Native Shoes, Zappos for Good to Turn Recycled Shoes into Playgrounds

Native Shoes just announced it's joining forces with Zappos for Good, the community outreach arm of Zappos.com, to collect well-loved Native Shoes to be recycled and made into playground matting.

The initiative, The Remix Project, is one of Native Shoes' programs that aims to have every pair of its shoes 100 percent lifecycle managed by 2023. Consumers can help build playgrounds by visiting Zappos for Good, requesting a free shipping label and sending all styles of well-loved Native Shoes to be recycled. The project's goal is to receive 10,000 recycled shoes by December 31, 2018, and build its first playground in 2019.

“Our customers are always showing us how to keep it light and have fun when they wear Native Shoes. It seemed like a perfect fit to turn them into something useful, on a playground where communities gather to have fun and play," said Kyle Housman, president of Native Shoes, in a statement. "We're excited to be working with Zappos for Good on this project, what a great opportunity to team up and bring fun to communities."

"As an advocate for environmental sustainability, joining forces with Native Shoes is an amazing opportunity to help communities do more with less by encouraging an environmental best practice in the retail industry that simultaneously creates a fun space for kids—and their imaginations—to run wild," said Steven Bautista, head of Zappos for Good at Zappos, in a statement. "With our overarching goal of delivering happiness, this project's sustainability efforts allow us to spread smiles on both a national and local level."

Here's how to contribute a pair of well-loved Native Shoes.