Some shoes endure a lot of wear and tear during their lifetime, so its only natural to have some sad looking shoes & boots in your closet. "BEFORE YOU START THINKING ABOUT DONATING OR RECYCLING SHOES, THINK ABOUT REPAIRS."Professional shoe repairers these days can work wonders by re-soling, re-heeling, re-stitching. So you may not actually have to part with a great pair of shoes, they just need a little bit of professional love. Most of us have shoes we bought that seemed like a good idea at the time and maybe never even got worn. Shoes in good condition can be donated to pretty much any op shop, who are grateful to take them to be re-sold.Shoes in not so great condition can still have a use - some op shops will still take them and sell them on to textile recycling businesses, but check before you donate. Sports shoes can be donated to Shoes for Planet Earth through their different collection points across Australia like Adventure Co in Sydney. Shoes for Planet Earth work with local youth groups, homeless groups and international communities so you know your shoes are off to a very good home.
Around 30 million pairs of shoes are thrown into Australian landfills every year. Most shoes, especially sports shoes, are predominantly made out of plastics that can take up to 1000 years to break down. All those shoes in landfill could actually be helping people in developing countries. By donating your shoes to a charity that will pass on your shoes to those in need, you will be helping prevent diseases caused by lack of proper footwear in developing countries, and help improve the livelihood of those in need.
As tempting as it is to buy as many shoes as will fit in your wardrobe, try and have a few good quality, classic shoes that can work with a whole range of outfits.