It gets so hot in Israel that safari animals are fed funky popsicles, so we were surprised to learn that the country’s most successful soccer team wears uniforms made out of 13 recycled plastic bottles! But it’s true. And even though the majority of Israelis are probably more passionate about soccer than they are about environmental issues, everybody is bound to be impressed with the sheer ingenuity of NIKE’s 2012/2013 kits home for the Maccabi team from Haifa.
Maccabi Haifa FC’s traditional green and white jerseys for the 2012/2013 season have a rounded collar and one of the smallest environmental footprints of any uniform on the planet.
The recycled polyester kits consume 30 percent less energy to manufacture than most uniforms, and combined the team’s kits divert hundreds of plastic water bottles from the waste stream.
But how do the players escape extreme heat exhaustion if they’re basically running around wearing plastic?
NIKE has incorporated laser-cut ventilation holes into their Dri-FIT uniforms, ensuring maximum ventilation. This way, the team stays cool and dry, which in turn helps to increase their performance on the field.
Since 2010, NIKE has recycled 115 million plastic bottles for use in their state-of-the-art soccer kits.
Cool, huh?
Author: Tafline Laylin
As a tour leader who led “eco-friendly” camping trips throughout North America, Tafline soon realized that she was instead leaving behind a trail of gas fumes, plastic bottles and Pringles. In fact, wherever she traveled – whether it was Viet Nam or South Africa or England – it became clear how inefficiently the mandate to re-think our consumer culture is reaching the general public. Born in Iran, raised in South Africa and the United States, she currently splits her time between Africa and the Middle East. Tafline can be reached at tafline (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
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