WHAT’S INSIDE
Top stories and what you’ll find in our newsletter this month:
● Why is textile recycling not taking off? Would you use black ink from sewage sludge? Can AI be used to optimize seaweed for bio-leather or to make physical objects? So many questions, interesting answers and explorations in our What we’re reading section.
● The VETRINE project is approaching its end, with the final conference in Paris on June 4, and student works that give you the opportunity to vote and send one of them to Paris coming up soon!
OUR PROJECTS
FABRIX
Ecosystex Insight series April 17
The Insights Series organised by ECOSYSTEX are webinars that bring together innovative projects shaping the future of textile sustainability and circularity. Join Cedecs-TCBL staff Marion Real and FABRIX partner Young Kim (Erasmus University) as they speak about how facilitator roles in local value chain communities can accelerate the transition to sustainable, regenerative T&C ecosystems. We will also hear from projects SorTex, CIRTECHTEX and CISUTAC. The webinar is open to everyone! Sign up here.
VETRINE
Get ready to VOTE! From April 14-28, you’ll be able to vote for the best sustainable products designed by graduates of the Erasmus+ VETRINE course who took part in a mentored process to design a new item of clothing or accessory. Participants in Spain, Portugal, Bulgaria and Greece have gotten creative with textiles and shapes and we need you to help evaluate their work! The winners will join us in Paris at our final conference (save the date - June 4). We’ll likely send a dedicated newsletter to remind you to vote at the website vetrine.eu.
TCBL MEMBER NEWS
Member profile: The Making Rooms
Introducing a new Lab member in TCBL: The Making Rooms is a public makerspace and digital fabrication lab in Blackburn (UK) where anyone can learn practical skills and turn ideas into real things. Their workshop offers 3D printing, laser cutting, electronics, coding, ceramics, device repair and more. Sustainability is central, championing repair over replacement, reuse of materials and exploration of recycling and biomaterials. The new Fabric Lab within The Making Rooms offers hands-on community training that blends textile design, digital fabrication, and sustainability, exploring biomaterials, fibre recycling, and traditional craft with modern tech to drive circular economy impact. As members of the TCBL Association, they look forward to co-creating pilots and collaborations that revive local heritage for sustainable futures.
Community Cloth
The Erasmus+ project Community Cloth, in which our members Saber Fazer are partners, has come to a close. They produced educator handbooks on natural dyeing and on wool, as well as handbook of educational activities. We are happy to include these outputs amongst our list of recommended TCBL Resources on this page of our website.
WHAT WE’RE READING
- The NEB Fashion Adaptor Program, organised by EIC Culture and Creativity, was officially launched in Paris at Atelier Néerlandais. Twelve participating brands presented their transitions towards more circular and sustainable fashion, engaging in discussions with academics, industry stakeholders, investors, and policy makers. Maria Angela Lavanga represented Erasmus University and the NEB, while Marianna Maglara attended the event on behalf of TCBL and contributed this article.
- Never mind industry 4.0 and 5.0, in Germany they’re already at 7.0 with Textile Factory 7.0, a "real-world laboratory" in Mönchengladbach to test energy efficiency, AI-robotics, and biotechnology in a live production environment. The project aims to model zero-emission textile production for 2035, supported by the German Federal Ministry of Research. Read about the kick-off event.
- The next step in AI will be to turn your thoughts into physical objects, which is what Phyzify — a new startup by Alexander Reben — does. This starts to bridge the gap between artistic creativity, the screen and the real world. To get started, they’re primarily working with fabric looms to transform AI-based concepts to physical products. Here’s a good analysis of the product launch and its critical response.
- A
new black ink from sewage sludge: Rethink Black is a water and plant-based screen printing formula free of PVC, phthalates and volatile organic compounds. Most screen printing inks rely on plastisol and solvents that emit VOCs and introduce PVC polymers into clothing. The new formula allows printers to apply layers without drying between colors, saving time and energy and is certified safe for baby clothing. We see a bit of a marketing challenge, though.
- AI seaweed? Amongst the Top 20 global finalists of the 2026 Global Change Award by H&M is KelTex, a startup developing biodegradable bio-leather made from seaweed grown along the coast of Tanzania. Beyond materials innovation, the model integrates AI-enabled sensor systems to optimise seaweed farming conditions, improving yield while supporting local coastal livelihoods. They are one of two
African innovators amongst the finalists.
- Why is textile-to-textile recycling not taking off? Legislation is targeting unsold stock, not the post-consumer volumes these plants actually need. But brands have a simpler option — bypass the sorting problem by working with retailers to collect identified products at the point of sale. It's not a sustainability cost. It's a customer engagement opportunity that also happens to solve the feedstock gap.
- Nobody loves KPIs. Employees of Le Bon Coin, controlled by Blackstone and Permira through the parent company Adevinta, complain of fear and stress in the workplace as they are forced to transition from a model based on confidence and autonomy to a more indicator-driven model. Since 2022, this problem has been affecting a lot of tech companies. Here’s the story (in French).
AGENDA
CREDITS
Editors: Alexandra Korey, Frédérique Thureau, Jean-Renaud Cuaz
Contributor: Marianna Maglara
Photos: Project photos and TCBL Member
News photos © TCBL Association
Copyright: Online programming © 2026 Audasud
