<\/p>\n<p>Since the early 1990s, the Reuse-A-Shoe program has collected worn-out sneakers and salvaged materials to make <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nikegrind.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nike Grind<\/a>, which is composed of nearly every part of an old running shoe: rubber from the outsole, foam from the midsole, and fabric from the upper. Nike Grind also contains pre-consumer material, including manufacturing scraps and shoes with manufacturing defects.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe recycled shoes are given new life,\u201d says Simon Lofts, director of Nike Inc. Sustainable Business &amp; Innovation. \u201cThey are reborn into sports and playground surfaces around the world.\u201d\u00a0These surfaces range from neighborhood playgrounds to professional athletic surfaces and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nikegrind.com\/made-with-nike-grind\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">more<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Bring up to 10 pairs of any brand of athletic shoe to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nike.com\/us\/en_us\/retail\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a Nike Store near you<\/a>. Not all locations will accept shoes, so please check with the location before you drop them off.<\/p>\n<p>If you don\u2019t live near a Nike store, you can mail athletic shoes to the following address (you pay the shipping):<\/p>\n<p>Nike Recycling Center<br \/> c\/o Reuse-A-Shoe<br \/> 199 Pearson Parkway<br \/> Lebanon, IN 46052<\/p>\n<p>Other sports shoe manufacturers also offer product takeback:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.asics.com\/us\/en-us\/give-back-box\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Asics has partnered with Give Back Box<\/a> to accept gently used shoes and clothing. They also provide a pre-paid shipping label.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The non-Nike recycling method for sneakers involves <a href=\"https:\/\/newatlas.com\/shoe-recycling-system\/29479\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">breaking them down into four materials<\/a>: leather, foam, rubber, and other. Leather gets bonded into new leather sheets, the foam can be recycled into carpet padding, rubber can be used for new shoes or surface material, and other material often becomes insulation.<\/p>\n<p>Your shoes may be leaving their trusty place by your side, but they&#8217;ve got plenty of life ahead of them.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Editor\u2019s Note:<\/strong> This article was originally published on July 12, 2010, and updated in March 2025. Got a question about how to recycle as specific product or type of material? <a href=\"mailto:mitchratcliffe@earth911.com\" data-google-interstitial=\"false\">Let us know<\/a>, and we\u2019ll do the research, sharing the results with the world. You can\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?cmd=_s-xclick&amp;hosted_button_id=88KDXQ3ZM2V28&amp;source=RecyclingMystery\">help support our work<\/a>, too!<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/earth911.com\/living-well-being\/how-to-recycle-your-unwearable-tennis-shoes\/\">Recycling Mystery: How To Recycle Your Tennis Shoes<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/earth911.com\">Earth911<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You jog in them. Compete in them. Maybe even meet your friend for lunch in&#8230;<br \/>\nThe post Recycling Mystery: How To Recycle Your Tennis Shoes appeared first on Earth911.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fashion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3123"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3123\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3123"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cncurc.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}