Morrison Outdoors 

  Morrison Outdoors makes functional and warm baby sleeping bags.   The Little Mo 20° Down Baby Sleeping Bag was designed to help parents rest easier in colder temperatures, the 20° down-insulated sleep sacks provide the perfect sleep environment for little ones as young as 6 months old, up to 24 months old. It uses 800 fill power goose down insulation and weighs less than 9 ounces (245g).   The Little Mo 40° Synthetic Baby Sleeping Bag was designed for comfortable sleep in mild temperatures; it uses high-loft synthetic insulation and weighs just over 1 pound (460g).

QALO

  QALO silicone rings are made specifically for the active lifestyle providing a safe, comfortable alternative to the typical engagement and wedding ring bands. Each of their rings is constructed from high-quality silicone to reduce the possibility of finger or skin irritation drastically. The QALO family is committed to quality, athletics, love, and the outdoors.   Extremely durable and safe silicone rings designed for functionality, comfort, and style. Reduce finger injuries and prevent damage to your precious metal ring.        The rings come in a variety of colors and styles to appeal to just about anyone’s taste. It’s nice to be able to do bike mechanic work and not abuse your ring.   They now have additional silicone-based products, including dog tags, teething necklaces, Apple Watch bands, arm straps, etc.  

YETI

  The new YETI V Series Vacuum-Insulated Cooler combines two of YETI’s icons, the cold-holding power of their Rambler Drinkware and their iconic Tundra Cooler. The YETI V Series Stainless Steel Cooler is the result of their relentless dedication to innovation, taking their legendary insulation to the next level in a look that’s a classic nod to the past, but built with downright futuristic technology.     This technology and YETI’s craftwork comes at an $800 price point, ouch! It weighs 35 lbs and can hold 46  cans of beer (2:1 ice-to-can) or 65 Pounds of ice (only).      

GU Energy

  GU brought back their Cola Me-Happy Gel and has added the new Salted Lime Chews.   The Cola Gel has 40mg of caffeine and is naturally flavored.  The new Salted Lime Energy Chews have 125mg of sodium, 400mg of amino acids, and are caffeine-free. Recycling Program   There is nothing more deflating than seeing spent gel packets on the road or trail during a run or ride. GU encourages all athletes to stash their trash, and they are excited and proud to offer their community a way to reduce all of their impacts on the beautiful places we play. They have partnered with TerraCycle to do just that. TerraCycle is a highly-awarded, international upcycling and recycling company that collects difficult-to-recycle packaging and products and repurposes the material into affordable, innovative products. Their program accepts sports nutrition from ALL BRANDS!   Participating is completely free and very easy. There are no signup or participation fees, and we cover the shipping. Follow the steps below to TerraCycle your waste:   1.       Join the program by clicking here 2.      Collect approved performance nutrition packaging and fill up a box or bag. Your shipments must weigh over 2 lbs to receive the TerraCycle point donation. 3.      Download a free shipping label from your TerraCycle account. Click the “Get Shipping Label” under the “Send Your Waste” option in the navigation bar at the top of this page. 4.      Ship the box to TerraCycle by affixing the free shipping label and dropping it off at a UPS location.  

Cake

  Ösa+   The Ösa+ is an electric and modular utility motorcycle with off-road capabilities., that’s a working bench and power station on wheels.   It weighs 65 kg/143 lbs and comes with either a medium 12 kg/26 lbs or a large battery 17 kg/37 lbs. It has a top speed of 100 kmh/63 mph, and a range of 100 km/63 miles with the large battery, and 60 km/37 miles with the medium. It has 10kW of peak power, 42Nm on shaft torque (151Nm on the wheel), and takes approximately 3 hours to charge in a standard outlet. It features an external DC-AC inverter to support all needs for off-the-grid power supply, to use it to power tools, loudspeakers, lights, and other high power electronic equipment.   The 6061 aluminum frame has a dual crown upside-down 120 mm travel fork and 260 mm of rear suspension.

Headsweats

  TruckAir Hat    If you enjoy spending time outdoors, this ‘Bright Stripes’ Performance TruckAir hat is the perfect hat designed to keep you cool, comfortable, and shield you from the sun. This bright and colorful Headsweats TruckAir hat will provide you with a comfortable piece of performance headwear that is both durable and stylish. It is perfect for those who are looking for a custom hat they can wear every day or a performance hat they can wear while they run or workout. This Performance TruckAir hat is made of our Eventure woven fabric, giving you a lightweight and breathable hat that fits comfortably and dries quickly. This TruckAir also includes a moisture-wicking terry sweatband that absorbs sweat keeping it out of your eyes, a black undervisor to reduce glare, and snapback closure with ponytail opening. Go the distance and keep a cool head with this ‘Bright Stripes’ Performance TruckAir Hat!     Long Sleeve Performance Tee Shirt   The Headsweats Long Sleeve Performance Tee Shirt offers incredible comfort during a bike ride, and it’s inexpensive and made from repurposed plastic bottles. Whether you’re training, racing, recreating, or working out, this lightweight and a highly breathable long-sleeve jersey designed to fit an active lifestyle.   It’s made of 100% Polyester Pintec REPREVE fabric, a sustainable and recycled fabric, and this particular garment utilizes the equivalent of five plastic bottles. Repreve itself is only a polyester fiber, and not the material or the finished garment, so a fabric mill purchases the yarn from the manufacturer Unifi and then weaves it into a fabric. Turning recycled bottles and waste plastics into a sustainable piece of apparel offers innovative properties such as moisture-wicking, adaptive warming, and cooling, breathability, and more. Headsweats is proud to be going green with their Repreve tee shirts yet still provide you with superior performance apparel without sacrificing quality.   It comes in a Blue Fade or Blue Orange color scheme, XS to 3XL sizes, and retails for a mere $24.

Dear Fashionista: What's the most responsible way to dispose of shoes once they're worn past the point of no return? I don't want them to end up in a landfill, but I know I can't just put them out on the curb with my cardboard and glass for recycling.   Perhaps your soles look like Swiss cheese or your high heels are so chewed up you're telling people the dog got ahold of them. If it's time to retire your loved-to-death footwear and you're looking for responsible, sustainable ways to do so, there's good news and bad news: You have options, but none of them are perfect.   Of the 24.2 billion pairs of shoes manufactured globally each year, experts say that most of them end up in a landfill or incinerator, because there are simply too many shoes and not enough recycling solutions.   "When you are generating this much product, most of it is sent back to landfill," says Dr. Sahadat Hossain, the director of the Solid Waste Institute for Sustainability at the University of Texas at Arlington.   Still, you're right to resist the urge to toss shoes in the garbage. Once they're kicking back in the dump, shoes can leach plasticizers, heavy metals and other toxic chemicals, says Hossain. They also take a literal eternity to break down. While natural materials decompose quickly (cotton takes about six months while leather requires 20 to 40 years), most of our shoes contain plastic-based components that last much, much longer.   "PVC and EVA are around 35% of all shoe materials, globally," explains Hossain. "They can take as much as 1,000 years to decompose." Of course, this is all theoretical, he adds. In modern landfills, which are lined in plastic and then sealed shut, our shoes sit intact "as long as you can imagine."  

WHEN IN DOUBT, DONATE

  The simplest advice is to donate used shoes.   "Worn out to you doesn't necessarily mean worn out to someone else," says Tiffany Fuller, a deputy director of Reuse, Special Waste and Apartment Programs at the New York City Department of Sanitation.   In fact, according to the American Apparel and Footwear Association, we buy more than seven pairs of shoe per year, the equivalent of one new pair every seven weeks. Purchasing at this clip means that most of our shoes never truly get the chance to wear out. And reusing is better for the environment than recycling.   By donating, shoes will likely find their way to emerging nations (charities sell about 25% of what we donate locally and export the rest), some of which boast a thriving market for worn and even refurbished footwear.   "Some of them get washed and cleaned and, if need be, the heel is replaced," explains Steven Bethell, founder of Bank & Vogue, a global used clothing broker. In Guatemala, there's a sneaker cleaning plant, says Bethell, while in Pakistan men's dress shoes get resoled in large recycling facilities. If you're wondering if your shoes are fit to be reworn, Bethell's advice echoes Fuller's: "When in doubt, donate."   There's one major caveat with donating: Not all footwear will find a new home and developing countries are filled to the brim with our old stuff.   "There is greater supply than there is demand," says Liz Ricketts, co-founder of the OR Foundation, a non-profit that researches the secondhand industry in Ghana. In Ghana, she says, as much as 40% of clothing imported from the West is directly landfilled or burned. She suspects the percentage is even higher with footwear.   Still, Bethell says there are ways to boost the chances that your shoes will make the cut. Sneakers (both men's and women's), soccer shoes and men's dress shoes are most in demand in the international secondhand trade and are good options to donate. Fashionable women's shoes, on the other hand — especially high heels — are a "dime a dozen" and are a better option to repair and resell at home.        

IF THEY CAN'T BE SAVED, SEE IF THEY CAN GET NEW LIFE IN ANOTHER FORM

  If your shoes are truly beat and you can't fathom another person loving them — a good rule of thumb is that if the uppers are still in good condition, the shoe can have a second life — toss them into a recycling bin instead of the trash. Footwear recycling is not nearly as common as clothes recycling (apparel can be shredded and turned into new fibers or insulation, for example), because shoes are more complex. However, there are a handful of programs attempting it. And the options are expected to grow in the next few years.   Nike's Reuse a Shoe program, running since 1993, recycles worn out sneakers by any brand. They've processed 33 million pairs of shoes to date. After separating the shoes into leather, foam, plastic and rubber, the pieces are ground down and reused as surfacing for playgrounds, track tops, carpet padding and even new Nike gear, like maybe the soles of your Air Jordans. You can get in on the action by dropping your shoes at participating Nike and Converse Factory stores (here's a list of them).   You can also take beat-up shoes by any brand to Columbia stores and participating Asics stores (here's a list). These in-store take back programs are run by I:CO, a global waste handler whose parent company opened the world's first industrial-scale shoe recycling facility in 2018, which is working to find solutions for any kind of shoe waste, according to a company rep via email. Recently I:CO partnered with Adidas to turn bits of rubber from running shoes into rugs, for example.   Another option is to organize a shoe drive and send what you collect to Terracycle, a New Jersey-based recycler that finds buyers for leather shoe bits that can to be turned into flooring and furniture, while plastic becomes containers and soundproofing materials, among other uses, says Ernel Simpson, VP of research and development. But you'll have to pay for it. Collection boxes start at $109, making it a better option for offices, apartment buildings or schools.   Fortunately, footwear recycling options should expand in the near future.   "We are looking at shoe to shoe to recycling. Conceptually it's a new way of looking at things," explains Dharan Kirupanathan, technology lead behind Adidas's Futurecraft.Loop, an allegedly "infinitely recyclable" running shoe made of a single material that's currently in its pilot phase. And I:CO is planning to expand its footwear recycling options to more stores and brands in 2020.  

THE BEST SOLUTION OF ALL? KEEP THEM KICKING

  Before you act on any of the above, take a second look at the shoes in question. Chances are that your shoes aren't actually on death's door and could be brought back to life. In fact, there's almost no such thing as a worn-out shoe in the hands of a good cobbler.   "We can fix everything," says Jair Antonio Hernandez, owner of J&C Shoe Repair in Brooklyn, who has 48 years of experience and happens to be my personal cobbler. Many cobblers will take on unusual repairs, like replacing the cork on Birkenstocks, shampooing and reconditioning Uggs and rejuvenating your sneakers, too.   "We can do full resoles on sneakers, new heels and change the color," says Hernandez. Repairing truly worn-out shoes is more expensive, he adds, so next time, don't wait so long.   If you don't have shoe repair nearby, try an online shoe repair service, like My Shoe Hospital, NuShoe or Cobbler Concierge. Jersey-based SoleFresh has a mail-in option for sneakers. If you've bought a pair of high-end shoes (like Red Wing), check if the company provides in-house repairs.   You can also try your hand at some DIY shoe recovery at home. Shoe adhesives like Shoe-Fix, Barge and Shoe Goo are cheap and effective and can be used to plug holes in those paper-thin soles, reattach a flopping sole and — my favorite trick — build up a worn-down heel so you're not walking at a slant.  

THE FUTURE OF FOOTWEAR

  Luckily, the shoe industry is working on new ways to help curb this cycle of waste — and make it simpler to part with shoes without all the guilt. From upstarts like Veja and Everlane to industry stalwarts like Adidas, Nike, New Balance, Converse and Saucony, more footwear companies are moving towards non-toxic, biodegradable and recycled components. It's also easier than ever to give a pair of shoes a second life by listing them on resale platforms like TheRealReal, Depop and ThredUp or on sneaker trading platforms like Sole Supremacy, StockX and Fight Club.   At the end of the day, there's no magic bullet solution to getting rid of old shoes. Like everything else to do with sustainability, it's complicated and requires tradeoffs. And even recycling innovations can't replace the time-tested advice to buy the best quality shoes you can afford (leather still lasts the longest and is easiest to repair, says Hernandez) and to care for each pair as long as possible. Once you're past that point? It's worth remembering that old shoes also make great flower pots.   Got a sustainability question of your own? Submit it with "Ask a Sustainability Expert" in the subject line to tips@fashionista.com and we'll see if we can help answer it.

Even for fashion and beauty lovers who think sustainability is important, wading through all the sometimes-conflicting information about it can be tricky. To combat the confusion, we're asking scientists, researchers and other authorities to answer all your most pressing questions in our column Ask a Sustainability Expert.   Dear Fashionista: What's the most responsible way to dispose of shoes once they're worn past the point of no return? I don't want them to end up in a landfill, but I know I can't just put them out on the curb with my cardboard and glass for recycling.   Perhaps your soles look like Swiss cheese or your high heels are so chewed up you're telling people the dog got ahold of them. If it's time to retire your loved-to-death footwear and you're looking for responsible, sustainable ways to do so, there's good news and bad news: You have options, but none of them are perfect.   Of the 24.2 billion pairs of shoes manufactured globally each year, experts say that most of them end up in a landfill or incinerator, because there are simply too many shoes and not enough recycling solutions.   "When you are generating this much product, most of it is sent back to landfill," says Dr. Sahadat Hossain, the director of the Solid Waste Institute for Sustainability at the University of Texas at Arlington.   Still, you're right to resist the urge to toss shoes in the garbage. Once they're kicking back in the dump, shoes can leach plasticizers, heavy metals and other toxic chemicals, says Hossain. They also take a literal eternity to break down. While natural materials decompose quickly (cotton takes about six months while leather requires 20 to 40 years), most of our shoes contain plastic-based components that last much, much longer.   "PVC and EVA are around 35% of all shoe materials, globally," explains Hossain. "They can take as much as 1,000 years to decompose." Of course, this is all theoretical, he adds. In modern landfills, which are lined in plastic and then sealed shut, our shoes sit intact "as long as you can imagine."  

WHEN IN DOUBT, DONATE

  The simplest advice is to donate used shoes.   "Worn out to you doesn't necessarily mean worn out to someone else," says Tiffany Fuller, a deputy director of Reuse, Special Waste and Apartment Programs at the New York City Department of Sanitation.   In fact, according to the American Apparel and Footwear Association, we buy more than seven pairs of shoe per year, the equivalent of one new pair every seven weeks. Purchasing at this clip means that most of our shoes never truly get the chance to wear out. And reusing is better for the environment than recycling.   By donating, shoes will likely find their way to emerging nations (charities sell about 25% of what we donate locally and export the rest), some of which boast a thriving market for worn and even refurbished footwear.   "Some of them get washed and cleaned and, if need be, the heel is replaced," explains Steven Bethell, founder of Bank & Vogue, a global used clothing broker. In Guatemala, there's a sneaker cleaning plant, says Bethell, while in Pakistan men's dress shoes get resoled in large recycling facilities. If you're wondering if your shoes are fit to be reworn, Bethell's advice echoes Fuller's: "When in doubt, donate."   There's one major caveat with donating: Not all footwear will find a new home and developing countries are filled to the brim with our old stuff.   "There is greater supply than there is demand," says Liz Ricketts, co-founder of the OR Foundation, a non-profit that researches the secondhand industry in Ghana. In Ghana, she says, as much as 40% of clothing imported from the West is directly landfilled or burned. She suspects the percentage is even higher with footwear.   Still, Bethell says there are ways to boost the chances that your shoes will make the cut. Sneakers (both men's and women's), soccer shoes and men's dress shoes are most in demand in the international secondhand trade and are good options to donate. Fashionable women's shoes, on the other hand — especially high heels — are a "dime a dozen" and are a better option to repair and resell at home.      

IF THEY CAN'T BE SAVED, SEE IF THEY CAN GET NEW LIFE IN ANOTHER FORM

  If your shoes are truly beat and you can't fathom another person loving them — a good rule of thumb is that if the uppers are still in good condition, the shoe can have a second life — toss them into a recycling bin instead of the trash. Footwear recycling is not nearly as common as clothes recycling (apparel can be shredded and turned into new fibers or insulation, for example), because shoes are more complex. However, there are a handful of programs attempting it. And the options are expected to grow in the next few years.   Nike's Reuse a Shoe program, running since 1993, recycles worn out sneakers by any brand. They've processed 33 million pairs of shoes to date. After separating the shoes into leather, foam, plastic and rubber, the pieces are ground down and reused as surfacing for playgrounds, track tops, carpet padding and even new Nike gear, like maybe the soles of your Air Jordans. You can get in on the action by dropping your shoes at participating Nike and Converse Factory stores (here's a list of them).   You can also take beat-up shoes by any brand to Columbia stores and participating Asics stores (here's a list). These in-store take back programs are run by I:CO, a global waste handler whose parent company opened the world's first industrial-scale shoe recycling facility in 2018, which is working to find solutions for any kind of shoe waste, according to a company rep via email. Recently I:CO partnered with Adidas to turn bits of rubber from running shoes into rugs, for example.   Another option is to organize a shoe drive and send what you collect to Terracycle, a New Jersey-based recycler that finds buyers for leather shoe bits that can to be turned into flooring and furniture, while plastic becomes containers and soundproofing materials, among other uses, says Ernel Simpson, VP of research and development. But you'll have to pay for it. Collection boxes start at $109, making it a better option for offices, apartment buildings or schools.   Fortunately, footwear recycling options should expand in the near future.   "We are looking at shoe to shoe to recycling. Conceptually it's a new way of looking at things," explains Dharan Kirupanathan, technology lead behind Adidas's Futurecraft.Loop, an allegedly "infinitely recyclable" running shoe made of a single material that's currently in its pilot phase. And I:CO is planning to expand its footwear recycling options to more stores and brands in 2020.  

THE BEST SOLUTION OF ALL? KEEP THEM KICKING

  Before you act on any of the above, take a second look at the shoes in question. Chances are that your shoes aren't actually on death's door and could be brought back to life. In fact, there's almost no such thing as a worn-out shoe in the hands of a good cobbler.   "We can fix everything," says Jair Antonio Hernandez, owner of J&C Shoe Repair in Brooklyn, who has 48 years of experience and happens to be my personal cobbler. Many cobblers will take on unusual repairs, like replacing the cork on Birkenstocks, shampooing and reconditioning Uggs and rejuvenating your sneakers, too.   "We can do full resoles on sneakers, new heels and change the color," says Hernandez. Repairing truly worn-out shoes is more expensive, he adds, so next time, don't wait so long.   If you don't have shoe repair nearby, try an online shoe repair service, like My Shoe Hospital, NuShoe or Cobbler Concierge. Jersey-based SoleFresh has a mail-in option for sneakers. If you've bought a pair of high-end shoes (like Red Wing), check if the company provides in-house repairs.   You can also try your hand at some DIY shoe recovery at home. Shoe adhesives like Shoe-Fix, Barge and Shoe Goo are cheap and effective and can be used to plug holes in those paper-thin soles, reattach a flopping sole and — my favorite trick — build up a worn-down heel so you're not walking at a slant.  

THE FUTURE OF FOOTWEAR

  Luckily, the shoe industry is working on new ways to help curb this cycle of waste — and make it simpler to part with shoes without all the guilt. From upstarts like Veja and Everlane to industry stalwarts like Adidas, Nike, New Balance, Converse and Saucony, more footwear companies are moving towards non-toxic, biodegradable and recycled components. It's also easier than ever to give a pair of shoes a second life by listing them on resale platforms like TheRealReal, Depop and ThredUp or on sneaker trading platforms like Sole Supremacy, StockX and Fight Club.   At the end of the day, there's no magic bullet solution to getting rid of old shoes. Like everything else to do with sustainability, it's complicated and requires tradeoffs. And even recycling innovations can't replace the time-tested advice to buy the best quality shoes you can afford (leather still lasts the longest and is easiest to repair, says Hernandez) and to care for each pair as long as possible. Once you're past that point? It's worth remembering that old shoes also make great flower pots.

Dear Fashionista: What's the most responsible way to dispose of shoes once they're worn past the point of no return? I don't want them to end up in a landfill, but I know I can't just put them out on the curb with my cardboard and glass for recycling.   Perhaps your soles look like Swiss cheese or your high heels are so chewed up you're telling people the dog got ahold of them. If it's time to retire your loved-to-death footwear and you're looking for responsible, sustainable ways to do so, there's good news and bad news: You have options, but none of them are perfect.   Of the 24.2 billion pairs of shoes manufactured globally each year, experts say that most of them end up in a landfill or incinerator, because there are simply too many shoes and not enough recycling solutions.   "When you are generating this much product, most of it is sent back to landfill," says Dr. Sahadat Hossain, the director of the Solid Waste Institute for Sustainability at the University of Texas at Arlington.   Still, you're right to resist the urge to toss shoes in the garbage. Once they're kicking back in the dump, shoes can leach plasticizers, heavy metals and other toxic chemicals, says Hossain. They also take a literal eternity to break down. While natural materials decompose quickly (cotton takes about six months while leather requires 20 to 40 years), most of our shoes contain plastic-based components that last much, much longer.   "PVC and EVA are around 35% of all shoe materials, globally," explains Hossain. "They can take as much as 1,000 years to decompose." Of course, this is all theoretical, he adds. In modern landfills, which are lined in plastic and then sealed shut, our shoes sit intact "as long as you can imagine."  

WHEN IN DOUBT, DONATE

  The simplest advice is to donate used shoes.   "Worn out to you doesn't necessarily mean worn out to someone else," says Tiffany Fuller, a deputy director of Reuse, Special Waste and Apartment Programs at the New York City Department of Sanitation.   In fact, according to the American Apparel and Footwear Association, we buy more than seven pairs of shoe per year, the equivalent of one new pair every seven weeks. Purchasing at this clip means that most of our shoes never truly get the chance to wear out. And reusing is better for the environment than recycling.   By donating, shoes will likely find their way to emerging nations (charities sell about 25% of what we donate locally and export the rest), some of which boast a thriving market for worn and even refurbished footwear.   "Some of them get washed and cleaned and, if need be, the heel is replaced," explains Steven Bethell, founder of Bank & Vogue, a global used clothing broker. In Guatemala, there's a sneaker cleaning plant, says Bethell, while in Pakistan men's dress shoes get resoled in large recycling facilities. If you're wondering if your shoes are fit to be reworn, Bethell's advice echoes Fuller's: "When in doubt, donate."   There's one major caveat with donating: Not all footwear will find a new home and developing countries are filled to the brim with our old stuff.   "There is greater supply than there is demand," says Liz Ricketts, co-founder of the OR Foundation, a non-profit that researches the secondhand industry in Ghana. In Ghana, she says, as much as 40% of clothing imported from the West is directly landfilled or burned. She suspects the percentage is even higher with footwear.   Still, Bethell says there are ways to boost the chances that your shoes will make the cut. Sneakers (both men's and women's), soccer shoes and men's dress shoes are most in demand in the international secondhand trade and are good options to donate. Fashionable women's shoes, on the other hand — especially high heels — are a "dime a dozen" and are a better option to repair and resell at home.        

IF THEY CAN'T BE SAVED, SEE IF THEY CAN GET NEW LIFE IN ANOTHER FORM

  If your shoes are truly beat and you can't fathom another person loving them — a good rule of thumb is that if the uppers are still in good condition, the shoe can have a second life — toss them into a recycling bin instead of the trash. Footwear recycling is not nearly as common as clothes recycling (apparel can be shredded and turned into new fibers or insulation, for example), because shoes are more complex. However, there are a handful of programs attempting it. And the options are expected to grow in the next few years.   Nike's Reuse a Shoe program, running since 1993, recycles worn out sneakers by any brand. They've processed 33 million pairs of shoes to date. After separating the shoes into leather, foam, plastic and rubber, the pieces are ground down and reused as surfacing for playgrounds, track tops, carpet padding and even new Nike gear, like maybe the soles of your Air Jordans. You can get in on the action by dropping your shoes at participating Nike and Converse Factory stores (here's a list of them).   You can also take beat-up shoes by any brand to Columbia stores and participating Asics stores (here's a list). These in-store take back programs are run by I:CO, a global waste handler whose parent company opened the world's first industrial-scale shoe recycling facility in 2018, which is working to find solutions for any kind of shoe waste, according to a company rep via email. Recently I:CO partnered with Adidas to turn bits of rubber from running shoes into rugs, for example.   Another option is to organize a shoe drive and send what you collect to Terracycle, a New Jersey-based recycler that finds buyers for leather shoe bits that can to be turned into flooring and furniture, while plastic becomes containers and soundproofing materials, among other uses, says Ernel Simpson, VP of research and development. But you'll have to pay for it. Collection boxes start at $109, making it a better option for offices, apartment buildings or schools.   Fortunately, footwear recycling options should expand in the near future.   "We are looking at shoe to shoe to recycling. Conceptually it's a new way of looking at things," explains Dharan Kirupanathan, technology lead behind Adidas's Futurecraft.Loop, an allegedly "infinitely recyclable" running shoe made of a single material that's currently in its pilot phase. And I:CO is planning to expand its footwear recycling options to more stores and brands in 2020.  

THE BEST SOLUTION OF ALL? KEEP THEM KICKING

  Before you act on any of the above, take a second look at the shoes in question. Chances are that your shoes aren't actually on death's door and could be brought back to life. In fact, there's almost no such thing as a worn-out shoe in the hands of a good cobbler.   "We can fix everything," says Jair Antonio Hernandez, owner of J&C Shoe Repair in Brooklyn, who has 48 years of experience and happens to be my personal cobbler. Many cobblers will take on unusual repairs, like replacing the cork on Birkenstocks, shampooing and reconditioning Uggs and rejuvenating your sneakers, too.   "We can do full resoles on sneakers, new heels and change the color," says Hernandez. Repairing truly worn-out shoes is more expensive, he adds, so next time, don't wait so long.   If you don't have shoe repair nearby, try an online shoe repair service, like My Shoe Hospital, NuShoe or Cobbler Concierge. Jersey-based SoleFresh has a mail-in option for sneakers. If you've bought a pair of high-end shoes (like Red Wing), check if the company provides in-house repairs.   You can also try your hand at some DIY shoe recovery at home. Shoe adhesives like Shoe-Fix, Barge and Shoe Goo are cheap and effective and can be used to plug holes in those paper-thin soles, reattach a flopping sole and — my favorite trick — build up a worn-down heel so you're not walking at a slant.  

THE FUTURE OF FOOTWEAR

  Luckily, the shoe industry is working on new ways to help curb this cycle of waste — and make it simpler to part with shoes without all the guilt. From upstarts like Veja and Everlane to industry stalwarts like Adidas, Nike, New Balance, Converse and Saucony, more footwear companies are moving towards non-toxic, biodegradable and recycled components. It's also easier than ever to give a pair of shoes a second life by listing them on resale platforms like TheRealReal, Depop and ThredUp or on sneaker trading platforms like Sole Supremacy, StockX and Fight Club.   At the end of the day, there's no magic bullet solution to getting rid of old shoes. Like everything else to do with sustainability, it's complicated and requires tradeoffs. And even recycling innovations can't replace the time-tested advice to buy the best quality shoes you can afford (leather still lasts the longest and is easiest to repair, says Hernandez) and to care for each pair as long as possible. Once you're past that point? It's worth remembering that old shoes also make great flower pots.   Got a sustainability question of your own? Submit it with "Ask a Sustainability Expert" in the subject line to tips@fashionista.com and we'll see if we can help answer it.

Teton Valley Community Recycling regrets to inform recyclers who take advantage of our specialty recycling collections that one of our most popular TerraCycle recycling collections, the Clif Bar Foil Energy Bar Wrapper Recycling Program, will be closing nationwide at the end of February.   Over the past three years, TVCR, in partnership with Grand Targhee Resort has collected thousands of foil bar wrappers from community members which we send in for proper recycling. This particular TerraCycle program for “hard to recycle” waste was fully funded by CLIF Bar. The company not only paid for the processing and recycling of the material, but also shipping via UPS from our community. CLIF has decided to focus its efforts of developing fully compostable or recyclable packaging for all of their products by 2025 – no small task. We appreciate CLIF stepping up as a role model to other businesses to take responsibility for the packaging they produce. We hope more companies do the right thing and come up with better solutions for the packaging waste.   We will be replacing this collection with drawers to collect the tabs from aluminum cans (soda pop or beer tabs) to donate to the Ronald McDonald House fundraiser in Salt Lake City to help house families with children undergoing cancer treatments. This program has raised thousands of dollars already since 1997 and your old aluminum pop tabs can help.   No – Foil Energy Bar Wrappers. Yes – aluminum can tabs   Recycling opportunities are constantly fluctuating and we do our best to research and find worthwhile diversion programs that work for Teton Valley. We are sad to see this program end and we truly appreciate all of the diligent recyclers in our community who have brought us clean, sorted items to ship to the recycler. Thanks for participating. We will continue looking for package recycling options that are viable for our community and keep you updated. Follow TetonRecycling on Instagram, Facebook, or subscribe to our newsletter for regular updates. And don’t hesitate to email us with any questions or comments about waste and recycling in Teton County at tetonrecycling@gmail.com. The TVCR Foil Bar Wrapper Collection will officially be shut down on Feb. 20. Please bring all of your accumulated bar wrappers to put in the drawers at the Geo Center or at General Laundry in Victor no later than February 20. After that, all bar wrappers and foil packaging must go to the landfill, so please do not bring any more to our collection sites.

You’ve unwrapped them every time you’ve eaten a Clif Bar or other Clif products. The program was a partnership between Clif and TerraCycle. Globally, the program will end February 29 as Clif works to develop more sustainable packaging for its products.   After February 21, the collection bin at the Recycling Center will be removed. Until more is known about Clif Bar’s sustainable packaging, CLIF wrappers should be thrown in the trash.

In 2020, sustainable beauty isn't just a trend: It's a full-on movement. And while safe, clean formulas and ethical business practices are as important as ever, when it comes to packaging, it's what's on the outside that counts, too.   We've talked about going plastic-free and have shared our know-how when it comes to recycling your empties, but what about products that break the bottle cycle altogether? "Currently it's a battle between sustainability and the most effective packaging for the product, and price," Follain founder and CEO Tara Foley tells Refinery29. "Face serums and moisturizers are a great example: The best packaging to protect the formula is an airless pump, but that format is more difficult to recycle than a jar." The solve — investing in ways to responsibly dispose of hard-to-recycle items through brands like TerraCycle, who has partnered with Follain since the beginning.   Presenting, the very best beauty products from body wash to lipstick to liquid eyeliner that are helping the green cause by reducing waste — and looking good doing it.   At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team.                                            

Every one of our lifestyle choices has a lasting impact on the environment—for better or for worse. Collectively, our decisions are significant and can help steer our relationship with the planet in a more sustainable direction. Choosing refillable product packaging and recycling empties in stores or through programs like Terracycle's Loop are just some of the ways we can make our beauty routines more sustainable, but even the steps we take to care for and style our hair can have a positive influence. To explain more, we had Selena Gomez's hairstylist, Marissa Marino, give us tips to make our hair routine more environmentally-friendly (without sacrificing style). "More than 95% of water usage occurs while you wash your hair, and it all goes down the drain," says Marino. She adds, "There are a lot of clean beauty brands out there, but few who are making an impact in minimizing water waste." This is why she's partnered with WATERL<SS, a brand that focuses on helping to reduce water usage. Below, Marino walks us through seven ways to conserve water while styling your hair. Train your hair Obviously, one of the most effective ways to conserve water is to reduce how much much you wash it. "You can extend the time between wash days, which will reduce the time you spend in the shower and ultimately conserve more water," suggests Marino. The more often you give your hair a break between washes, the more it will adjust to producing less oil. "People with oily hair tend to wash their hair every day," Marino says. "However, washing your hair with shampoo and water daily actually sends a signal to your scalp to produce more oil—leaving you in a vicious cycle." Embrace second-day (or third-day) hair Extending time between washes isn't just better for the environment and your health, but it can actually improve the look of your hair. "For those with curly textures, day two, three, or even five can be the best hair days," explains Marino. "It's nice with your natural oils kick in because it can add great texture." Turn off the faucet while lathering your hair "If you can't reduce your wash days, a simple solution is to turn off the faucet when applying shampoo or conditioner," advises Marino. "You can also fill a small container of water to rinse your hair—this will give you more control on how much goes down the drain." Use dry shampoo right after washing According to Marino, it can be helpful to use dry shampoo right after washing. "Using a dry shampoo like WATERL<SS's No Residue or Foam right after washing your hair will create an instant barrier. It helps repels dirt and grease even before it starts to accumulate," she says. "Plus," she says, "It creates the best texture at the root for the perfect messy ponytail. Don't be shy with the right dry shampoo "There are a lot of myths about dry shampoo," notes Marino. She clarifies that all of it depends on the formula. WATERL<SS No Residue Dry Shampoo leaves no residue," she explains, "and it's buildable throughout the day. It keeps your hair feeling clean and refreshed without the white powder effect we often experience with other dry shampoos." Listen to your hair Many of us can end up washing our hair in the shower out of habit, but this probably isn't what your hair really needs. Marino reminds us that everyone's hair is unique and diverse, so a customized approach is most effective. "Your hair will ultimately tell you when it needs to be washed," she replies when I ask how long someone can go without washing their hair and how many days in a row it's safe to continue applying product onto unwashed hair. "If you're using product to extend your days between washes, I recommend keeping an eye on any scalp irritation—your body is really good at telling you when it needs a change. Use a timer when you shower Marino's final tip is to use a timer on your phone to limit your time in the shower. "An average shower in America is around eight minutes long and uses over 17.2 gallons of water—that's 2.1 gallons a minute!" reveals Marino. "Limiting yourself to two to three minutes can save over 13 gallons of water."

While climate change may be difficult to visualize on a day-to-day basis, Ed Hawkins, a climate scientist for the National Centre for Atmospheric Science, made it easy by releasing a shocking image that visually demonstrated in colored stripes the rising temperatures of the planet. It was this simple, yet powerful, image that inspired Romain Gaillard, founder and CEO of clean beauty retailer the Detox Market, to launch the Earth CPR Initiative.   “When I came across the #ShowYourStripes campaign—a simple, fact-based, visual representation of the global rise in temperature over the past 120 years—I was stunned,” says Gaillard in a statement on the Detox Market website. “Comparing where my parents were born on the chart to where my birth year fell was eye-opening enough, but when I placed my kids on the dark red stripes? I realized things needed to change, and soon.”   As part of the initiative, the company is introducing the image as an installation in its New York, Toronto, and Los Angeles locations. The retailer is also instituting recycling and bringing in TerraCycle, a company that collects hard-to-recycle consumer waste and finds ways to turn it into raw materials, to all its stores.   Additionally, the brand has set a goal of planting 500,000 trees in 2020 and at least 2.5 million trees by 2025 in the hopes of becoming carbon negative. The Detox Market is engaging its customer base in the process by promising to plant a tree for every product sold from its in-house brand, Detox Mode, and its Sustainability Collection, including the Sustainability Set, which consists of a reusable bag, a reusable silicone sandwich bag, and reusable bamboo straws. The initiative includes a customer-based social media campaign as well. The brand has promised to plant a tree whenever someone posts on Instagram one of three graphics from its website, which all read “Sustainability starts now,” tags the Detox Market, and uses the hashtag #sustainabilitystartsnow. At the time of this post, the Detox Market has planted over 55,000 trees.

A year ago, a coalition of some of the world’s biggest brands embarked on an experiment: If they started selling everyday products like shampoo in reusable, returnable packaging instead of single-use plastic, would customers buy it? Could a modern version of the milkman model—where customers shop online, and then return empty containers via UPS to be cleaned and refilled for a new customer—make business sense? For brands, the new platform, called Loop, was a radical step to test fundamental changes to how they package and deliver products, driven by consumer pressure to deal with the problem of plastic pollution. The first pilots started in May 2019. The tests have been successful enough that the system is now rapidly expanding and will soon launch in retail stores. [Photo: courtesy Loop] “Companies are looking for new ways to address packaging and reduce waste, and consumers are demanding it,” says Steve Yeh, a project manager at Häagen-Dazs, the Nestlé-owned ice cream brand. The brand committed major resources to developing new packaging for the pilot: a novel stainless steel ice cream canister that’s designed to keep ice cream cold longer. It then can be sent back, sterilized in a state-of-the-art cleaning system, and reused. (It also looks a lot nicer on your counter.) The system is designed to be simple for consumers—in theory, nearly as easy as buying something in a disposable package and throwing that package in the trash. Online orders are delivered in a reusable tote, and when a customer has an empty container, it goes back in the tote, the customer schedules a pickup, the packages are returned for reuse, and the customer gets back a deposit that they paid for the package (or, if they’ve reordered the product, the deposit stays in an account and they don’t pay it again). Despite using heavier packages, more transportation, and cleaning, it has a lower carbon footprint than single-use packaging. And it keeps packages out of landfills and the ocean. “We all know that recycling alone will not be enough,” says Sara Wingstrand, who leads the innovation team at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, an organization focused on the circular economy. “This is a whole new way to actually think about how you can bring products to people.” [Photo: courtesy Loop] In Nestlé’s case, an internal team went through 15 iterations to reach the final design of the ice cream container, which has benefits beyond reducing waste. The package has a double metal lining, so it’s comfortable to hold, but keeps the ice cream inside from melting; it’s also designed to melt a little more quickly at the top, so it’s easier to scoop than it otherwise would be. Rounded edges mean that ice cream doesn’t get stuck in the bottom corners. And it looks better than a disposable package. The aesthetics, surprisingly, have been a bigger driver in the pilot’s success than the environmental benefits. “People actually are attracted to Loop first for design, second for reuse,” says Tom Szaky, CEO of Terracycle, the recycling company that first helped create the coalition of brands to test the platform, who is now also CEO of Loop. “The design is so important to consumers—more than I ever thought it would be.” It’s proof, he says, of what’s possible when the economics of packaging change. “If you go back 100 years and look at what your cookies came in or what your beer came in, it was a significantly greater investment in the package. As we make packaging lighter and cheaper, it becomes less recyclable, essentially growing the garbage crisis. And as we spend less money, [packages] clearly become less exciting and less desirable. The response to Loop is a simple one: Let’s shift ownership of the package in the end back to the manufacturer. And as such, they treat it as an asset and they can start investing in the pack again.” [Photo: courtesy Loop] The investment in the packages means that for the system to work, consumers have to put down a deposit for each container. In the pilot, Loop says that customers haven’t been sensitive to the price. “It’s not money out of your pocket,” says Donna Liu, a customer in New Jersey who has been using the system for several months. After the initial deposit, customers don’t have to pay again as they continue reordering the same products, and they can ultimately get the money back. But the deposits are steep, and would likely deter lower-income customers. In one review, a Huffington Post writer noted that she paid $32 in deposits for only six items (in addition to $20 in shipping, and the cost of the products themselves). Loop says it plans to have the costs come down as the system scales up. “Today, in small scale, it makes no economic sense because everything is inefficient in small scale,” says Szaky. “But a lot of our retail partners and our brand partners have modeled this in large scale. And it’s come out very exciting—it’s going to be able to be executed at scale and not cost the consumer more.” Wingstrand, who is not involved with Loop, notes that some other reusable models are already economically viable at scale, such as reusable water jugs delivered to offices. The e-commerce pilot has faced some challenges. Some customers complained about the small selection of products. Those who live in small apartments don’t like the bulky size of the reusable tote, which has enough padding inside to accommodate 16 wine bottles; one reviewer said that she was forced to use it as an ottoman until she was ready to send packages back. But moving to retail stores could help alleviate these issues. [Photo: courtesy Loop] Today, the online store has more than 150 products, including Tide detergent and Pantene shampoo in stainless steel containers, Nature’s Path granola in glass jars, and products from smaller brands like Reinberger Nut Butter. But that’s a tiny fraction of the hundreds of products online at, say, Walgreens, and one of the biggest questions from customers in the pilot has been when more products will be available. Szaky says that Loop is adding a new brand roughly every two days—but there’s a long development process for new packaging after a company joins. “This is not an overnight thing,” he says. “It takes maybe a year to get a product up and running.” In retail stores, though, customers can pick and choose which Loop products to use. “By the retailer listing in-store, the benefit to the consumer is they can go shop the Loop section, which will grow every day and get bigger and bigger, but whatever they don’t find in the Loop section they can still buy traditionally,” says Szaky. Customers can also avoid the hassle of shipping empty containers back and the size of the reusable tote; for retail returns, customers will toss containers in a reusable garbage bag and then bring them back to the store. It’s still designed to be simpler than traditional refill systems in stores—rather than cleaning and refilling your own container, you bring back dirty containers, drop them off, and buy already-packaged products on the shelf. As with online orders, you’ll pay a deposit on the container and then get it back when the container is returned. [Photo: courtesy Loop] The online pilot launched last May in and around Paris, New York City, and a few nearby areas; the startup has since added Massachusetts, Connecticut, Delaware, Vermont, and Rhode Island. It will soon expand to California as well as the U.K., Canada, Germany, and Japan, and will launch in Australia next year. Retail sales will begin later this year with Walgreens and Kroger in the U.S., Carrefour in France, Tesco in the U.K., and Loblaws in Canada. Loop won’t share specific numbers, but says that it’s seeing high numbers of repeat orders from its initial customers. The size of the pilot was limited, but more than 100,000 people applied. The startup envisions the model growing like organic food. “Every store started having a small section dedicated to organic products, but not all products had an organic alternative,” Szaky says. “That’s how it began, then it got bigger and bigger. And some stores like Costco have moved everything over to organic.” He notes that organic food still represents only about 5% of the market, and that has taken decades, but it’s a reasonable comparison. [Photo: courtesy Loop] The number of options will continue to grow. In a recent report, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation estimated that converting just 20% of plastic packaging to reusable models is now a $10 billion business opportunity. But Szazky sees it not as an opportunity, but an imperative. As he told Harvard Business Review in a recent interview: “I think that we’re going to see some organizations die because of this. Others will pivot. . . . Some organizations, like Nestlé, Unilever, and P&G, are taking these issues seriously and making the difficult decisions that may negatively impact the short term but lay the foundation to be relevant in the long term. Inversely, organizations—like many big food companies in the U.S.—are blind to what’s coming and will likely be overtaken by startups that are building their business models around the new reality that is emerging.” [Photo: courtesy Loop] For the brands that are pivoting, Loop is helping push them to experiment with reusable packaging. Häagen-Dazs is already using the container it designed for the system in stores in New York City, where customers bring it back an average of 62% of the time. (At the ice cream shops, customers don’t pay a deposit, but buy the container outright and then get discounts on ice cream each time they bring it back.) It now plans to roll out the container in 200 of its other stores. Unilever—which has products from brands like Love Beauty and Planet on the platform and is preparing to launch more products from Seventh Generation, Hellman’s, Dove deodorant, and others this year—is also experimenting with in-store refill systems and partnering with startups like Algramo, a Chile-based company that offers a mobile refill system on electric tricycles. “I think Loop provides a really good platform to start testing reusable packaging without setting everything up yourself,” says Wingstrand. “But I do think it’s very important to go very broad and make sure that not only are you putting and testing new packaging formats on the Loop platform, but you’re also trying to understand how the user might interact with a refill system, or how you might supply things in a compact format, or how you might even completely design out the packaging.”