Fashion and Sustainability

"In just over 10 years we have become the world’s largest cotton sustainability programme. Our mission: to help cotton communities survive and thrive, while protecting and restoring the environment."

"The gold standard for more sustainable textiles is blue. Consumers can trust that bluesign labeled textiles and products from the chemical inputs to the final production have met the strictest standards throughout the supply chain."

"Cotton Incorporated, a not-for-profit research organization funded by cotton growers and importers, provides resources and research to help develop superior, innovative, and profitable cotton products. The efforts are spread across every area of the cotton life cycle from fiber through finished product. With this website, we aim to bring to life the facts and the latest scientific discoveries in the world of cotton and sustainability."

Fashion Positive offers a database of Cradle-to-Cradle certified suppliers of "yarns, dyes, fabrics, zippers, trims, finishing, and more—creating a growing collective of "positive" materials with which to design from the beginning." In addition, visitors may view educational webinars and review the "Fashion Positive Critical Materials List," a list high-priority, critical materials needed for circular fashion.

The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) is recognised as the leading processing standard for textiles made from organic fibres worldwide. It defines high level environmental criteria along the entire supply chain of organic textiles and requires compliance with social criteria as well. Visitors to the site may download the current GOTS certification standards. Visitors may also search the public database for suppliers of GOTS certified textiles and products.

The International Association for Research and Testing in the Field of Textile and Leather Ecology (OEKO-TEX) is a union of 18 independent textile research and test institutes in Europe and Japan that "offer companies of the textile industry certifications and services to have their products tested for harmful substances by independent institutes, and to optimize their production conditions and their supply chains with regard to sustainability."

Based in Central Valley, California, the Sustainable Cotton Project (SCP) "provides growers with information about biological farming techniques" and "educates the public about the importance of reducing chemical use in food and fiber production" through its BASIC campaign aimed at growers and its Cleaner Cotton campaign aimed at manufacturers and consumers.

Textile Exchange is a non-profit, member-based organization dedicated to expanding the organic/sustainable textiles market. Viewers may access the Marketplace database to search for member companies and suppliers, download the monthly newsletter, and access a number of educational materials through the Learning Zone and Farm Library sections including audio and videos.

"From model making to finishing to applications throughout a space, human and environmental health considerations must be forefronted throughout the entire design process. These curated product collections contain products that contribute to a healthier design in a range of areas."

"MaDe Book provides a better understanding on how materials design can contribute to attain a more circular economy. It contains a compilation of expert articles and short interviews, a glossary of concepts, original resources, detailed finalists and winners’ projects and the full directory of material designers."

"Materiom provides open-source recipes and data on materials made from abundant sources of natural ingredients, like agriculture waste. Working with companies, cities, and communities, Materiom supports the development of local bio-material supply chains that nourish local ecologies and economies."

"This is by no means a comprehensive list of materials, but it’s a starting point from which we can build. The materials listed here are the ones more commonly used by us as designers and hopefully gives you a bit more information into the beginning and end-of-life potential for each one."

"The Andrea Aranow Textile Design Collection was assembled by renowned fashion designer and textile scholar Andrea Aranow. For more than twenty years, the 40,000 textiles comprising the Design Collection served as a vital source of inspiration for fashion and interior designers globally."

The Texbase Global Library provides an online fabric library of digitized materials that work for you 24/7.