Students can donate shoes to be recycled through Nike's Sole In, Peace Out
Students looking to ditch their old shoes can also help out the environment.
The CMU Volunteer Center is teaming up with Nike for the “Sole In, Peace Out” initiative and Nike’s “Reuse-A-Shoe” program, which started Thursday and continues for the rest of the semester.
People can drop off their athletic shoes at the Student Activity and Volunteer centers, or Residence Life Fitness Centers located in the Towers and East Center.
“The drive is being held as a way for students to recycle their old athletic shoes, which is environmentally friendly and also gives back to the community, as opposed to just throwing them away,” said Greenville junior Troy Heffron, a member of the Volunteer Center.
Sole In, Peace Out was created to spread the word of recycling shoes, helping the environment and reusing the recycled material to help schools and parks and other community organizations, Heffron said.
According to Nike’s website, “Nike’s Reuse-A-Shoe program collects old, worn-out athletic shoes for recycling, transforming them into Nike Grind, a material used in creating athletic and playground surfaces as well as select Nike products.”
An incentive for students to participate in the program is that they will be entered into a drawing for free gift certificates around Mount Pleasant.
Students are entered for every shoe they donate, Heffron said.
Stan Shingles, assistant vice president of University Recreation, said he is proud to see CMU taking initiative in making the environment a better place.
“It will be a great sustainability effort and CMU is fully engaged in sustainability initiatives,” Shingles said.
Comstock senior Chris Patterson, campus outreach student liaison for the event, said it is a great opportunity for registered student organization on campus to receive volunteer hours or volunteer points.
“We are really encouraging people to grab a pair of old shoes when they go home for Thanksgiving,” he said. “It is for a good cause and you have the opportunity of winning in the drawing yourself, so it’s a win-win all around.”
Heffron is confident the event will be successful.
“Our goal is to get over 200 shoes donated by the end of the semester,” Heffron said. “With many students going home for the Thanksgiving Holiday, we expect a large amount of donations after they return.”
