In celebration of this year's International Children's Day, Anta Kids, a sub-brand of the Chinese sportswear firm Anta Sports, launched a special event to engage more Chinese children in environmental actions and fulfil its commitment to helping the country achieve its carbon neutrality goals.

Anta Kids said it invited a group of children and their parents to visit ANTAZERO – the first retail store in China's apparel and shoes industry to achieve carbon neutral certification.

The visitors were given the opportunity to purchase eco-friendly products and read books about sustainability. A special art exhibition that demonstrates the whole process of recycling waste products was also held at the store, aimed at helping children better understand the concept of carbon neutrality.

Meanwhile, the store is equipped with a craft room where children could fully unleash their boundless imagination and utilize wastepaper, fabric scraps and sunflower seeds to make special crafts.

Anta Kids said it also provided the children with a special holiday gift – the SEED running shoes. Made of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) materials, SEED is the company's first recyclable running shoe that was specially designed for children.

When kids outgrow their SEED shoes, they are encouraged to return the old shoes to the store in exchange for a new pair.

Recycling a pair of such shoes can help reduce carbon emissions by about 1.05 kg, which is equivalent to reducing the use of 12 plastic bottles (500 ml each) or 134 plastic bags (about 3 grams each).

In addition, cooperating with the World Wildlife Fund, Anta Kids said it will encourage Chinese children to engage in more environmental activities such as "Earth Hour" and protecting the Yangtze finless porpoise, thus better demonstrating the importance of environmental protection to them.

liuzizheng@chiandaily.com.cn