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Ant group and Nike launch shoe recycling program on Alipay

To encourage consumers to recycle old shoes, Nike has joined forces with Ant Group’s Green Energy Initiative to launch an official mini program on Alipay, the leading digital open platform.

The new initiative enables consumers to search for the mini-program “Recycle-A-Shoe” on the Alipay app to recycle their worn-out Nike shoes. Nike Grind technology will dismantle and reprocess the shoes into sustainable sport courts. Through Alipay Ant Forest, a green mini program, consumers will receive virtual green energy points. These points enable customers to sponsor tree planting, ecological restoration, and biodiversity conservation projects.

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“In China, Nike continues to strive toward its goal of ‘Move to Zero’ and encourages the public to take part in environmental protection. The innovative cooperation with Ant Group allows Nike’s Recycle-A-Shoe program to reach more consumers through digital solutions on the Alipay platform and incorporates Nike’s sustainability efforts into daily life, which is our long-term commitment ” said Stanley Chang, Nike Greater China Vice President of Operations and Logistics.

The Nike “Recycle-A-Shoe” program has already been active for 30 years. Over 30 million pairs of worn-out shoes and 120 million pounds of footwear factory materials have been recycled and turned into innovative sports products, including basketball courts, soccer fields, running tracks, yoga equipment, and interior decoration.

Source: Nike

Alipay Ant Forest was launched in 2016 to encourage users to adopt low-carbon activities in their daily lives. It has attracted over 650 million participants. In addition to biking to work instead of driving and paying electricity bills online, users can also earn green energy points for low carbon actions.

“In the face of increasing challenges brought on by climate change, the private sector needs to encourage more environmentally-friendly actions among consumers while committing themselves to reducing carbon emission in their business operations. We are delighted to partner with Nike to promote low carbon actions and better protect the environment through innovative solutions in recycling” explained Cheng Jiang, General Manager of the Ant Group’s Social Good Department.

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A Green Energy Initiative of Ant Group offers green energy points in Alipay Ant Forest to brands that want to offer green incentives to their customers. More than 500 brands have signed up for the initiative as of August 2022, including travel, packaging, and home appliance manufacturers.