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Learning by doing

Future-ready textiles: signals, scenarios & strategic pathways for systemic transition

What we do Learning by doing Future-ready textiles

Europe’s textile sector is already in transition. The signals are visible: in regulation, in materials, in consumer expectations, in the way value chains are being restructured. Is your organisation ready to navigate it?

Climate KIC’s insight report draws on the Future-ready textiles workshop series taking place in 2025. The three-part programme brought together over 55 participants from textile manufacturing, fashion brands, research, policy and civil society across Poland, Spain, Italy and beyond. Together, we mapped the forces reshaping the system, stress-tested three plausible futures to 2035, and explored where coordinated action can unlock real transformation.

The result is a system-level perspective designed to support industry leaders, associations, policymakers and ecosystem actors in making strategic choices.

Insights report

Future-ready textiles: signals, scenarios & strategic pathways for systemic transition

Download the full report

What the report covers

Drawing on signals of change, scenario planning to 2035 and cross-value-chain dialogue, the report explores:

Five clusters of signals indicating the system is already shifting: From circularity and next-generation materials to digitalisation, decarbonisation and social innovation
Three plausible scenarios for the textile sector in 2035 and their strategic implications, including what changes for business models, skills, partnerships and investment
Where opportunities cluster for coordinated action across value chains and why a portfolio approach outperforms fragmented initiatives
The transition skills gap and why systemic and transformational capabilities are the missing link that technical skills alone cannot fill
Real-world case studies from Human Material Loop, VIVE Group and Droppie, organisations already building on the emerging side of the system

The challenges are systemic, not only technical.

Environmental degradation, overproduction, social inequality and compliance pressure are deeply interconnected. Addressing them requires coordinated interventions across behaviour, finance, policy, skills and infrastructure, not isolated solutions or stand-alone projects.

Who this is for

This report is for you if you are navigating the textile transition and want a clearer picture of where the system is heading.

Industry leaders and manufacturers

If you are responsible for strategy, sustainability or innovation in a textile company or fashion brand, this report gives you a system-level map of the forces reshaping your sector and where strategic opportunities are forming.

Industry associations and ecosystem actors

If you work across the value chain or support others who do, this report provides shared language and evidence for coordinating action that goes beyond isolated projects.

Policymakers and researchers

If you are shaping the regulatory, financial or knowledge environment for textile transition, this report surfaces what practitioners across Europe are identifying as the real barriers and leverage points.

Future programme participants

If you are interested in developing the capabilities to navigate this transition, read on. We are planning the next edition of Future-Ready Textiles. You can register your interest below.

About this report

This report was developed by Climate KIC’s Industry and Value Chains team and Learning team, drawing on insights from the Future-Ready Textiles workshop series and multi-stakeholder focus groups conducted in 2025. Participants included industry associations, manufacturers, fashion brands, textile recyclers, researchers and NGOs from across Europe.

Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Free to share for non-commercial purposes with attribution to Climate KIC.