Policy Hub

As we close out the year, we are proud to reflect on the milestones achieved and progress towards advancing sustainable and circular textiles. In a nutshell, what happened? 1. We witnessed essential advancements in setting the consolidated legal framework for the Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation (#ESPR). At the Policy Hub, we prepared and shared technical guidance documents with EU institutions to support setting eco-design requirements for textiles. We also actively contributed to policy discussions defining upcoming obligations that will significantly shift how products are designed, produced, and managed within the EU. 2. We collaborated with the European Commission and stakeholders on the impact assessment for the revision of the Textiles Labelling Regulation, sharing our positions on the key priorities to be targeted by the revision. With 2025 set to be a decisive year, we look forward to actively engaging in the legislative process to shape the final #TLR revision. 3. Our work also focused on Empowering Consumers and Green Claims Directives, providing technical suggestions for the final form of rules for transparent, credible, and comparable business-to-consumer communication. Similarly, we engaged closely in reforming the Waste Framework Directive (#WFD), focusing now on trilogues discussions, emphasising the key role of harmonised EPR schemes and the need for legislative coherence between WFD and ESPR. 4. Due Diligence remained a key priority as well. We closely monitored developments on #CS3D, Forced Labour, and the Deforestation Regulation. In 2025, we will continue engagement and conversations on how to best implement the different instruments, engaging with Members and stakeholders across the global value chain to better illustrate their realities in shaping these instruments. 5. Last but not least, we opened our office in Brussels in 2024 and increased our capacity to participate in many relevant conferences, uniting the different perspectives of the textile and footwear value chain and fostering technical conversations on the sector's transition towards sustainability and circularity. Overall, this year showcased the importance of collaboration, dialogue, and shared ambition in driving meaningful change. As we transition into 2025, we remain committed to fostering progress and delivering practical solutions to help all stakeholders navigate and implement these critical frameworks. A huge thank you to our partners, colleagues, and stakeholders for their continued support and engagement. Here’s to a productive and impactful year ahead! #Sustainability #SustainableFashion #EURegulations #EUGreenDeal #Collaboration #YearInReview

Last week, on the 9th and 10th of December, the Policy Hub participated in the second  #JRC workshop on the preliminary study of apparel textiles. This study will significantly influence the upcoming #ESPR Textiles Delegated Act, expected by 2027, and the setting of the specific eco-design requirements for textiles. These discussions are critical as we collaboratively work towards eco-design regulations that reflect the complexity of the textile industry while fostering innovation. We are proud to contribute to this important initiative, bringing our knowledge and commitment to sustainability to the forefront. See some of the key takeaways below ⬇️ At the #PolicyHub, we are committed to ensuring that the complexities of the textile value chain are adequately reflected in the ESPR. We aim to support ambitious and implementable textile eco-design requirements while maintaining coherence across the regulatory landscape. Let’s continue the conversation: How can the industry collectively tackle these challenges to create a more sustainable future? 🤝 #Sustainability #EcoDesign #Textiles #CircularEconomy #Innovation

What a week for the Policy Hub! We had the privilege of participating Cascale's Brand & Retail Forum in #Brussels, and hosting policy discussions within the #EuropeanParliament to drive forward conversations on Sustainable Textiles 🇪🇺 Marina Prados Espínola participated in a panel discussion on the state of play of EU policy impacting textiles, sharing perspectives on how to collaborate better and making sure conversations revolve around technical elements based on a multidimensional dialogue. The session also delved into implementing the Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation and its interlinks with the Green Claims Directive. Together with the European Commission, Textile Exchange, FESI, and Cascale, we discussed these new instruments' opportunities, challenges, and timelines. We also explored the crucial roles of data, innovation, and communication in advancing sustainable textiles. The Policy Hub co-organised a roundtable with MEP Alice Kuhnke and MEP Saskia Bricmont on translating policy into action for the EU Strategy for Sustainable Textiles. Alongside MEP Thomas Bajada, Agata Kotkowska, and representatives from the global textile value chain, we discussed lessons learned from the previous mandate and identified key priorities for the ongoing work. This included strengthening collaboration, fostering innovation, creating a secondary raw materials market, harmonising regulations, and ensuring clear, feasible legislation that reflects diverse perspectives. Last but not least, Antoine Demarche and Andrew Martin co-hosted a roundtable allowing participants to immerse themselves in the world of the European Parliament and engage with representatives from the EPP, S&D, and Renew Europe. #SustainableTextiles #CircularEconomy #EUPolicy #EUGreenDeal #Innovation

Policy Hub was in the European Parliament in #Strasbourg last week 🇲🇫 🇪🇺 Marina Prados Espínola and Antoine Demarche engaged with key political groups during the plenary session as MEPs set their priorities for the next five years. The #plenary is always an enriching (and intense!) experience, packed with impactful discussions. Meeting so many familiar faces from EU institutions and Policy Hub members is always a pleasure. What are our key takeaways? ✍ - Textiles are part of everyone’s daily lives, yet many policymakers are still unfamiliar with the complexities of their value chain. However, MEPs are interested in #learning more about these realities.  - EU institutions strive to pair high #environmental standards with #industrial realities while reducing administrative burdens. Proof of this is the upcoming work on defining a European Competitiveness Compass and how this will be reflected in the upcoming Omnibus legislation—a clearly challenging task! - Finalising the Waste Framework Directive and Green Claims Directive—likely under the upcoming Polish Presidency—is crucial to maintaining #EUGreenDeal momentum. - The future Circular Economy Act will be a key tool for developing a secondary raw materials market for textiles in Europe. The Commission is set to work on this as one of its key priorities, but we will need to wait to see what will be its final form, with some arguing this would come in the first 100 days of the new Commission. - Ensuring #compliance with EU regulations—especially by online platforms—is a growing priority for many MEPs. Policy Hub European Parliament #Strasbourg #CircularEconomy #EUGreenDeal #SustainableFashion #Textiles

🌍 Interested to gain insights into EU legislative processes and connect with #EUpolicy experts and industry leaders? Join us at the Brand & Retail Forum on December 4-5, 2024, at the #EuropeanParliament in Brussels! Along with other industry and policy experts, Marina Prados Espínola will share key insights on navigating regulatory changes and their implications for businesses and stakeholders. In collaboration with Cascale, European policymakers, and the Policy Hub, this event provides a one-of-a-kind opportunity to: ✔️ Gain insights into EU legislative processes. ✔️ Engage with experts on topics like the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). ✔️ Collaborate on strategies to advance transparency and accountability in the consumer goods sector and learn more about the role of tools to support compliance with EU legislation. #PolicyHub #Cascale #Sustainability #BrandandRetailForum #EURegulations #ConsumerGoods

♻️ On the 12th of November, #PolicyHub participated in the event organised by T-REX Project | Textile Recycling Excellence policy event 'From Design to Recycling: Navigating ESPR Product Requirements for a Circular Economy'. It was very insightful to learn more about the first-hand insights the project partners are experiencing into how to implement a business model for recyclability and how to boost recycled content in balance with durability and other eco-design requirements. We need to boost recyclability whilst ensuring demand and a well-established secondary raw materials market. It was also a refreshing experience to jointly and constructively discuss how to boost the circularity of the sector by listening to the perspectives of all the different stakeholders and their differences. Our key conclusion is the importance of continuing to collaborate. The drive towards circularity cannot come from a single perspective but from the combination of all parties and the experience and technical realities of all actors, moving from theory to practice. #CircularEconomy #Recyclability #TextileIndustry #SustainableFashion #ESPR #TREX Fashion for Good

The recent Textile Exchange Conference 2024 marked the ‘Case for Change’. Under this theme, Textile Exchange gathered experts from the fashion, textile, and apparel industry to take actionable steps for embedding holistic raw material targets into company operations. The conference saw participation from brands, supply chain partners, material innovators, farmers, non-profit organisations, and academics, all focused on driving system-level transformation. With global fibre production reaching a record 124 million tonnes last year, as highlighted in Textile Exchange’s 2024 Materials Market Report, the conference underscored the critical need for systemic change. For over a decade, this annual report has been a critical resource for tracking global fibre and material production volumes. It plays a vital role in guiding the textile industry's efforts to reduce emissions from raw material production in alignment with the 1.5-degree Celsius climate pathway. As a key member of our Advisory Group, #TextileExchange plays an important role in supporting the work of the #PolicyHub on the sustainability and recyclability of fibres. We value this collaboration and fully support Textile Exchange's ongoing efforts to guide a growing community of farmers, manufacturers and brands towards more sustainable and purposeful production from the very beginning of the supply chain. #TextileExchange #CaseforChange #PolicyHub #Policy

We attended the launch of the Social & Labor Convergence Program Human Rights Due Diligence Toolkit 2.0, an innovative resource that enhances the ability of all relevant stakeholders to map the implications of policy implementation and identify key actions needed for effective due diligence. Implementing due diligence is a collaborative effort. This toolkit allows manufacturers, suppliers, governments, and policymakers to share knowledge and ensure alignment. More specifically, the HRDD Toolkit outlines how SLCP’s social assessment tool - the Converged Assessment Framework (CAF) - can further contribute to helping users comply with new due diligence legislation. We look forward to continuing our partnership with SLCP and leveraging its expertise to inform the Policy Hub's work on due diligence implementation.  We believe that collaboration is key to achieving meaningful impact. 🔗 Learn more about the toolkit here: https://lnkd.in/dpQCm5Se  #HumanRights #DueDiligence #Collaboration #SLCP #PolicyHub

🌟 Exciting News to Start the Week! 🌟 Policy Hub is pleased to announce Marina Prados Espínola's promotion to Director of Public Affairs. She will join Antoine Demarche as co-lead of the Hub. Since joining us in August 2023, Marina has been instrumental in advancing our key initiatives, strengthening collaboration with our members, and ensuring that Policy Hub remains a driving force in impactful advocacy for the textile industry. Her promotion is a well-deserved recognition of her remarkable contributions and dedication. This strengthened co-leadership between Marina and Antoine reflects our commitment to amplifying our presence in #Brussels and solidifying Policy Hub as a central platform for technical discussions among all stakeholders in the textile value chain. Together, we are dedicated to driving sustainability policies and engaging in political dialogues within the European Union on critical topics for manufacturers, brands and retailers, including Ecodesign for Sustainable Products (#ESPR), the reform of the Waste Framework Directive (#WFD), the Textile Labelling Regulation (#TLR), #GreenClaims, and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (#CS3D). Marina’s expertise and passion are essential as we continue our work towards a more sustainable and responsible textile and apparel industry. Please join us in congratulating Marina on this exciting new chapter! 🎉 #PolicyHub #SustainableFashion #SustainableTextile #TextileIndustry #EUPublicAffairs  

Great to see Marina Prados Espínola representing the Policy Hub at the "You Conference" organised by Transformers Foundation in Amsterdam, shedding light on the impact of EU legislation on the global textile industry 🇳🇱 🇪🇺 Her participation brought forward important discussions on ensuring that supply chain perspectives are included in EU policy-making. Simplifying the communication of policy updates, building a clear narrative, and fostering collaboration with key industry actors were some of the key takeaways. Ensuring that all voices have a seat at the table is essential for shaping a holistic framework for sustainable textiles ♻ #SustainableFashion #CircularEconomy #EUGreenDeal #DueDiligence #CS3D #ESPR