A two-year ambitious program has been launched by the UK fashion and textile industry organisations to create an industrial-scale change for sustainable fashion.
The Circular Fashion Innovation Network (CFIN), the UK Fashion and Textile Association (UKFT), the British Fashion Council (BFC), and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) have launched this program.
The network will bring together industry, innovators, investors, academia, and broader stakeholders. Its Advisory Board spans retailers and brands as well as representatives from UKRI, academia, and NGOs. The role of the Advisory Board is to focus on the vision of the network, receive briefings from the Working Groups, and address scalability across the UK.
The network will receive £1.8m which is jointly allocated to the BFC and UKFT to run the network, build the community, share knowledge, and commission research. The working groups that would oversee the work in this regard include:
Circular business models would focus on the reduction of waste and overproduction by embedding circular business practices; and consideration of regulation changes.
The recycling infrastructure group will optimize closed-loop recycling processes, and develop partnerships and foundations for extended producer responsibility (EPR).
Sustainable manufacturing groups will work to lower environmental impact by achieving supply chain resilience, creating deeper links between brands and manufacturers, and scaling digital traceability tools.
The novel technology group would work to scale up and integrate novel technologies that support circular fashion.
A diverse and future-proof workforce group would upskill the workforce and build a diverse and future-proof talent pipeline to close the skills gaps.
Green Growth Group would create economically viable Circular Fashion Products, services, and IP which create high-value jobs, and support growth through responsible design, retail, and manufacturing.
Network to create an industrial scale change for sustainable fashion launched in UK
