The regional agency for prevention and environment, the network of sustainability education centers in Emilia-Romagna, and waste management companies are joining forces with Esosport to collect old sneakers (and rubber flip-flops) as part of the regional project “Your Shoes at the Center.”
March 27, 2018 – The value and importance of activating circular economy processes are the themes of the project “Your Shoes at the Center”: The initiative, unique due to its broad territorial engagement, is promoted by ARPAE’s sustainability education department, the network of sustainability education centers in Emilia-Romagna (led by Ceas La Raganella – Unione Comuni area Nord Modena), and ESO Società Benefit with the Esosport project; it is also supported by seven local waste management companies and involves 49 municipalities in Emilia-Romagna.
“Give Things New Life, Bring Your Shoes to the Center” is the core message of the campaign, which aims to raise public awareness about the possibility of giving waste a second life and counteracting the throwaway culture that produces tons of waste choking the planet.
The campaign was launched on March 21 and will continue until September 21, 2018, a long period during which the public can drop off their old sneakers and flip-flops at the finely distributed collection points throughout the area, identifiable by the ESObox Sport Run containers. The shoes will be processed and recycled to create playground safety surfacing, which, with contributions from Crevalcore, will be donated to Amandola Municipality, which was affected by the 2016 earthquake.
In addition to the goal of “doing something good for the environment” through waste reduction and direct citizen involvement, the project also establishes a solidarity objective.
“We chose Esosport as a partner precisely because they are able to meet this dual need, both environmentally and socially,” says Paolo Tamburini, head of the sustainability education department at the Agency for Prevention, Environment, and Energy (ARPAE) in Emilia-Romagna.
Esosport, an exclusive initiative in Italy and Europe conceived in 2009 by ESO, a company specialized in office waste management and environmental consulting, is dedicated to the collection and recycling of used sports shoes: Esosport is present in numerous municipalities and companies in Italy and addresses the reduction of landfill waste while demonstrating the real possibility of creating a true recycling cycle—not as an end in itself, but to obtain secondary raw materials for new local projects.
“We are very pleased to accompany and support ARPAE, CEAS, and the waste management companies in carrying out the campaign ‘Your Shoes at the Center,’” says Nicolas Meletiou, CEO of ESO. “We are delighted that the Emilia-Romagna region has joined the Esosport project to implement it locally with a communication campaign aimed at its citizens. Our project has great environmental value, promotes a concrete example of the circular economy, and is also solidarity-based, as the collected material is returned in a new form: safety surfacing that will be used to create a new playground in Amandola. We thank everyone who has seized the opportunity to join us in an educational project of such breadth and value, where schools and activity centers serve as places to practice good habits, such as recycling, which we have always advocated.”