Circular textiles - Can tech scale and consumer behaviour change fast enough?

Fast fashion leads consumers towards more and more frequent purchases, a shorter time of use, generating a massive worldwide mountain of thrown away textiles. Meanwhile we have the technology to recycle the textile fibers into new garments, rather than putting them in landfills or burning them. 

More than 140,000 tons of new textiles reach the Swedish market yearly, but just under five percent are recycled as material according to Sysav. Part of the problem lies with logistics and separating recyclable fabrics from other waste, but another centers around the consumers and their behaviors and preferences. 

What would it take for the general public in Sweden to dispose of their clothes in a way that makes them easier to recycle? For most it is hard enough to distinguish between clothes that can be used in the second hand market and those that get turned into reused fabric. What would it take for the general public in Sweden to buy clothing made from recycled fabrics? In many cases, recycled clothes are a sign of environmental awareness, a status marker and a part of the wearer’s identity.

In this morning talk with researcher and Senior Lecturer at LUSEM Carys Egan-Wyer and Ellen Lindblad, textile expert at Sysav, we dive into a discussion about how consumer preferences and behavior can increase the demand for recycled textiles and how the supply of such garments can meet such a demand. 

Sign up here (ungapped.com)

Speakers

Ellen Lindblad is textile expert at Sysav, South Scania Waste Company. Sysav recycles and treats waste from households and industries in southern Skåne. Sysav considers waste at large to be a resource that should, as far as possible, be reused and recycled.

Carys Egan-Wyer is a Senior Lecturer in Business administration and an expert in contemporary consumption patterns, retail and sustainability. Carys also looks at how societal discourses and norms encourage consumers to willingly discipline themselves and control their consumption.
She also manages her social media brand Buy Less Be More, which focuses on anti-consumption.

The target group for this event is anyone interested in circular textiles, textile waste management, and our collective social behaviours around textiles.

This event is part of Sustainability Week 2023, an annual event organised in collaboration between Lund University and Lund Municipality. This year, over 60 lectures, guided tours, exhibitions, and more are arranged.
For more information about the programme, visit hallbarhet.lu.se