Ecotech – The Birth of Nike Considered

“Because the newest and best athletic footwear technology, or performance design needs not just be sport related”.

“you’ve got a $15billion company thats based of selling 2000 styles a year, that are all pretty much with no regard to the environment at all” – Jeff Staple

In 2002 Richard Clark a Senior Creative Director at Nike contracted Staple Design in New York to work on a project codenamed ‘Ecotech’. The brief was to design a completely evironmentally sustainable shoe. Here is Jeff Staple talking more about project ‘Ecotech’ at the PSFK 2008 Conference in New York.

Below are a few images from the ‘Ecotech’ project and later Nike Considered Footwear.

The ‘Board’, where the design framework was established.

A prototype.

Some prototype Development Photos via https://www.instagram.com/mcsteve/

The final design of the Considered Boot.

The exploded version to show the ‘considered’ construction.

And a few later considered models: The Nike Mowabb II

and the Nike Considered 2K5.

In 2008 Nike determined that for footwear “to be qualified as CONSIDERED, it must maintain these benchmarks:
1. Must be made from recyclable materials. (i.e., 100% recyclable plastics or veg-tanned leathers.)
2. Zero Toxins. Zero chemical adhesives. (no glue.)
3. Mechanical vs Chemical. (using mechanics and engineering to put the shoe together instead of chemical solutions.)
4. Closed Loop Technology. (the shoe must be able to come back 100% as another shoe or something else. Nothing goes to waste.)” – Staple Design.

For more information and images from project ‘Ecotech’ visit the Staple Design webpage.