It wasn’t too long ago that we were contacted by Nathan Andrew Winters about supporting him through a cross-country bike ride with an aim to raise awareness for the Nature Conservancy.

Mr. Winters has titled his ride “Follow Nathan.” The entire experience is completely interactive which means we can all peer into what he’s doing to date. Nathan has tapped into as many social networking avenues as he can muster which means we also get the opportunity to offer our comments, support, and even make donations. Heck, he’s even made donations of his own after some crafty interactions with a few of the people who… wait for it… Follow Nathan!

Nathan’s bike ride officially begun on May 10th. He’s now in Pennsylvania so there’s months ahead for everyone to have a gander into his world. Start at the Follow Nathan homepage and then make sure to have a look at his flickr, youtube, blog, facebook, and twitter pages. This guy is EVERYWHERE!

We thought this such a worthy cause and a unique way to raise awareness that we sent Nathan a few pair of footwear to accompany him along his journey. Just before he left for his journey he made a video that details all of the gear that he’ll be trekking with him on his bike. Have a look at that video below, we’re mentioned around the 13:30 mark.

The Follow Nathan Equipment List from Nathan Winters on Vimeo.

I suppose we told you already in the header but, we’re following Nathan. We suggest you do the same. Follow, support, donate! Share with us some pictures of yourselves riding your bikes in your favorite pair of Birkenstock sandals, clogs or shoes as part of the Birkenstock 365 flickr pool. We might even feature it here on our own blog, twitter, and facebook pages.

Good luck Nathan! Ride safe and let us know how those pair are working out.

Tread Lightly,

Aaron

Watch as the Compost Maven begins to turn her old pair of Birkenstock sandals into soil…

How did it work out?

And yes, the footbed is made of cork (mixed with some natural latex) so we think it will compost eventually.

See more of the Compost Maven on her blog.

What do you think? Will it work out? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…

Green, sustainable, reduce, reuse, recycle. How many times have you heard these terms today? You’re probably hearing them more often these days, as if all of a sudden it’s cool to be mindful of our impact on the Earth. Well, we like that here at Birkenstock and we always have. In fact, we think we’re some of the coolest kids out there.

As it’s Earth Day this month, we want to share with you how we’re mindful of our footprint and support sustainable and renewable practices; living as part of the Earth, not against it.

The Birkenstock Footbed – Renewable, Recyclable Materials

Our footbed is common to all our shoes, sandals and clogs. It’s made of cork, latex, and jute; all natural, all sustainable, renewable materials of the highest quality.

Right from the beginning of the production process, we’re focused on reducing, reusing and recycling.

The cork comes from the Cork Oak tree, a crop unique in that it is first harvested only after the tree is around 30 years old, and whose bark can only be removed every 9-12 years. Cork forests are second to the Amazon Rainforest in scope and species diversity and there is concern that if the amount of cork forest were to decline important eco systems could be harmed. In fact, in Portugal it’s illegal to cut down a cork oak tree.

We buy cork that was harvested by local farmers who make sure that harvesting the bark doesn’t harm the tree, supporting local economies.

The cork that makes the footbed of your Birkenstock clog or sandal is actually excess, left over from the manufacture of bottle stoppers (aka “corks”) in the wine industry. After the bottle stoppers are stamped out, we take the remaining cork and sort it according to size and quality, so only the best cork is used, containing the lightest and purest grains.

Manufactured by Hand, Made In Germany

Our footbeds are manufactured by hand in Germany; layers of each material (cork, natural latex, and jute) are placed in molds and compressed to join the layers together. The footbed presses are heated through a warm water system that takes and uses the excess radiant heat produced by the factory’s own on-site central electrical generator. (How cool is that!?!) The drying racks, used after the footbeds come out of the molds, are also heated using excess heat from the same generator.

Before the footbed is bonded with the upper and the sole, we apply a synthetic adhesive that’s water-based and, as with 90% of the adhesives used at Birkenstock, completely free of solvents. Although much more expensive than conventional adhesives, it is more environmentally friendly.

Excess materials used in the manufacturing process are cut away and used elsewhere. For example, excess jute is used in the manufacturing of felt. Excess cork is sometimes used as insulation in building construction.

You see? We try and to do our part to lessen the environmental impact. It’s about an environmental sensibility and investment in our future. The footbed is just one small part of your Birkenstock shoes, sandals or clogs, just as we’re all one small part of the planet.

Tread lightly!

Further Reading

• Birkenstock’s Green Steps
• Birkenstock is certified as a Marin County Green Business
• Now You Can Recycle Your Wine Corks
• What You Can Do (WWF)