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I must have a thing for innovative shoes or for recycled trash. I’m not sure which but here’s a topic that combines the two and involves the quickly growing eco-conscious company, Nike.

So here it is, Nike has a new basketball eco-shoe nicknamed Nike Trash Talk. The shoe is modeled after Steve Nash’s current shoe, the Nike Zoom BB II Low. It isn’t Nikes first eco-shoe but it is the latest.

What makes Nike Trash Talk so eco-friendly? The upper part of the shoe is pieced together from leather and synthetic leather waste from the factory floor using zig-zag stitching. The mid-sole of the shoe uses scrap-ground foam from factory production. The outsole of the shoe uses environmentally preferred rubber that reduces toxics and incorporates Nike Grind material from footwear outsole manufacturing waste.

The more I learn about Nike, the more I like Nike and their turn to eco-consciousness. First their Reuse-A-Shoe program, which allows consumers to mail in their old shoes for recycling, which Nike recycles into basketball courts, soccer turf and playgrounds, which are donated to communities around the world. Now these shoes are also available. I can’t wait to see what other eco-ideas Nike has up their sleeve.

Am I biased? Sure. In fact, a few months ago while shopping for new running shoes, I had a choice between two pairs, one of which was Nike. All things being equal in comfort and price I chose Nike because of the recycling efforts like, Reuse-A-Shoe and of course their packaging. The shoes in a recycled box and with recycled shoe inserts (used to keep the shapes of the shoes) helped me make the more eco-friendly choice. What I love about it best is that in a few months from now when the shoes are over worn, I can mail them in to the Reuse A-Shoe program to be recycled.

Soon their 2011 eco-pledge will bring about more environmentally friendly shoes. Then other shoes manufactures will follow suit. That’s my hope anyways. What do you think?
For more information on Nike, their eco-shoes and eco-ideas visit the Nike website here.

Via Trendhunter