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Since 1999, SWANCC has coordinated an annual collection for old athletic court-type shoes in cooperation with Nike’s Reuse-A-Shoe program.  Once SWANCC collects the athletic shoes from school, community and business partners, they are transported to Nike’s facility and become Nike Grind – a material that goes into making running tracks and other athletic court surfaces.

The Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC) held its eleventh annual athletic shoe recycling event on May 19 and 20, 2010. Approximately 9,500 pairs of old court shoes were collected for recycling by SWANCC’s collection partners, a combination of member-community schools, businesses, park districts, churches and municipalities.

Additionally, over 1,500 pairs of gently-used athletic shoes or shoes that did not qualify for Nike’s program were collected for Share Your Souls, a not-for-profit organization that will distribute them to poor people on a global basis. 

In conjunction with Nike's "Reuse-A-Shoe" program, there are other locations that will take a limited number of shoes.Click here for other shoe collection options in the Chicagoland area, or to mail shoes straight to Nike.

Visit nikereuseashoe.com for more information about Nike’s program.

For the 2010/2011 school year:

Details for the upcoming school year are yet to come.

NO shoes including metal eyelets, zippers, batteries, cleats or spikes are accepted. NO flip flops, pool shoes, sandals, dress shoes, boots or slip-ons are accepted for Nike's program. Do NOT tie shoe laces together or pair shoes with rubber bands. Collection partners are responsible for going through shoes.

Over 82,000 pairs of shoes have been collected since 2000. Additionally, thousands of gently used shoes were donated to charity each year.

Above pictures from top to bottom:

1. East Capitol High School, Wheeling

2. MacArthur Middle School, Prospect Heights

3. Loyola Academy, Wilmette

4. Volunteers sorting shoes