Industry Engagements and Events
Since the project’s inception in September 2023, the consortium has actively participated in pivotal events centered around textile recycling innovation. During these engagements, we had the pleasure of connecting with many of the players within the industry. We have just started, stay tuned for more.
Textile Institute World Conference (July 2023)
University of Huddersfield, UK
UKFT CEO Adam Mansell delivered a keynote address to over 300 international delegates, shedding light on the issue of post-consumer textile waste and presenting ACT-UK as a viable solution. With the theme ‘Sustainability of the Textile and Fashion Supply Chain – Transitioning to Zero Carbon and Zero Waste’, the conference highlighted actions to manage the impact of the textile and fashion supply chain on the environment and climate change.
Fashion District Festival, Towards a Circular Future (July 2023)
London, UK
A panel discussion focused on capturing and revaluing fashion waste, exploring the purpose of ATSP. Cyndi Rhoades from Circle-8 joined the conversation alongside project partners UKFT, Worn Again, Reskinned, and New Look.
Textiles 2030 webinar (September 2023)
Textiles 2030 is the UK’s leading voluntary initiative supporting businesses and organisations within the fashion and textiles industry to transition to more sustainable and circular practices by the end of the decade. During the November webinar, ACT UK was introduced to the audience, including a call out for organisations and brands to participate in the self-funded PCT collection trials with a focus on innovating and optimising the non-reusable textiles pre-sorting methods.
Visit to Renewcell (September 2023)
Sweden
In September 2023, the UKFT team visited Renewcell’s plant in Sundsvall (Sweden), the world’s first textile-to-textile recycling plant at commercial scale. The team witnessed the production of CIRCULOSE, a dissolving pulp derived entirely from textile waste, including worn-out cotton jeans and production scraps. This high-cellulose content pulp is utilised to create various fibers like viscose, lyocell, modal, and acetate, that are then spun into new yarns, woven, or knitted into fabrics, and finally crafted into high-quality textile products. Renewcell plans to ramp up production to create 60,000 metric tons of CIRCULOSE pulp yearly. Through the CIRCULOSE Supplier Network, Renewcell has established 140+ partnerships with mills globally that are incorporating viscose made with CIRCULOSE into their products.
The UKFT Sustainability Conference 2023 (September 2023)
London, UK
With the support of The Textile Livery Group, UKFT organises its annual sustainability conference. This unique event serves as a platform to share best practices in sustainability within the UK textile industry and engage in discussions on how the sector can enhance its capacity and capability while maintaining competitiveness. The second UKFT Sustainability conference, held on September 28, 2023, built upon the success of the 2022 event, offering clear, industry-relevant guidance tailored specifically for the UK textile industry. During the event, the ACT UK project was introduced to the attendees. The upcoming 2024 conference will centre around fibre-to-fibre recycling, providing a comprehensive overview of the ACT project and highlighting the progress made in recycling initiatives.
2023 Textile Exchange Conference (October 2023)
London, UK
The Textile Exchange Conference is an annual conference that brings together leaders and experts from across the fashion, textile, and apparel industry, providing a space to collaboratively explore challenges and solutions to overcome the climate crisis. Circle-8 and UKFT were invited to this year to be part of the Synthetic Solutions panel to talk about their importance of the activities being developed in the ACT project.
World Circular Textiles Day (October 2023)
London, UK
Panel discussion with the presence of Cyndi Rhoades Circle-8, who shared the ATSP demonstrator project and purpose.