New Zealand innovation helping reimagine the future of sustainable textiles
A Horizon Europe-funded research project is helping tackle some of the most significant environmental challenges facing the global textile industry, through the UPWEARS initiative.
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Dr Yi Chen, Bioeconomy Science Institute Scientist
The textile industry is currently the world’s third-largest polluter, placing heavy pressure on water and energy resources and generating widespread water and soil pollution and waste. It is also responsible for around 10 percent of global carbon emissions.
Bioeconomy Science Institute Scientist Dr Yi Chen is the New Zealand Project Lead for UPWEARS, a multi-national Horizon Europe project co-ordinated by France’s National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment (INRAe). He says the need for change is becoming increasingly urgent as multiple pressures converge.
“Rising textile consumption, mounting waste and microplastic pollution, tightening regulations and the need to decarbonise material systems are all coming together,” Chen says.
“Recyclable or degradable textiles are increasingly seen as foundational to a circular and low-impact textile industry.”
UPWEARS aims to demonstrate how innovative materials and digital manufacturing approaches can support a more sustainable future for textiles. By the end of the project, success will mean establishing an end-to-end sustainable value chain, from native fibre through to functional wearable devices and their end of life.
“Success for UPWEARS includes creating an innovative and sustainable value chain from native fibre to functional device end of life,” Chen says.
“We’re also supporting a shift away from traditional textile processes towards modern, digitally enabled fabrication that can underpin the industry’s sustainable transformation.”
A key focus of the project is the eco-design of high-value textiles for sportswear applications, responding to strong European consumer demand while helping to strengthen competitiveness in the European market.
The Horizon Europe impact
International collaboration has played a central role in accelerating the research. Through Horizon Europe, New Zealand researchers have gained access to expertise, infrastructure and data that would otherwise be unavailable domestically.
“Working with leading European partners including the Research Institutes of Sweden, The Technological Centre for the Textile and Clothing Industry of Portugal, and the French National Synchrotron Facility, has given us access to state-of-the-art material characterisation facilities, enabling deeper insight and faster material optimisation,” he says.
“The integration of high-quality datasets from European collaborators has also supported the development of digital tools for sensor and textile manufacturing.”
Being part of Horizon Europe has helped amplify the project’s impact by connecting New Zealand researchers into large‑scale international collaborations. Through Horizon Europe, New Zealand researchers are able to work alongside European partners on complex research challenges, sharing expertise, infrastructure and data while contributing New Zealand capability into global science programmes.
New Zealand’s association to Horizon Europe, funded through the New Zealand Government, enables New Zealand research teams to participate in ambitious international projects that would be difficult to undertake alone, supporting faster progress from early‑stage research through to real‑world application.
“Horizon Europe enables us to codesign and co-lead ambitious projects with European partners,” Chen says.
“That accelerates research, scale up and international impact for UPWEARS, while strengthening New Zealand’s role as a trusted global research partner.”