Congratulations to the winners of the Global Change Award!

On the 10th of February, HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden awarded the winners of the first Global Vhange Award, the annual innovation challenge for circular fashion which was initiated by non-profit H&M Conscious Foundation.
The award ceremony marked the beginning of a year innovation accelerator, provided by H&M Conscious Foundation, Accenture and KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. The program will help the winners in developping their ideas, focusing on three main areas: circular economy, innovation and fashion industry connection.

Karl -Johan Persson board member of the H&M Conscious Foundation

The online vote was held from 1st to 7th of February and the results are:

• €300,000: Making waste-cotton new - conversion of waste-cotton into new textile. Innovation team lead: Michael Hummel, Finland. (31% of the votes)
• €250,000: The polyester digester - using microbes to recycle waste polyester textile. Innovation team lead: Akshay Sethi, U.S. (22% of the votes)
• €150,000: An online market for textile leftovers - a marketplace for industrial upcycling of spill in production. Innovation team lead: Ann Runnel, Estonia. (18% of the votes)
• €150,000: 100 percent citrus - creating new textile out of citrus juice production by-products. Innovation team lead: Enrica Arena, Italy. (15% of the votes)
• €150,000: 100 percent citrus - creating new textile out of citrus juice production by-products. Innovation team lead: Enrica Arena, Italy. (15% of the votes)
• €150,000: Growing textile fibre under water - utilizing algae to make renewable textile. Innovator: Tjeerd Veenhoven, the Netherlands. (14% of the votes)

“This prestigious grant will allow us to lift our technology closer to an industrially viable level. Now we will focus on the further development of technical details, in particular the solvent recovery to ensure economic competitiveness and complete environmental friendliness of our process, says Michael Hummel, spokesperson for the Finnish team behind Making waste-cotton new - conversion of waste-cotton into new textile.

All winners of the Global Change Award, 

HRH Crown Princess of  Victoria of Sweden,

Karl-Johan Persson and Erik Bang