The footwear industry, a multi-billion U.S. dollar market, accounts for 1.4% of global emissions. This percentage equates to 700 million tons of CO2 (Smith, 2023).
I care about the environment and I try to live a sustainable life. I don’t eat meat, I recycle and I try to get most of my clothes from second hand stores. The awareness of sustainable fashion is growing in our society, but what about shoes? I personally don’t know what to do with my worn out shoes? I just assume that it is not possible to recycle them, so I throw them in the garbage. Every time I do that I feel guilty.
Only 5% of shoes get recycled and the rest end up in landfills. Most shoes are made out of several different materials which makes them difficult to recycle. 23 billion pairs of shoes are made every year and 22 billion are thrown into landfill (Dennis, 2022). How can there be an end to the overconsumption of shoes? How can there be a change in consumer behavior? And how can the life of shoes be extended?
LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT
More than 60% of the emissions from the industry comes from the manufacturing and the raw material extraction (Quantis, 2023). Finding alternative and more sustainable materials that can be recycled could be ways of improving the industry.
A report from FDRA (Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America) takes a look at the inside examining the footwear industry’s progress toward sustainability. It is based on a survey of footwear professionals across the industry in America. They were asked what they thought was the biggest problem regarding sustainability in the industry. Many of the contestants meant that the biggest challenge was the lack of framework to follow. They said that they don’t work together as an industry to solve the problem. They talk a lot about sustainability, but there is no action and concrete examples on how the industry can become more sustainable.
APPROACHES
The two main approaches to this topic are to either focus on the industry or the consumer.
The industry – design for industry change
- Most shoes are not recyclable and it could therefore be interesting to look into different materials and their opportunities. Most shoe brands have one collection of sustainable shoes that are recyclable. Sustainability is trendy, and it is for that reason important to create a sustainable image, but why do they not make sustainability a higher priority?
- There is clearly a lack of framework in the industry. Creating a realistic framework that applies to the whole industry could be a way of making it easier for the companies to become more sustainable.
The consumer – design for behavior change
- The cobbler is an old profession and can in some ways seem like it is stuck in the past. However, by rebranding and modernizing the shoe repair business, it could become more trendy to have shoes repaired. This approach would extend the lifespan of shoes and reduce the number of new shoes purchased.
- An awareness campaign can inform people about the footprint of the footwear industry and encourage people to make more sustainable choices.
THE ROAD AHEAD
In the upcoming phase I intend to continue focusing on both the production of shoes and consumer behavior. I will look into:
- The different materials shoes are made of and see if there are any possibilities there
- Recyclable shoes. What makes them recyclable and why do they not make more of them?
- The shoe repair business. Are many people using this service? How can it be modernized? Rebranding?
- Consumer habits. Why do people buy shoes?
- Shoes and identity
I want to talk to a shoe repairer to get to know that business, but there might be a challenge to find someone that is willing to speak with me. I would also like to make a survey to get a better understanding of the consumer behaviors, but there might be a challenge to get enough responses to see any tendencies. Another challenge that I have already faced is finding the right articles online and finding the ones that are free.
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REFERENCES
- Smith, P. (n.d.). Global footwear market. Statista. (2023, August 31) https://www.statista.com/topics/4571/global-footwear-market/#editorsPicks
- Measuring fashion: Insights from the environmental impact of the global apparel and Footwear Industries. Quantis. (2023, September 27). https://quantis.com/report/measuring-fashion-report/
- Dennis, P. (2022, December 30). Shoe waste: How consumption became culture. Circular Online. https://www.circularonline.co.uk/features/circular-trainers-how-consumption-became-culture/
