The economic of textile recycling: torn fabric

The Economics of Textile Recycling: The Real Reason Why You Can’t Recycle your Textiles for Free

Why You Can’t Recycle Your Textiles for Free Textiles have become one of the largest contributors to global waste. From clothing to household fabrics, our consumption of textiles has skyrocketed in recent years, leading to a pressing need for recycling solutions. While recycling has become more common for materials like plastic and paper, the recycling […]

The Sustainable Revolution: Synthetic Textiles and the Need for Collaboration Between Fashion Brands, Consumers, and Recycling Facilities

By coming together, fashion brands, consumers, and recycling facilities can create a future where textile waste is minimized, and resources are conserved. Through collaborative efforts, we can pave the way for a more sustainable fashion industry, one that embraces synthetic textiles as part of the circular economy. Cristina Trujillo, Founder Introduction: The Significance of Collaboration […]

The Quality of Clothing Donations is Diminishing

The Quality of Clothing Donations is Diminishing

Introduction The consequences of fast fashion have been devastating to the quality of clothing donations. As more and more of the global population embraces the idea of fast fashion, clothing donations have become increasingly disposable. Cheaply produced and quickly discarded clothes have flooded the secondhand market, causing the value of donated clothes to plummet. This […]

The Dangers of Turning Plastic Bottles into Polyester

The Dangers of Turning Plastic Bottles into Polyester

The problem with plastic bottles The problem with plastic bottles is that they’re made from petroleum. The process of turning petroleum into plastic is extremely energy intensive, and it pollutes the environment both during and after production. Not only does the production of plastic bottles pollute the environment, but the bottles themselves are a major […]

How Blockchain Technology Can Promote Circularity Within the Fashion Industry

The fashion industry has a sustainability problem. However, the extent of the problem is virtually unknown due to fashion’s global and decentralized supply chain. Blockchain, a new innovative technology commonly associated with bitcoin, has the potential to improve transparency in complex supply chains. An improvement in transparency is the first major step toward building a […]

Transparency

How Can We Use Transparency to Track the Second Life of Clothing?

Society’s addiction to fashion is causing a devastating strain on the planet.  The First Step Towards Sustainable Fashion? Transparency. Cotton crops consume lots of water and require copious amounts of fertilizers and pesticides.  Whereas synthetic fibers, such as polyester, are made of plastic and therefore are derived from fossil fuels. Each year, billions of garments […]

Medical plastics image of IV bags, gloves, tubing

Can Medical Plastics be Recycled?

Globally more than 400 million tons of plastic waste is produced each year, of which only 9 percent is recycled. Medical Plastics and Sustainability in the Health Care Industry During a visit to my dentist’s office this past week I asked my dentist why he doesn’t recycle plastic cups. The answer baffled me, he said […]

hospital hallway with physician coats (medical textiles) hanging

Sustainability in the Healthcare Industry: Medical Textiles

According to a recent study, sustainability programs have tremendous potential to decrease the environmental footprint of the healthcare industry and drastically reduce costs. While there are many opportunities within the healthcare industry to reduce waste and improve sustainability efforts. One area often overlooked that creates a huge impact is hospital linen services which include the […]

textile dying process

Why Zero Panik?

The Textile Industry is a Dirty Business Why Zero Panik is dedicated to textile recycling The world of fashion allows individuals to freely express their creative selves, but behind the glitz and glamour lies a dark underbelly. As the calls against climate change and social inequities grow stronger, we can no longer ignore the fashion […]

From Rags to Ditches

From Rags to Ditches Why turning old t-shirts into rags is not sustainable. If you google textile recyclers you will find a list of companies that take your old t-shirts and rip them up into rags. Now while this all sounds well and good, we all know that rags get soiled and used for the […]