We have seen previously that not only cleaning up the oceans from plastic is possible but it could be done quite quickly. Now comes Adidas, the famous sportswear company, with the logical continuation : manufacture stuff with the recovered plastic !
Even better, the firm is partnering with an environmental NGO and is willing to propose products with recovered plastic next year.
As I have witnessed first hand the plastic pollution on remote beaches in Colombia, I can tell the problem is nothing short of staggering. I am glad some companies are finally deciding to not only stop polluting – Adidas will ditch plastic bags – but also solve the problem.
As per the official website :
Today, the adidas Group announced a partnership with Parley for the Oceans, an initiative dedicated to raising awareness about the beauty and fragility of the oceans and to collaborating on projects that can end their destruction.
Together, the adidas Group and Parley for the Oceans will implement a long-term partnership programme that builds on three pillars: Communication and Education, Research and Innovation as well as Direct Actions against Ocean Plastic Pollution.
The partnership is an example of the adidas Group’s open-source innovation approach, to engage with partners, crowd-source ideas and co-create the future of the industry. Among others, this collaboration will accelerate the creation of innovative products and integration of materials made of Ocean Plastic waste into the product offer of the adidas brand as of 2016.
So, this is another bright example of Corporate Social Responsibility. After Harley Davidson planting millions of trees, other companies stopping deforestation worldwide… Now Adidas taking care of the mess in our oceans.
What if companies actually got stuff done for the common good ? This is something that resonates especially to me as I am doing my MBA in Sustainable Business.