What I am about to write in this article is probably one of the most ingenious ways a primary corporate industry has made a social impact.  The effect is indirect, as this corporate brand took a major step towards environmental conservation, which is a significant social contribution.

Adidas is the company I'm referring to, and what it accomplished will astound you! 

It takes a lot of resources to make a lot of shoes.  But producing new materials continuously is terrible for the environment. 

Adidas is therefore looking elsewhere.  According to experts, more plastic will be in our oceans than fish in 30 years. 

Furthermore, according to one study, 90% of seabirds have eaten some plastic garbage.  The pollution harms people and marine animals on beaches and in the ocean.  Adidas is working to prevent some of that trash from entering the water.  Adidas and the environmental group Parley for the Oceans teamed up in 2015. 

Their objective is to produce sportswear from marine pollution. 

And they have significantly advanced.Additionally, Adidas anticipates using recovered marine garbage to produce 11 million pairs of shoes in 2019.

The beach is where it all begins.  Waste is gathered by Parley and its collaborators from coastal regions like the Maldives. 

The recyclable plastic is separated from the garbage and delivered to an Adidas processing facility.  Adidas employs PET, or polyethylene terephthalate, in its plastic bottles.  What if it's something Adidas isn't allowed to use, like caps or rings?  These are delivered to the typical recycling facilities.  The garbage is crushed, cleaned, and dehydrated in the processing facility, leaving only tiny plastic flakes behind. 

The flakes are heated, dried, and chilled before being chopped into tiny pellets of resin.  Polyester is often produced using petroleum. 

However, Adidas melts these pellets to produce a filament spun into polyester yarn known as Ocean Plastic. 

 The upper portion of Adidas' shoes and other apparel, such as jerseys, are made of Ocean Plastic. 

At least 75% of the materials used to create each piece in the Parley collection came from marine debris. 

And they continue to meet the same comfort and performance requirements as Adidas' other sneakers. 

Recycled polyester reduces the amount of water and chemicals used while reducing plastic pollution.

Adidas wants soon to use recycled polyester in place of all virgin polyester.

Recycled polyester is used in more than 40% of Adidas clothing. 

You may have seen Adidas' recycled athletic apparel without even realizing it.  College football, baseball, the NHL, the Australian Open, and other sports have all employed clothing made from Ocean Plastic. 

However, this does not entirely stop the pollution from plastics. 

Microfibers made when washing polyester clothing may end up in the water.  Adidas advises customers to wash their items fewer times, in cold water, and with a full load each time.

However, this is only the first action. 

Adidas is also creating the Futurecraft Loop, an entirely recyclable shoe. 

This shoe was designed to be rebuilt. 

Because it may be returned and disassembled to make a completely new pair, the expected debut date for Futurecraft Loop is near.