H&M Foundation’s 2020 Global Change Awards
The fashion industry is known for its artistry, innovation, and creativity. At the same time, however, the fashion industry is a major contributor to pollution and waste internationally. Clothing production has roughly doubled since the year 2000, yet each year up to 85% of textiles go to landfills and about 500,000 tons of microfibers are released into the ocean, according to the World Economic Forum. Fashionistas and companies alike are aware of these hard-hitting facts, and many of them do want to see the industry change. One leader in the space for fashion innovation is the global brand H&M, whose foundation annually recognizes fashion sustainability trailblazers with the “Global Change Award.” The goal of H&M’s award is to speed up the process of finding, supporting, and scaling up early-stage innovations that can make the entire fashion industry circular. This year, the H&M Foundation presented the Global Change Award to the following innovators:
Incredible Cotton by Galy
Galy creates lab-grown (rather than farm-grown) cotton, which saves resources such as land and water. Their growing method is ten times faster and uses less than 80% water and land while emitting just a fraction of the greenhouse gas compared to traditional cotton. Galy isn’t focused on just cotton - they want to transform agriculture with cellular agriculture. The company plans to reinvent one of the most toxic chains in the market and bring science, information, and education to the world in the process.
Feature Fibres by Werewool
Werewool is designing a revolutionary fiber development platform to make biodegradable fibers with important aesthetic and performance properties. Their work is inspired by nature, and they utilize biotechnology to design fibers at the DNA level for sustainable textiles. Their textiles will have inherent properties such as color, moisture management, and stretch, and by doing so, they are preventing pollution created by textile dyes that cause dead zones in water sources worldwide. As a whole, Werewool stands by the United Nations sustainable development goals, and they plan to have a garment prototype in 3-5 years.
Zero Sludge by SeaChange Technologies
Zero Sludge is an innovation created by SeaChange Technologies, a Raleigh, NC-based startup. Their systems purify difficult industrial wastes in a single step, eliminating sludge, chemical discharge, and GHG emissions. Currently, wastewater treatment systems cannot fully treat wastewater that comes from the fashion industry. As a result, factories generate toxic sludge and pollute both land and water after production. Zero Sludge is a system that aerosolizes contaminated water, separates contaminants from the water vapor in a cyclonic separator; and lastly, releases the clean water vapor into the atmosphere.
Tracing Threads by TextileGenesis
TextileGenesis is bringing Blockchain to fashion with the goal of creating a more transparent, sustainable fashion industry. They have created a unique platform making digitizing and tracing any textile asset such as fiber, yarn, fabric, or garment possible through the use of Fibercoins™. Their goal is for any sustainable textile player to issue Fibercoins™, and to create transparency from fiber to retail, as well as ensuring the authenticity of sustainable textiles against greenwashed generics.
Airwear by Fairbrics
Fairbrics is developing the first synthetic fiber with a net positive impact on climate change capable of meeting market demand. Their process converts waste carbon dioxide into polyester fabric using molecular chemistry. They turn the CO2 into polyester pellets, which can then become yarns, which can then be knitted into clothing. Fairbrics has the vision to fight climate change by developing a circular manufacturing process, and they stand by its tenets of innovation, climate, adaptability, partnership, excellence, and commitment.
If you’re interested in learning more about sustainable fashion and innovation, follow us, @Green4EMA on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook! We also have launched an Innovation Series of EMA Talks, for you to dive deeper into these inspiring inventions and the minds of their creators.
By Sophia Donskoi