Page 14 - 2019 Delegate Assembly Conference
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TEXTILE RECYCLING: TURNING WASTE INTO REVENUE
that help them re-sell clothing. Goodwill could
enter as a supplier of textiles that can no longer be
worn but that could be rebirthed as new fabrics
through emerging recycling processes. Two types
of textile recycling processes currently exist: a
mechanical process where clothing goes through a
machine that grinds it into a lower-quality yarn and
a chemical process that regenerates clothing no
longer worn by consumers into a virgin fiber.
“Our opportunity is to strengthen the ability to
Speakers: William Rogers, CEO, and Annie Gullingsrud, change those textiles into a beneficial force for
Board Member, Goodwill Industries of San Francisco, people, planet and prosperity.”
San Mateo and Marin Counties, Inc. (CA), and founder of
DesignforAllKind.com
Gullingsrud continued, "It’s doing it in an evolved
As salvage prices continue dropping and way that aligns with what’s available, what’s
consumers become more aware of supporting becoming available and where the industry is
sustainable brands, Goodwill is sitting at a going.”
critical crossroads. We need to determine GII has already engaged in due diligence of some
whether to begin supplying textiles to recycling potential recycling solution partners, winnowing
solution partners.
down a group of 20 entities to three. These
William Rogers said the Goodwill network is companies are in various stages of experimenting
well-positioned to work with industrial partners with chemical recycling processes. Part of the work
in the fashion and textile industry, where Gullingsrud does in her professional life involves
many players have formulated goals around working with companies to ensure their chemical
sustainable goods in a fast-changing landscape. processes meet the highest levels of criteria for
sustainability and circularity, a framework that
“We want to co-develop solutions with the helps products be valued at the highest level.
innovators and solution providers," he said.
"That means we’re creating jobs and future Next Steps for the Goodwill Network
careers in state-of-the-art technology, Gullingsrud stated that it’s now the Goodwill
stabilizing the after-market revenue stream network’s turn to visualize how a pilot program may
with less reliance on the commodities market look and operate.
and enhancing our brand understanding.”
Get involved by contacting Susanne Fredericks, GII
Impacts of the Fashion Industry’s Changing sustainability program manager.
Mindset toward Sustainability
The plausibility of a business partnership
between Goodwill and recycling solution
partners has grown in recent years, as clothing Watch, Read, Learn | Curated Resources
brands contemplate the impacts of pouring so 1. View the full presentation.
many resources into the design and production
of clothing, selling those goods and then not 2. Attendee questions and answers.
knowing where they end up. 3. Apparel Industry Impacts.
4. Ellen MacArthur Foundation New Textiles
Annie Gullingsrud, a fashion sustainability Economy Report (2017).
strategist, consultant and author, said fashion
industry players are now interested in models
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