WASTE NOT -
On foot, by bicycle, through water and combinations of the above, distance races such as marathons and ocean races are a global phenomenon. Running and cycling races have become a big business in recent years, due to the opportunity for sponsorship and the brand affinity that comes with it.
CHEMISTRY, MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
The potential of a circular economy continues to unfold as new technologies are help transform everything from post-consumer textiles to almond shells into high-quality raw materials.
CARBIOS, a pioneer in the field of bioplasturgy, has taken its enzymatic depolymerization process to the next level, rendering it applicable to PET polyester fibers from textile waste.
COLLABORATION -
From social media campaigns to water conservation projects and efficiency improvements across their supply chains, top brands announced all sorts of initiatives today in celebration of World Water Day — a new water management tool from Kimberly-Clark and Deltares, projects from PepsiCo and The Nature Conservancy, goals from Gap Inc. and Target, and campaign from Absolut Elyx and Water For People, just to name a few.
MARKETING AND COMMS -
While textile waste and human rights are often the focus of conversations surrounding sustainability in the fashion industry, most consumers remain unaware of the sector’s impact on forests and the wildlife and communities that rely on them. In a bid to raise awareness around the need to protect this valuable natural resource, Canopy, an environmental organization dedicated to protecting the world’s forests, has launched a new video for International Day of Forests that connects clothing to the rainforests of Northern Sumatra.
PRESS RELEASE -
Around the world, clean water sources are disappearing at an alarming rate, and it’s up to all of us to help design solutions for the future. Target’s doing its part by putting a connected framework in place—including our climate policy and chemical strategy and sustainable cotton sourcing goal—to make sure we’re using resources thoughtfully and measuring progress across our business.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
The Fashion for Good-Plug and Play Accelerator has revealed the names of the 15 startups selected to participate in its third edition, which kicks off today.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
The New Textiles Economy continues to bloom as key players in the apparel and textile industries take action to shift towards a more sustainable model.
PRESS RELEASE -
Gain insights into the first science-driven study to perform and assess the environmental impacts of the global apparel and footwear industries. The global apparel and footwear industries together represents 8% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Our panel of experts will talk us through the results as well as explain the levers of actions that will help fashion brands and businesses implement viable and sustainable change. Join us for an interactive discussion!
Join experts from ClimateWorks Foundation, Quantis, and the NRDC as we look at this ground-breaking study and how it could change the future of fashion,
March 28th at 5 pm CET / 4 pm GMT / 11am EST / 8am PST
THE NEXT ECONOMY -
Nike is calling for innovation proposals to help advance its product sustainability. The Nike Circular Innovation Challenge consists of two distinct but connected calls that invite entrants to develop new technologies to advance footwear recycling or create new products using Nike Grind materials. The best proposals will win thousands in cash awards.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
Fast fashion giant H&M has named the five winners of its latest Global Change Award, who are harnessing the power of technology to rein in the fashion industry’s extensive environmental and social impacts. This year’s winners include dissolvable thread, sustainable algae-based dye and clothes made from mushroom roots.
PRESS RELEASE -
Global outdoor lifestyle brand Timberland releases three new Timberland X Thread men’s footwear styles for spring, made with Thread’s recycled Ground to Good™ fabric. The collection marks the brand’s second collaboration with Thread, a Certified B Corporation that transforms plastic bottles from the streets and canals of Haiti and Honduras into one of the most responsible fabrics on the planet.
SUPPLY CHAIN -
Despite decades of intense media and business attention, poor working conditions persist in global supply chains. Even Apple, recently announced yet again as the world’s most admired company by Fortune magazine, has struggled to address this issue.
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE -
As a division of the fashion industry, the footwear sector has a hefty environmental footprint. However, a slew of emerging brands are gearing up to change footwear’s future, raising the bar for the rest of the industry by embracing sustainable sourcing, ethical labor practices and transparency.
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION -
A new online tool developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and social enterprise Searious Business could help stem the massive tide of microplastics entering the world’s oceans each year. The tool, dubbed Plastic Scan, allows businesses to measure their plastic emissions and provides recommendations on how to reduce impact across the textile supply chain.
NEW METRICS -
Measuring Fashion: Insights from the Environmental Impact of the Global Footwear Industries Study considers the industries’ value chains across seven stages — from fiber production and material extraction to end-of-life.
CHEMISTRY, MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Levi Strauss & Co. (LS&Co.) has taken an important step to clean up the fashion supply chain, rolling out a new digital manufacturing process that will eliminate the use of hazardous chemicals that have traditionally been used in the industry for jeans finishing.
BEHAVIOR CHANGE -
If sustainability is so “in,” why aren’t more people buying ethically made clothes? The past few decades have changed the shape of the apparel industry. A few iconic media scandals over child labor and sweatshop labor have made Western shoppers sensitive to certain social responsibility topics.
CHEMISTRY, MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Aquafil and H&M have joined forces to make sustainable fashion mainstream through the H&M Conscious Exclusive collection.
MARKETING AND COMMS -
A first-of-its-kind research project led by Microfinance Opportunities (MFO) in partnership with Fashion Revolution and C&A Foundation gives the most comprehensive picture yet of the living and working conditions faced by female garment workers in Bangladesh, Cambodia and India.