In Finland, we bring over 11 kg of new textiles into our homes annually, but only around 4 kg of them remain in our closets. What happens to the rest of them? Currently only a fraction of discarded textiles is salvaged for use, but in the future, the circularity of textiles could be a significant part of a more sustainable economy.
It’s time to pick up the threads and make the most of the potential of waste textiles.
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Do you hold the key into future of circular economy?
The city of Lahti, a pioneer in urban environmentalism and circular economy, is organizing a design competition focusing on the circularity of textiles. The aim of the competition is to discover innovative uses for discarded textiles and recycled textile fibers. The competition is held in collaboration with Lahti Sustainable Foundation and LAB University of Applied Sciences.
The competition is open to designers and innovators from Finland or residing in Finland. The competition jury consists of Professor Sami Sykkö (LUT), Lecturer in Wearable Design Minna Cheung (LAB), Lecturer in Furniture Design Harri Kalliomäki (LAB), Managing Director of Martta Association Marianne Heikkilä, and Environmental Coordinator Jenni Rahkonen (City of Lahti).
Read more about the competition and participating in itThe Textile Deposit encourages recycling
In Finland, an average of 3 kilos of textile per person waste ends up incinerated each year. It’s about one grocery bag’s worth of fabrics and fibers that could be salvaged for further use. Recycling of textiles became a lot easier this year, as separate collection points for discarded textiles were rolled out throughout Finland.
As a pioneer of urban environmentalism, Lahti is piloting a textile deposit system. As a world-first experiment, the city offers a small incentive for recyclers.
Read more about the project