RMIT University introduces practical guidelines designed to help fashion brands transition towards sustainable and circular product design, offering a crucial step in reducing the industry’s environmental impact.
Experts at RMIT University have teamed up with leading fashion brands to launch a set of new guidelines aimed at promoting sustainable fashion practices, thereby addressing the substantial waste and environmental impact of the global fashion industry.
Refashioning: Accelerating Circular Product Design at Scale is a newly published guide that outlines a systematic approach for brands to transition from a linear to a circular economy, emphasizing durable designs that support reuse and recycling.
Alice Payne, project lead and Dean of RMIT’s School of Fashion and Textiles, highlighted the practical nature of these guidelines.
“This guide provides a systematic approach to implementing circular clothing design in a way that all organizations can implement, regardless of their size,” Payne said in a news release. “Based on extensive research with the industry, we’ve created practical steps businesses can take to improve the circularity of their outputs. Although other circular design guides are available, Refashioning is unique in providing a systematic methodology that enables designers to both slow the flow and close the loop.”
The fashion industry, notorious for its significant waste and emissions, is responsible for approximately 10% of all global greenhouse gas emissions.
This guide seeks to challenge traditional methods of production and consumption, which typically follow a linear economy model — one that is defined by a take, make and waste approach.
Launched with the financial backing of Sustainability Victoria, this initiative saw RMIT collaborate with Country Road Group brands and sustainability experts Courtney Holm and Julie Boulton. Over the course of a year, practical application and real-life testing were central to the guide’s development.
Eight design teams across four brands within Country Road Group — Country Road, Trenery, Witchery and Politix — played a crucial role in refining the guidelines in a commercial setting.
Sustainability Victoria’s CEO, Matt Genever, commended this multi-sector collaboration.
“It’s an example of how effective cross-sector collaboration can generate impactful results in the transition to a circular economy,” he said in the news release. “By fostering partnerships across sectors, Sustainability Victoria enables meaningful change that moves beyond theory and into real, actionable solutions.”
Erika Martin, head of sustainability at Country Road Group, reflected on the project’s impact on the company’s sustainability journey.
“This project delivered a clear vision for circular design and leveraged the expertise in the industry, academia and our own business,” she added. “The opportunity to help create guidelines based on real-life feedback and challenges and not just academic theory was a key driver for our involvement, alongside our commitment to building a better future.”
This pioneering effort by RMIT and its partners is a promising stride towards a sustainable and eco-friendly future in fashion.
Source: RMIT University