On November 12 and 13, 2013 the yearly Textile Exchange conference took place in Istanbul, Turkey.
I was invited to run a workshop on Scenario Work as one of the 'Strategy' break out session on the first day. The workshop was fully booked with 25 highly interested and active participants. In 90 challenging minutes they experienced a compressed version of a Scenario Planning workshop.
The world, by and large, operates based on land-filling. The only way to improve the situation any time soon is: not to landfill. At all. Or at least as little as possible, and that asap.
To that extent, 2 reports on textiles the circular economy have been published, both of which look at the issue from different, and complementary perspectives.
What is it that we can learn from these 2 reports, side by side?
One, the old adage could not be any truer: One Man’s Rubbish is another Man’s Treasure. And: True cost accounting would make a huge difference.
The 'Everything must go' exhibition, that took place from January 20 to 22, 2012, introduced the wider public to the details of the global value chain for discarded clothing. Drawing from the results of 5 years of research, the numbers and facts are staggering, and intriguing at the same time.
This book emerges itself into how clothing is bought, worn, discarded and recycled within India. In other words, it tracks down how Indian citizens (primarily women) manage their wardrobes, and the strategies and criteria of how they do it.
At WEF 2025, I learned a key truth: hurdles aren’t obstacles to overcome—they are the journey. I also had the privilege of supporting a friend’s bold vision at #ClimateHubDavos, where I saw her leadership: hands-on, calm under pressure, and driven by purpose. It’s a reminder of what truly makes a leader.
Reducing humanity’s footprint on this planet is a journey of decisions.
Some of them tough, some of them very clear. And some of them – let’s just say: with very limited available data.
The journey we’re on, is the proverbial Designer’s Paradox. More scientifically speaking of course, we are faced with the ever lasting conundrum of Regrettable Substitutions.
So: Is there a best possible AND least bad option (combined) at this very moment?
That textile waste – in the shape of garments as well as in other incarnation – has increasingly a commercial value in an area of globalised markets was a topic here in Shirahime on more than one occasion. This book takes on a larger perspective: Each chapter of the this book offers insights into the recycling economy of a distincly different industry.
As I write this, it is late April.
And our lessons from the last few weeks in Corona lock down and the impact of the pandemic on our communities and societies, all over the world, have thrown an even harsher light onto some of the realities we either assumed as a given, or worked hard to change for years already.
And the lessons have been truly tough medicine.
Discarded at one time, and hidden away in a drawer of the family home or even flogged off in a car boot sale, 'Little Glass Clementine' turns the most improbable centre piece of unique necklaces, each made 'to measure' for the personality and character of its new owner.
"Salaula" tells us the whole story of second-hand clothing. It brings together 2 complementary aspects: Cultural & Economic analysis, and the voice of the real people.
The effect of plastics in our oceans has been repeatedly hit in the news over the last few years.
A hazard in two forms: as a plastic in totality; or as a microfiber/micro particle, which also carries chemistry (pollution) into the environment, from the product they started life as. Research to date shows that this pollution cannot be exhaustively blocked through wastewater treatment plants, consequently micro particles are ending up in our global waterways.
Panipat is an ancient and historic city in the Panipat district, state of Haryana, India. The city is the global centre of “Shoddy Yarn”. It is a business that is worth 1 billion dollars world wide. 85% of the volume is for the domestic marketm 15% for export. But the industry has more shadows then there is light ...
The term ‘circular economy’ has recently been – again – converted into a buzz word. To some extent there are a couple of good reasons for that as both common sense as well as the Ellen McArthur foundation's most recent report prove.
In the briefest of time, Bottletop's iconic bags have not only made into the limelight of fashion weeks supported by VIP, but their business model and approach has earned the organisation a shortlisting for the Observer Ethical Awards 2012, the British 'Green Oscars'.
Like its larger sister ISPO – normally taking place at the end of January or the beginning of February, half way between the two Fashion Week cycles – Performance Days feature a high-end portfolio of performance and sports wear manufacturers, many of which actively develop and push the innovation agenda of their industry.
There are two approaches on how we can define of what is viable and desirable for our global economy.
In one, the 'soft attributes' and non-physical factors such as consumer desires, lifestyles or distribution of goods are a fixed attribute. In the other, quantifiable, physical attributes - amongst them natural resources - are fixed.
The challenge of boards in this time and age: Recognising that the first - the present - is failing. And outlining the path towards the second.
It is quite astonishing: all the different contexts that the term ‘circularity’ or ‘circular economy’ is being used. They key point mostly is of course the waste reduction promises inherent in the term, and the subsequent lower dependency on finite resources.
But, in addition to reducing waste, carbon – or rather carbon footprint – is a key factor.
Unfortunately, the reality is sobering: taking fashion as example, at best between 3% and 6% of the industry's carbon footprint could be remedied that way.
And even worse: in order to realise the potential, three fundamental hurdles must be addressed. Some efforts are underway, of course, but a steep hill remains to climb.
The cat is – long-time coming - finally left out of the bag: while drawing up a Covid19 recovery package, EU legislators have decided to introduce a levy on non-recycled plastic as per 1st of January 2020. Reading through the text, two points offer a considerable surprise: The short notice, the wording, and the focus on packaging.
But how come that legislators seem to drive the industry R&D agenda? Here a few questions for boards to ask their CEOs to get to the bottom of this.
The Sharing Economy’s monetary value is currently worth £301bn globally. It is expected to grow by at least 15% over the next 5 years. Thanks to the wedding dresses and suits, the concept of sharing has never quite disappeared entirely from the fashion market. And now is the time where it emerges with more strength than ever.
ntil the late 80s, fashion retailers and brands would typically have two main collections a year: spring/summer and autumn/winter. Then, in the 90s things changed dramatically. Increased competition saw retailers incentivising customers to visit their stores more frequently.
