Eco Shoes - Tread With Care...

I must admit that I have a great love for any new fangled environmentally friendly products that come out. While browsing a news site I came across an advert to Timberland shoes advocating their new range of eco-friendly shoes. On their website Timberland proudly announce that the eco shoe, named Earthkeepers are made from 50% recycled PET! Don’t worry folks Fido is still ok and no pets were harmed in the making of this shoe, apart from a few pigs maybe. PET stands for polyethylene therephthalate (PET) and is the plastic used to make fizzy drinks bottles. So it’s good news for those of you out there with an environmental conscious. Timberland also state that the Earthkeepers are made with linings made from recycled materials, as well as having the outsoles made with recycled rubber and the all-day comfort of soft leather from a silver-rated tannery. You can also find a wide range of Earthkeepers in different styles including sandals and high ankle boots.

A quick eco-shoe search brings up a whole series of environmentally friendly products. One of the best that I found comes from a company called El Naturalista, a great green looking company who emphasise their commitment to guiding the consumer industry away from harmful synthetics and towards a more eco-friendly method of shoe production.

The consumer market is clearly moving towards a greener more conscience based economy which is great news. One of the main problems facing any global warming campaigner is the pressure that big corporation can negatively apply. This pressure can come in many forms either through advertising or lobbying. Another method is to use aggressive competition either by making a less environmentally friendly product and selling it much cheaper than its eco alternatives or by actually buying up the company and its patent product and then shelving it in a deep dark corner never to be seen again. Urban myths suggest that big oil companies have been doing this for years; one particularly frequent story is that of a man who designed a carburettor 100% more efficient than normal ones, this patent was subsequently purchased and then buried out of sight.

Such actions, if true, are clearly the work of cynical and greedy men intent upon maintaining the status quo, but the shift towards a greener lifestyle clearly indicates that this style of business tactic will no longer be tolerated or accepted by those striving against insurmountable odds in the effort to fight for our environment and our eventual survival on this great, green planet that we call Earth.