Running Shoes

Nick Karayianis

ARCH 5500: Processing the Anthropocene

How can we re-use decommissioned running shoes, a notoriously difficult product to recycle due to the binding agents and variety of materials?

Running Shoes

"A considerable number of shoes (149 million pairs!) and in particular, trainers, end up in landfill each year."

Shoe production accounts for 313 million metric tons of co2 yearly. 2/3 of the emission of a shoe comes from manufacturing. 20% of shoes are incinerated and the rest go to landfills. They can take up to 1000 years to degrade.

The Wildly Complex Anatomy of a Sneaker

Angel Chang, TEDEd

Sneaker Components

Sneakers consist of a range of materials bound together in ways specifically meant to not come apart when force is applied both in tension and compression. The very materials, connections, and design features that work to make the shoes both comfortable and durable also make for a very difficult item to disassemble, let alone to recycle.

Shoe Deconstruction

Shoes can be deconstructed almost completely with a box cutter, a rotary cutter, and a seam ripper. It helps to clean the fabric uppers, especially if they are smelly.

Shoe Reconstruction

Shoes can be put back together by means of tesselating them into a patchwork and sewing them together.