Sustainability is a journey. One of transparency, openness, and commitment to making change and taking steps towards a more sustainable reality. And if we are being honest with you, our journey has just begun. So, while we’re working on defining what sustainability means to us, have a look below for our valued strategic brands’ definitions of what a sustainable product means to them. #daretochange with us today!

nike

Nike’s purpose is to unite the world through sport to create a healthy planet, active communities, and an equal playing field for all. Nike’s purpose work can be organized by impact areas, including employees, community impact, people working in the supply chain, energy & carbon, waste, water, and chemistry.  

Nike reports progress annually through our Nike Impact Report within a framework of Sustainability, Diversity & Inclusion, and Community Impact targets for 2020. Nike is currently in the process of setting 2025 targets. Nike is a member of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, a group of 250+ organizations committed to measuring and improving environmental sustainability impacts in the apparel and footwear industry. 

apparel

• cotton: As of 2020, 100% of the cotton Nike uses across their entire product line is certified organic, recycled, or Better Cotton sourced through the Better Cotton Initiative. Nike recycles more than 1.5 million pounds of cotton each year while caring for soil health and natural habitats, without fossil fuel-derived pesticides or synthetic fertilizers, and while respecting the rights of workers and farmers.
• polyester: Nike’s recycled polyester is made from plastic bottles which are cleaned, shredded into flakes, converted into pellets, and then spun into a high-quality yarn. In addition to reducing waste, recycled poly lowers carbon emissions by up to 30% compared to virgin poly and diverts an average of 1 billion plastic bottles annually from landfills and waterways.
• nylon: Some products are made with recycled nylon for durability that stands up to your most challenging sports conditions. By taking post-industrial nylon waste and blending it with other materials, Nike can develop recycled nylon yarns to create new peak-performance gear.
• move to zero apparel line: Move to Zero is Nike’s journey toward zero carbon and zero waste to help protect the future of sport. Nike Defines Move to Zero apparel as having at least 50% sustainable materials by fabric weight, excluding trims. Qualified Move to Zero styles must include all colorways for that style. Nike is committed to scaling sustainable materials across our apparel product lines. 

 footwear: 

• air: Since 2008, all Nike Air soles are composed of at least 50% recycled manufacturing waste. As of 2020, all of Nike’s Air MI facilities in North America are powered by 100% renewable wind energy. Nike re–uses more than 90% of the waste from materials used for their Air soles to make new, innovative cushioning systems. Light on your feet. Light on waste. 
•  flyknit: Nike Flyknit is a lightweight fabric precision-engineered with an average of 60% less waste than in traditional footwear upper manufacturing. Each shoe upper made from Flyknit contains 6-7 plastic bottles. 
•  flyleather: Flyleather looks, feels, and smells like natural leather, and is made by binding at least 50% recycled leather fibers with synthetic fibers using a water-powered process. This creates less waste and a lower impact on climate change compared to full-grain leather. 
• move to zero footwear: Move to Zero is Nike’s journey toward zero carbon and zero waste to help protect the future of sport. Nike’s Move to Zero footwear has at least 20% recycled content by weight. It also includes specific footwear that leverages lower impact innovations such as Flyleather, Flyknit, and Air. Nike is committed to scaling recycled materials and sustainable innovations across our product lines to reduce our environmental impact on the planet.  
• space hippie footwear: Space Hippie is Nike’s exploratory footwear collection that transforms scrap material from factory floors into a radical expression of circular design. Material choices, methods of making and packaging were all chosen with consideration for its environmental impact. Space Hippie uppers are created using what we call ‘Space Waste Yarn.’ These yarns are made from 100% recycled material — including recycled plastic water bottles, T-shirts, and yarn scraps. Combined with the other elements of the Space Hippie 02, we get an upper that is 90% recycled content by weight.  
• crater foam: The tooling of all Space Hippie shoes, created with ‘Crater Foam,’ is made with a blend of standard Nike foams and 15% Nike Grind Rubber. The reduction in virgin material gives a lower carbon footprint and the Nike Grind granules create a unique texture and color mix on every midsole. 

 

adidas

Adidas believes plastic today is a problem tomorrow. Adidas continues to address their overall carbon footprint, by shifting to using 100% recycled polyester in their products by 2024.   

Adidas aims to reduce Greenhouse gas emissions from both its own activities and those of its suppliers by 30% by 2030 when compared to 2017. Adidas knows this is bigger than sports, this is for our future.  

adidas sustainable product lines: 

• primegreen: Primegreen is a series of high–performance recycled polyester and other materials. Apparel garments made with Primegreen use a minimum of 40% recycled content and footwear Primegreen uppers contain a minimum of 50% recycled content.  
• primeblue: Primeblue is a high-performance yarn made with 50% Parley Ocean Plastic—upcycled plastic waste intercepted on shorelines and coastal areas, preventing it from polluting our oceans.  

 materials: 

• better cotton: Adidas cotton products support sustainable cotton farming. This is part of Adidas’ ambition to end plastic waste. 
• vegan: Some products from adidas are vegan. This means that for these products all materials used in them, including glues and colors, are free from animal ingredients.