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This collection has been built by a community of passionate researchers, students, and industry professionals as part of <a href="https://worldcirculartextilesday.com/" target="_blank">World Circular Textiles Day</a> (WCTD). 


World Circular Textiles Day takes place every year on 8th October.  Our vision is to galvanise the collective ambitions and goals of people, organisations and businesses to reach a fully circular textiles world by 2050. Our mission is to provide a framework for circularity stakeholders to develop and deliver a collaborative, evolving roadmap and to chart circularity’s momentum annually from the 8th of October until 2050.

What does fully circular by 2050 mean?
- Shared textile resources, in the form of products and raw materials, are kept in **continual circulation**.
- Virgin resources are **replaced with circular materials**.
- Dignity, equity, and equality for the **people** involved in all parts of the circular value chain.

We need to know where we stand today to chart how to get to 100% Circularity by 2050. What circular activity is currently happening in the textiles and apparel industry, and where in the world is it happening? The WCTD Collection aims to answer this question by building the world’s largest digital library of circular textiles case studies. 

World Circular Textiles Day is proud to be supported by our 2022-23 Circular Hero Partners:
[Lenzing](https://www.lenzing.com/), [Texaid](https://retailsolutions.texaid.com/), [Bank & Vogue](https://www.bankvogue.com/), [Usha yarns limited](https://ushayarns.com/), [The Conduit](https://www.theconduit.com/), and [Asia Pacific Rayon](https://www.aprayon.com/en/)

## Want to contribute to the WCTD Collection? Sign up and add your circular textiles activities.





World Circular Textiles Day

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Business case

Impact on the availability of resources as well as their effect on living organisms, ecosystems, and components of the environment.

Ecological Impact

Impacts on the social fabric of the community and well-being of the individuals and families.

Social Impact

Impacts on the financial condition of a company, as well as the the economicconditions of its stakeholders and on economic systems at local, national, andglobal levels.

Economic Impact

Impact on the health and happiness of human populations

Well-being

Direct and indirect reduction in economic costs

Cost Savings

Efficiency gains on operations or transactions either through cultural or technological shifts

Productivity

Impact on the ease of innovation, and facilitating uptake of innovations

Innovation

Scalability

Reduced green house gas emissions released into the biosphere

Reduce Emissions (SDG13)

Reduced use of virgin materials and/or an increase of the use of secondary and bio-based materials

Reduce Material Consumption (SDG12)

Reduced use and withdrawal of water and rate of recycling and reuse of water

Save Water (SDG6)

Reduced use of fossil fuel energy sources and/or increased use of renewable energy

Reduce Energy Consumption

Contributing to the improvement of biodiversity including species diversity, total number of protected species, and ecosystem health

Biodiversity

Producing agricultural products and processing them into food and beverageproducts for consumption

Agri/Food

Producing and providing business and consumer goods and services

Goods and Services

Producing textile and leather products and processing them into apparel and accessories

Fashion and Textiles

Producing and gathering crop and animal products from land and water through farming, hunting, and fishing

Agriculture

Ensure renewable, reusable, non-toxic resources are utilised as materials and energy in an efficient way

Prioritise regenerative resources

While resources are in-use, maintain, repair and upgrade them to maximise their lifetime and give them a second life through take back strategies when applicable

Stretch the lifetime

Account for the systems perspective during the design process, to use the right materials, to design for appropriate lifetime and to design for extended future use

Design for the future

Work together throughout the supply chain, internally within organisations and with the public sector and communities to increase transparency and create joint value

Team up to create joint value

Utilise bio-based, reusable, non-toxic and non-critical materials

Regenerative materials

Replace freshwater with less impactful alternatives and enact water efficiency measures

Regenerative water

Ensure that biological products are properly managed and preserved

Maximise lifetime of biological products

Designing to reduce waste during production and use

Design out waste

Industry peers to industry peer collaboration to create joint value and identify synergies

Industry collaboration

Enacting measures that optimise material use such as 3D printing, etc.

Material efficiency

Using <a href="https://echa.europa.eu/information-on-chemicals" target="_blank">materials that are not toxic or hazardous</a>.

Non-toxic materials and inputs

Enacting measures that optimise water use

Water efficiency

Preserving and conserving biological products such as food, forests, etc.

Preservation, conservation

Managing and enriching biological products such as soil, land, etc.

Management, enrichment

Designing products so they use as little materials, water, energy, etc. as possible during use

Design for resource efficiency

Engaging in discussions with industry stakeholders to share circular economy best practices and push the industry towards greater circularity

Guidance, dialogue with industry stakeholders

VISION:
Raw materials are renewable, recyclable and safe, kept in continual circulation.

DETAIL:
Imagine a time when…the raw materials that are used to make things are sourced from existing products and regenerative agriculture, via carbon negative and climate neutral processes. Biodegradable raw materials are used for products with biodegradable end routes. Toxic chemicals have been washed out of the global materials pool, disposed of safely and replaced with beneficial alternatives. Virgin fibres made from fossil fuels have been banned, while secondary synthetic fibres, derived from what was already in the system, are kept in constant circulation as a resource. Circularity accounting methods, built on science-based metrics, help to manage a balanced system of resources, across all industries, and in line with the planet’s environmental limits.

Raw Materials and Planetary Boundaries

VISION:
People are valued and supported in an equitable, socially just and resilient society.

DETAIL:
Imagine a time when…people and communities are at the heart of any sustainable and circular system. The planet thrives, enabling us to survive with balance and abundance. People are no longer passive consumers, but proactive participants. The ‘makers’ who design, build, reprocess and recirculate products throughout the value chain are treated equally and are equitable partners in shaping and benefitting from the system. Textiles/garments can be produced and repurposed locally as well as centrally. A blend of craft methods alongside more automated production provides regionalised, multi-faceted perspectives and fulfilling livelihoods, be they high- or low-tech. Wealth gaps are minimised and dignity, equity, equality is a reality for all.

People and Society

Regenerate strategies phase out hazardous or toxic materials and processes and substitute them with regenerative biomass resources. A circular economy aims to mimic natural cycles—by shifting to more regenerative farming practices, for example—while also maximising the share of circular biomass that enters the economy. Regeneration can happen both at the systems level (by designing regenerative processes) as well as at the product level (by switching synthetic to organic fertilisers, for example).

Regenerate

Cycle strategies aim to cycle and reuse materials at their highest value: they maximise the volume of secondary materials re-entering the economy, ultimately minimising the need for virgin material inputs and therefore also narrowing flows. Of course, virgin materials will always be needed to a degree: all materials degrade and can’t be cycled infinitely, use energy, and require blending with virgin materials to maintain strength and functionality.

Cycle

Impacts

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Industries

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The principles of a circular economy concern designing out waste, regenerating ecosystems and keeping items in use. Decoupling the economy from material flows—improving the rate of resource productivity faster than the economic growth rate—is also a consistent guide. By evolving with the growing number of applications of circular economy principles, and consolidating these strategies across thematic areas, Circle Economy’s Key Elements Framework (KE) renders the elements of the circular economy salient and serves as a basis to derive contextual strategies and interventions. 


The Framework consists of:
- Core Elements: Activities directly handling product or material flows; and uniquely,
- Enabling Elements: those that remove obstacles for core actors.


Key elements of the circular economy

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Circle Economy's framework of strategies and activities that define the circular economy

It is 2050.  Full systems change has taken place. This wouldn’t have been possible without the immediate action and radical steps taken from 2020 onwards. Many targets had to be identified in the early 2020s and achieved by 2030 to ensure that the 2050 goal happened in full. A sense of urgency, turbo stakeholder collaboration, supportive government regulation and clear, data driven targets enabled the mindsets and systems change needed to transform to a fully circular textiles ecosystem.

A circular economics model underpins what we have created. It reflects and supports a living organism made up of makers, users and restorers, interacting across vibrant and interconnected networks. Checks and balances, alongside transparency and accountability, ensure a healthy system. Financial, environmental, and social metrics have the purpose of serving communities and the planet. There is shared ownership of profit and loss – across all three metrics – throughout the value chain.

This is what we’ve achieved over the last 30 years:

WCTD Themes

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Based on the work of [Bocken et al. (2016)](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/309699661_Product_design_and_business_model_strategies_for_a_circular_economy), the Four Flows Framework serves as a simple framework for managing resource flows in a circular economy by using less (Narrow), using for longer (Slow), using again (Cycle), and using clean, regenerative materials and energy (Regenerate).

These different principles of circular economy can be applied to our socioeconomic metabolism: we can design stocks like buildings, infrastructure, machinery, and vehicles to be rich resource mines for the future, and design manufactured goods and consumables to be cycled and made regenerative. Furthermore, the focus must also centre on getting more value out of fewer materials. Achieving the aims of a circular economy—minimising material use, regenerating the Earth, and preventing material losses—can be done through these four key strategies mentioned above.

Source: Circle Economy. (2023). *[The circularity gap report 2023](https://www.circularity-gap.world/2023)* (p.22). Amsterdam: Circle Economy. 

Four Flows Framework

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              It is estimated that 97% of the water in the Indus River goes towards producing crops like cotton.    
         WWF works to promote sustainable production, reduce damage to freshwater systems, and encourage the use of advanced irrigation technology and more ecologically sound growing methods. WWF is working with farmers, government agencies, buyers and investors at key stages of the market chain—from the field to the clothes shop—in a joint effort to promote more ecologically and ethically sound cotton. With support from IKEA, WWF began a pilot project to promote better ways of growing cotton. Due to its immediate success, the project evolved into a multi-stakeholder organization called the Better Cotton Initiative. Farmers that adopt the Better Cotton standards commit to:  minimize the harmful impact of crop protection practices; use water efficiently and care for the availability of water; care for the health of the soil; conserve natural habitats; care for and preserve the quality of the fiber; and promote decent work.  Farmers that adopt these best management practices are growing healthier cotton, with less pesticide, fertilizer and water overruns. For instance, 97% of the water in the Indus River goes towards producing crops like cotton. Now over 75,000 Pakistani farmers have reduced their use of water by 39 per cent, helping reduce pressure on the Indus River. In addition, the Better Cotton Initiative helped these farmers reduce pesticides by 47 per cent and chemical fertilizer by 39 per cent across over 300,000 hectares in 2012. Yields are just as good, and there is an average 11 percent increase in income compared to farmers who are still using conventional practices.  
  

         The fashion industry is big and it is problematic. While consumer behaviour needs to evolve beyond the fast and the linear, the business paradigms of fashion brands need to change to ensure they can design and manufacture better and more sustainable products in a transparent way.To support the seismic transformation that the industry is undergoing, we’re starting with the building blocks of our garments: higher quality and more sustainable raw materials. Our mission is to accelerate the transition to a net-positive fashion industry, in harmony with people and planet.        We are working towards a fashion industry with a net-positive impact. It means an industry that gives back more than it takes, that uses better materials which nurture ecosystems rather than depleting them, and that designs better products with zero waste in mind. It’s an industry that also promotes better working conditions for all stakeholders, and that provides visibility throughout its supply chains. Ultimately net-positive relies on a holistic understanding of the impact of the clothes we wear.                                Cotton is the most widespread profitable non-food crop in the world with an estimated 100 million people farming the fibre globally. It currently represents 25% of all textile fibres and demand is growing. But growing cotton is a dirty business - while using 2.5% of agricultural land, it uses a colossal 16% of the world's insecticides and has a tremendous water footprint when its cultivation is mismanaged. All of that without even mentioning its opaque and complex supply chain, hiding poor and vulnerable working conditions. The demand for better cotton is booming and the fibre commonly seen as the most promising are struggling to keep up with the impact imperative and demand.        We believe in resilience through diversity because there are no silver bullets to the hard problems we face, which is why we see ourselves as a complementary approach to Organic and Regen towards more sustainable cotton at scale. It is time to go beyond the labels and to take on a metric-driven approach to assessing sustainability. This is where we fit in: with trusted farm-level data, we can not only grow better cotton, but assure the environmental footprint of our fibre in a contextual manner.        We’re focusing primarily on areas that suffer the most from climate volatility and where traditional agriculture might no longer be viable. It’s what we call future-proof cotton. Our approach is a form of climate change mitigation, through ultra-efficient use of resources and a reduced carbon footprint. It is also a form of climate change adaptation, by transforming abandoned or brownfield land into productive agricultural land. And with more effective land usage, we can join force with other impactful interventions that support biodiversity and carbon sequestration.                    Our farming approach enables ultra-efficient use of resources. That’s great for the environment, and also for the farmers. They get more reliable yields and de-risked operations in the face of climate change, on top of better market access and higher profits.           Higher yieldsUp to 4 times more yield per surface area compared to conventional cotton farming.           Higher qualityHigher fibre strength, length and uniformity, which all contribute to better and long lasting textiles.           Higher resource efficiencyUp to 80% less water and around 30% CO₂ reduction compared to conventional cotton farming (early estimates).           Radical transparencyUnprecedented insights into the footprint of the fibre at a farm level.                  The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.Since its inception, Materra has put SDGs at the center of its holistic approach to ensure that sustainability and ethics are the foundation of everything we do. Today, we focus primarily on the following goals.                                                                  

 The problem 
Cotton is the most widely used natural fibre in the textile industry, and it is also known as the ‘world’s dirtiest crop’. Demand for cotton is increasing and, as yet, there are no sustainable ways to produce it. This is mainly due to its use of resources with studies estimating that the industry is accountable for up to 2.6% of global water usage.
This is a problem for both the planet and humans since water scarcity will directly affect ⅔ of the world’s population by 2025. But it’s also a problem for apparel and textile companies, which will soon struggle to meet demand as competition for resources become more fierce and expensive.
As such there are growing concerns surrounding the sustainability, transparency and ethics of this complex industry.
Our solution
Materra, formerly known as hydroCotton, is taking on the challenge to redefine the way cotton is produced to make it a crop for the 21st century. We help fashion brands reduce their environmental impact by growing radically sustainable cotton alongside building more transparency into the supply chain, creating accountability end-to-end.
We optimise the delivery of agricultural inputs directly to the root zones of cotton plants where efficient absorption can occur. By combining this with novel methods of recapturing nutrients and water we can reduce the volume of water and fertiliser used by up to 80%. We grow 100% pesticide-free by employing biological pest control and strategic manual pest removal.
Our initial focus is on the technology to address the intense consumption of water and fertiliser, however our long-term strategy aims to tackle many other problems, including lack of transparency throughout the supply chain. Our transparency solutions are currently at concept stage but we have gauged market interest and are looking to prototype in the field by the end of the year (2019).
The company
Our founding team became friends through studying engineering at Imperial College and then design at the Royal College of Art. During our studies we were all drawn towards projects with strong potential for social and environmental impact. Since graduating the team has gained experience working on various sustainable design projects.
The idea behind Materra came to life during a business trip in Kenya, where Edward was working on an agritech project. Further conversations with friends and associates confirmed that the idea not only had potential for positive social and environmental impact, but also for becoming a viable business. With converging interests and complementary skills, the 3 founding members joined forces to make this idea a reality.
In the next 5 years, we aim to start growing hydroCotton globally and lease our technology to mills and farmers. We will be working towards integrating tracking technology throughout the supply chain to ensure traceability of hydroCotton fibres, from farm to end product. We will also work on developing an MVP for cotton remediation solutions to make cotton a truly circular material.
We are currently actively seeking funding to accelerate the development of our MVP, to produce samples for our commercial partners and lock down our IP. In addition to capital, hydroCotton is also looking for a plant scientist with experience in the cotton industry.
Advisors and mentors 
Our core team is supported by a group of advisors supporting various aspects of our venture. Claus Stenbaek, who is Managing Director of the private equity firm Keyhaven, is supporting us with the business development side of our venture.
Filippo Grassi, an agritech consultant for startups in London, Nairobi and Milan, is supporting us with agronomy and agritech innovation.
Enterprise Lab support
Following early technical development and lab trials, Materra participated in the Enterprise Lab’s Venture Catalyst Challenge (VCC) in 2019. We reached the finals, which was very influential in kickstarting the business side of our venture.
Successes and setbacks
Our major successes have been validating the concept through early technological trials, partnering with a farming expert and receiving interest from multiple multinational apparel brands and mills.
We’ve had a few setbacks in terms of the high capital expenditure for developing our MVPs. It’s also been difficult dedicating time to the company whilst also having full time jobs. Generally we have found balancing working on the business with developing the product trickier than we thought.
Advice to aspiring entrepreneurs
Get your market validation as soon as possible in order to both confirm the viability of your concept, but also to inject a new sense of dynamism and motivation within your team. Remember that launching a new venture requires a lot of time and effort, so make sure you pick a project that you truly care about. 


 Cotton is everywhere.  We use cotton fibers to make clothing, bed sheets, curtains, car seats, pillows, and much, much more.  It is one of the United States’ largest exports, as it ships between 40% and 60% of its crop annually.  More than 50% of the world’s cotton comes from the United States.  And an additional 85 countries grow the crop as well, with 55 of those exporting.  Clearly, cotton has quite a presence in the world.  But that’s not necessarily a good thing.
Cotton, in spite of its global prevalence, actually causes quite a few problems, all of which affect the entire world.  Cotton uses an enormous amount of water, causes soil erosion and degradation, and uses more insecticides and pesticides than almost any other crop.
Cotton requires a significant amount of water to grow.  Some statistics say that in order to grow enough cotton to produce a single cotton t-shirt, the same amount of water is required as a single person drinks over a period of three years.  This is noteworthy, especially with regard to the immense amount of cotton grown worldwide.  That amounts to an incredible amount of water used to grow just one simple crop, and one that is not even a source of food.
Another serious problem with cotton is its effects on the soil.  Because cotton requires so much water to grow, this causes problems with the soil in which it grows.  Obviously not all irrigated water that is used to grow cotton actually reaches the roots.  Instead, plenty of the water becomes runoff, which is where things become problematic.  Because irrigation generally doesn’t use pure hydrogen and oxygen, there are quite a few impurities in the water, one of which is salt.  When too much salt enters soil, the soil is eventually rendered unusable, and it is known as the salinization of the soil.  After not too many years, soil that has grown cotton eventually becomes a wasteland, farmland that lies fallow.  This has resulted in the destruction of farmland in many countries, and in some, such as Uzbekistan, more than half of the farmland in the entire country is now useless.  This is yet another problem with cotton.
Related:   The Top 5 Green Materials for Home Improvement and DecorationCotton has often been called a toxic crop, and such assertions may well be justified when looking at the enormous amounts of pesticides and insecticides used to grown the plant.  Cotton is grown on just 3% of the world’s farmland, and yet more than 25% of the world’s insecticides and more than 12% of the world’s insecticides are used to grow it.  This would all be fine and well were it not for the harmful effects of these chemical compounds.  Unfortunately, these pesticides and insecticides cause damage to soil, water sources, birds, fish, wildlife, and humans.  A study done found that within the pesticides used to grow cotton, 77% of the compounds were comprised of 15 of the most dangerous chemicals in the world.  These chemicals caused birth defects, mutations, cancer, and tumors in humans.  And it follows that these chemicals cause great harm to birds, fish, and other wildlife as well.
These are just a few of the environmental problems with cotton.  Although overuse of water, soil degradation, and toxicity are certainly serious consequences of the growing of cotton, we haven’t even addressed the economic problems that have been caused by cotton in recent years, in which the market was oversaturated and the demand for cotton was low – which drove many farmers to ruin, sadly.  Ultimately, cotton is quite a villain, and now is the time to look to other sources where possible to replace cotton fibers.  One promising alternative has been that of bamboo, which has come into the world market in recent years as a potential replacement for cotton.  Bamboo fibers can be used to create both fabric and lumber, and the bamboo fabrics are quite a bit softer than those of cotton to boot. We as consumers need to make the decision buy items like bamboo sheets, bamboo clothing, even bamboo bicycles, all of which are becoming increasingly popular because of their negative carbon footprints.  To learn more about bamboo as a resource, go here.
Related:   5 fashion-forward fibresWater consumption, soil degradation, toxicity, and economics – these are just a few of the problems with cotton.  Let’s find an alternative before it’s too late. Save money by converting your home to solar power. Calculate your savings. 

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Materra™

<p>Materra build climate-resilient farming systems for cotton using agricultural technology and better farming practices. They manage processes at farm level so can track plant growth and environmental impact. Materra™ Cotton has minimal impact and maximum yields which is better for the planet and for farmer yields. In June 2022, Materra received $4.5 million in seed funding from H&amp;M Group and Invest FWD (BESTSELLER Group) to help support their current piloting project in Gujrat, India.</p>