{"id":2334,"date":"2019-03-14T04:47:34","date_gmt":"2019-03-14T08:47:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/?p=2334"},"modified":"2019-03-14T13:23:36","modified_gmt":"2019-03-14T17:23:36","slug":"what-fashion-can-learn-from-other-industries-promoting-a-circular-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/what-fashion-can-learn-from-other-industries-promoting-a-circular-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"What Fashion Can Learn from Other Industries Promoting a Circular Economy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1552431183623{padding-top: 40px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;4\/6&#8243;][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2>Sustainability in fashion is growing, but several other industries have been pioneering a push towards a circular economy, as well \u2014 and the fashion community may be able to take notes.<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<em><strong>by Renee Henze<\/strong>, Global Marketing Director at DuPont Sorona and SB&#8217;19 Detroit speaker<\/em>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Across industries, companies are eschewing the idea of a traditional linear economy of \u201cmake-use-dispose,\u201d in exchange for a more sustainable, circular one. In a circular economy, resources are kept in use for as long as possible to extract their maximum value, recovered through reuse and recycling, and regenerated to design out waste and pollution.<\/p>\n<p>This shift is steadily growing. There is still a long path ahead to adopting a truly circular economy overall, but many industries are already making a change.<\/p>\n<p>In the apparel industry in particular, circularity has dominated conversations in board rooms, conference halls and the media. At <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/biosciences.dupont.com\/solutions\/biomaterials\/\">DuPont Biomaterials<\/a><\/strong>, it\u2019s been our key focus to create a systemic change across several industries \u2014 including fashion \u2014 ultimately reducing waste by creating bio-based, high-performance products that are more durable, are used longer and can be recycled at the end of their useful life.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"vimeo-video\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/320315338\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Moving from fast fashion to circular fashion<\/h2>\n<p>There\u2019s been a slow but steady shift among the fashion community to focus on a more sustainable industry. Many members of the supply chain, from textiles manufacturers to designers, are already embracing a circular economy model, and the need is critical. In fact, according to the <strong>US EPA<\/strong>, textile waste occupies nearly 5 percent of all landfill space, and the average US citizen throws away 70 pounds of clothing and other textiles annually.<\/p>\n<p>Consumers, however, are not adopting sustainable consumption at the same pace, so it\u2019s up to industry leaders to create meaningful change by <strong>recycling and reusing materials<\/strong>, <strong>increasing the longevity of products<\/strong>, and <strong>sourcing bio-based materials<\/strong> such as <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/sustainablebrands.com\/read\/chemistry-materials-packaging\/q-a-dupont-sorona-and-the-evolution-and-revolution-of-biomaterials\">Sorona\u00ae<\/a><\/strong> that are derived from nature and not only reduce dependence on fossil fuels, but also GHG emissions.<\/p>\n<p>Collaboration is also pushing circular fashion forward. Many apparel brands are coming together through <strong>Ellen MacArthur Foundation\u2019s Make Fashion Circular <\/strong>initiative, which was launched at the <strong>2018 Copenhagen Fashion Summit<\/strong>. The initiative \u2014 championed by several notable brands, including <strong>Stella McCartney<\/strong>, <strong>PVH<\/strong> and <strong>Nike<\/strong>, among others \u2014 aims to address the fashion industry\u2019s pollution and waste, and drive collaboration among key stakeholders to radically redesign its operating model towards a circular system.<\/p>\n<h2>Industries Making a Difference<\/h2>\n<p>Sustainability in fashion is consistently making headlines, but there are several other industries that have been pioneering a push towards a circular economy as well \u2014 and the fashion community may be able to take notes.<\/p>\n<h3>Food<\/h3>\n<p>The food sector has an enormous opportunity to pivot towards a circular economy \u2014 helping to ensure that as a society, we are not consuming more resources than the Earth can provide. For example, food brands can close nutrient loops and foster regenerative agriculture by returning organic matter to the soil in the form of composted byproducts and food wastes. As a result of this practice, soil structure improves and carbon sequestration strengthens, reducing overall emissions. The food industry can also embrace urban and peri-urban agriculture, or growing food closer to its location of consumption, to reduce the carbon footprint caused by transportation and packaging.<\/p>\n<p>For example, <strong>Lufa Farms<\/strong> \u2014 a Montreal food company pioneering urban farming \u2014 established the world\u2019s first commercial rooftop hydroponic greenhouse in 2011. The company leveraged existing, unutilized roof space in urban environments to help feed growing cities. The farms\u2019 cooling effect in summer and insulation effect in winter reduced building energy demands and attenuated flows into stormwater drains. Innovative solutions and out-of-the-box thinking of this kind could also prove successful for companies in the fashion industry.<\/p>\n<p>Food companies are also seeing success through collaborating to achieve a circular food system. The <strong>EAT Foundation<\/strong> and <strong>World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD)<\/strong> launched a program called <strong>Food Reform for Sustainability and Health (FReSH)<\/strong> that aims to drive change across food systems by taking into account local eating patterns and working with 200 global companies to deliver sustainable business solutions. Fashion brands should take the same cue to collaborate and help build a more circular apparel industry; and in fact, many already are through programs such as the Make Fashion Circular initiative.<\/p>\n<h3>Technology<\/h3>\n<p>Similar to the fashion industry, circularity in the tech industry can involve recycling parts from or refurbishing laptops, phones, and other devices to reduce waste and increase efficiencies. According to niche company <strong>Circular Computing<\/strong>, in the EU, 160 million laptops are manufactured annually, with 160,000 disposed of daily \u2014 yet 70 percent could be reused. This issue was a catalyst for the company, which focuses on reintegrating used parts into IT systems. The goal of circular computing is to create a more ethical, sustainable and socially responsible way to buy enterprise IT. To date, the initiative has prevented 3.6 tons of waste and 950 tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. This focus on reusing and reintegrating materials into new products can be \u2014 and is \u2014 an integral part of the fashion industry\u2019s shift towards a more sustainable and ultimately circular model.<\/p>\n<p>Major brands are also leading circular economy programs, such as <strong>HP<\/strong>, which is increasingly incorporating recycled plastic into printers. The <strong>HP ENVY Photo All-in-One Printer<\/strong> series became the world\u2019s first in-class printer made with closed-loop, recycled plastic \u2014 more than 10 percent by weight. Additionally, in 2017, the brand used plastic from bottles collected on streets and canals in <strong>Port-au-Prince, Haiti<\/strong> to create ink cartridges; and recently joined <strong>NextWave Plastics<\/strong>, a coalition of companies incorporating ocean-bound plastic into their supply chains.<\/p>\n<p>As with many industries, there\u2019s a great opportunity for tech brands to champion consumer education around circularity, and provide consumers with the information and resources necessary for repair and recycling options.<\/p>\n<h3>Collective effort<\/h3>\n<p>Through innovation and collaboration, all industries, from fashion to food to technology, can make significant change towards adopting a circular economy in the long term. DuPont Biomaterials \u2014 along with hundreds of other global brands \u2014 are joining forces via <strong>Circular Economy 100<\/strong> (CE100), an innovation program bringing together companies, governments and cities, academic institutions, emerging innovators and affiliates to learn and collaborate around building the circular economy. This partnership of forward-thinking businesses from across a wide range of industries can truly make a difference and set a new standard for sustainability moving forward.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1552434031120{background-color: #a9c36f !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;1815&#8243; style=&#8221;vc_box_circle_2&#8243; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1552542652479{padding-top: 50px !important;padding-right: 20px !important;}&#8221;][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;3\/6&#8243;][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3>About Renee Henze<\/h3>\n<p>Renee Henze is the Global Marketing Director at <strong>DuPont Sorona<\/strong> and will be leading a breakout session at <strong>SB&#8217;19 Detroit<\/strong> on &#8220;Biomaterials: Evolution, New Markets, Future Prospects&#8221; within the Product &amp; Service Innovation educational track.<\/p>\n<p><strong>See her live this June 3-6!<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text]<div class=\"btn-holder btn-align-left\"><a href=\"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/sb19det\/conference\/program\/\" title=\"\" class=\"btn btn-regular btn-outline btn-shadow  btn-dark btn-hover-accent2\" target=\"\">View the Program<\/a><\/div>[vc_empty_space][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1552431183623{padding-top: 40px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;4\/6&#8243;][vc_column_text] Sustainability in fashion is growing, but several other industries have been pioneering a push towards a circular economy, as well \u2014 and the fashion community may be able to take notes. [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]by Renee Henze, Global Marketing Director at DuPont Sorona and SB&#8217;19 Detroit speaker[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Across [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2356,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2334"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2334"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2334\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2414,"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2334\/revisions\/2414"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2334"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2334"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/events.sustainablebrands.com\/conferences\/sb19det\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2334"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}