Fresh off a flight from the ZDHC Impact Day in The Netherlands, John Mowbray gives a quick overview of the talking points at this week’s Amsterdam event to Philip Berman for a short 'from our own correspondent' edition of Ecotextile Talks. Subscribe to Ecotextile Talks podcasts and radio shows by following us on Apple , Spotify and Amazon Music . Also, take a look at our complete podcast archive ....
Jun 27, 2025•11 min•Season 6Ep. 9
In this episode of Ecotextile Talks our host, Philip Berman , is joined by Shivam Gusain a former innovation analyst at Fashion For Good, and now an independent consultant and writer. The conversation was inspired by his recent substack post entitled: ' Crash Testing the Circular Economy .' in which he argues that we should investe in 'failure', not just success, to reveal the real boundaries of textile-to-textile recycling. Drawing on his experience across industry, engineering, and business, S...
Jun 03, 2025•34 min•Season 6Ep. 8
In this episode, host Philip Berman sits down with Dr Talia Hussain , whose recent academic paper on circular fashion sparked lively debate across the industry. Dr Hussain, a PhD in design innovation and MBA, is known for her critical analysis on the mainstream circular fashion narrative. Together, they take a deep dive into the promises—and potential pitfalls—of circularity in the textile sector, with a particular focus on the influential 2017 Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) and its A New Text...
Apr 24, 2025•35 min•Season 6Ep. 7
In light of their 2024 Annual and Sustainability Report , Philip Berman catches up with Krishna Manda , Lenzing’s VP corporate sustainability, and Thomas Matiz , Lenzing’s global product sustainability lead, to chat about Lenzing's GHG emissions reporting, what is needed to achieve net-zero, and how Lenzing supports its customers and partners in achieving its climate goals. If you want to trace Lenzing's sustainability journey via Ecotextile Talks - do please check out our previous episodes feat...
Mar 19, 2025•38 min•Season 6Ep. 6
Host Philip Berman talks to Maxine Bedat , Executive Director at New Standard Institute, the official sponsor of the Fashion Environmental Accountability Act , a new bill introduced into the California State Assembly at the start of February 2025 which, if enacted, would become the first law in the country to require brands to engage in “environmental due diligence” concerning their products and supply chains. This Californian Bill is essentially the same as the 'New York Fashion Act' which was ...
Mar 17, 2025•24 min•Season 6Ep. 5
What's the best way to Net Zero? In this episode of Ecotextile Talks, host Philip Berman explores the pathway to net zero in the textile industry with Pauline Op de Beeck, Climate Portfolio Director at the Apparel Impact Institute, and wet processing expert and Ecotextile News contributor Phil Patterson They discuss the newly released: " Low Carbon Thermal Energy Roadmap " which provides guidance on how the textile industry can reach net zero by 2040, with a particular focus on electrification a...
Mar 11, 2025•30 min•Season 6Ep. 4
Host Philip Berman discusses the findings of a groundbreaking 2024 study on the problem of plastic leakage in the textile industry with one of its co-authors Dr. Jesse Daystar , Cotton Incorporated's Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer, and Dr. Patricia Holden , Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California , Santa Barbara. We reveal just how significant the fashion industry's contribution to global plastic pollution is, explore potential solutio...
Feb 18, 2025•38 min•Season 6Ep. 3
Host Philip Berman explores the fascinating world of biogenic carbon storage in cotton garments with Dr. Richard Venditti , from North Carolina State University , Steve Pires from Cotton Incorporated , and Emily Graham from Carhartt . Together, they delve into the climate benefits of cotton and how it can play a crucial role in the textile industry's sustainability efforts. We cover the following topics Biogenic Carbon Storage : how cotton garments can act as temporary carbon sinks, reducing gre...
Feb 11, 2025•29 min•Season 6Ep. 2
In this episode, host Philip Berman sits down with Michael Schragger, Founder & Executive Director of the Sustainable Fashion Academy, to discuss the fashion industry's complex journey towards sustainability. Fresh off the release of STICA’s Progress Report from the end of 2024, Schragger gives a unique insight into the successes and challenges Scandinavian fashion companies face striving to meet climate targets, with lessons for the whole industry.. We discuss: Surprising findings from his ...
Feb 04, 2025•37 min•Season 6Ep. 1
Our host Philip Berman sits down with Marie-Jeanne Gaertner, project and policy officer at RREUSE (Reuse and Recycling European Union Social Enterprises) to find out why the textile reuse and recycling sector in the European Union is facing an unprecedented crisis. Gaertner says that a recent open letter to the European Commission and member states, penned by RREUSE, explains why the sector is on the brink of financial collapse, with social enterprises bearing the brunt of this turmoil. She note...
Dec 18, 2024•25 min•Season 5Ep. 4
This episode of Ecotextile Talks explores the legal challenge facing fast fashion company Shein as it considers listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). In the summer UK based charity, Stop Uyghur Genocide , asked the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to reject any potential request from Shein to list on the LSE. At the moment, we don't know for sure whether Shein has submitted a request to the FCA so as we all wait, we thought that it would helpful for a lawyer to take us inside the legal ca...
Sep 30, 2024•22 min•Season 5Ep. 3
In this episode of Ecotextile Talks, we explore the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDD). This significant new European law entered into force on 25 July 2024 and will be rolled out in phases. Hosted by Philip Berman and featuring Alexander Kohnstamm , Executive Director of Fair Wear , this discussion sheds light on the critical need for companies to uphold human rights and environmental protections throughout their supply chains. Key questions covered include: How will the CS...
Sep 24, 2024•20 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Our host Philip Berman sits down with Claudia Kersten, managing director of the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) to discuss a cotton monitoring project which is literally out of this world. GOTS is working alongside the European Space Agency (ESA) and artificial intelligence specialist Marple to monitor Indian organic cotton crops from space – using AI and satellite imagery to verify farming techniques and identify fraud. The participants discuss how using satellite imagery and AI can dist...
Sep 17, 2024•19 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Fresh from his high-profile appearance at a recent US Congressional-Executive Commission on China hearing , Scott Nova, Executive Director of the Workers Rights Consortium in Washington DC, gave Philip Berman a hard-hitting interview questioning the reliability of social compliance audits in China. Scott says about auditing companies working in the Xinjiang region: "I'm sure there are some that are actually claiming that they can conclusively demonstrate the absence of forced labor in the region...
Jul 01, 2024•25 min
In the final edition of our four-part podcast series, produced in partnership with Cascale, formerly the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, we discuss the need for collective action and pre competitive collaboration to deliver real impact. Regular host Philip Berman is joined by Joyce Tsoi , senior director of the decarbonization program at Cascale, and Magnus Dorsch, Head of Corporate Sustainability, at online retail portal About You . Topics covered 2 minutes What inspires Joyce and Magnus in thei...
Apr 16, 2024•30 min
We sit down with Sean Cady, vice president of global sustainability, responsibility and trade for VF Corporation and also elected board director for Cascale, and Andrew Martin, executive vice president of Cascale for our latest podcast on decarbonising the fashion supply chain. This third of a four part podcast series, features a deep dive into how best to tackle carbon reductions in the global apparel industry and take a closer look at Cascale’s shift from tools to programmes....
Apr 09, 2024•31 min
In the second of a four part podcast series in partnership with Cascale , formerly known as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, we look at the potential impact on the textile industry of revolutionary new EU laws on green claims and eco-design. Regular host Philip Berman is joined by Elisabeth von Reitzenstein , senior director of public affairs at Cascale and Baptiste Carriere-Pradal , co-founder of the 2BPolicy consultancy. You can sign up to Cascale's public affairs newsletter, that Elisabeth ...
Apr 02, 2024•38 min
Welcome to a new four part podcast series in partnership with Cascale , formerly known as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, about the big challenges facing the industry, and Cascale's role in co-creating solutions at scale. The first episode is about Measuring for Impact with host Philip Berman in conversation with: Quentin Thorel, the Group Head of Sustainability of CIEL Textile with its HQ in Mauritius. Ciel Textiles supplies fabrics and garments to some of the most iconic fashion brands in t...
Mar 26, 2024•34 min
In the second episode of this podcast series, produced in partnership with the Apparel Impact Institute about its Climate Solutions Portfolio (CSP), we take a look at the tool it's built to help decide who should get the funding, and what a winning application looks like. As a quick re-cap, the CSP aims to find, feature and fund any initiative, project or piece of tech with the potential to reduce energy use and/or greenhouse gas emissions at scale in the industry. And it has up to 250,000 dolla...
Feb 29, 2024•32 min
In partnership with the Apparel Impact Institute , Philip Berman takes an in-depth look at its new The Climate Solutions Portfolio which aims to find, feature and fund any initiative with the potential to reduce energy use and/or greenhouse gas emissions at scale in the industry. And it has up to 250,000 dollars per year to award to projects that have the data to show they have the potential to make a big impact. In this first episode, Philip Berman was joined by Kurt Kipka , the Apparel Impact ...
Feb 22, 2024•30 min
In partnership with the Apparel Impact Institute , host Philip Berman takes an in-depth look at its new The Climate Solutions Portfolio which aims to find, feature and fund any initiative with the potential to reduce energy use and/or greenhouse gas emissions at scale in the industry. And it has up to 250,000 dollars per year to award to projects that have the data to show they have the potential to make a big impact. Launching Thursday 22nd February 6am GMT! Subscribe for free now!!...
Feb 21, 2024•1 min
To coincide with the week of World Soil Day 2023 , our third and final episode of our Threaded Together: cotton and sustainability podcast series, sponsored by Cotton Incorporated , looks at the US Climate Smart Cotton Program - a bold, new and exciting initiative in the US, which aims to measure and improve the country’s cottons’ carbon footprint. We look at what it is, how it works, who can take part, why it's needed, who benefits from it and why it's of interest to the whole value chain in th...
Dec 07, 2023•46 min•Season 5Ep. 3
In the second of this three-part podcast series: 'Threaded Together' about cotton sustainability, host Philip Berman talks to Dr Jesse Daystar, from Cotton Incorporated and Joel Mertens from the Sustainable Apparel Coalition , about the best way(s) to measure sustainability in the cotton industry and how it can drive change. Jesse and Joel discuss the purpose of a life cycle assessment (LCA), the different types and, in light of the recent KMPG review of the SAC's Higg Product Module, how they s...
Nov 30, 2023•53 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Many fashion brands and retailers talk a good game on circularity, but will they ever consistently pay a premium for materials made using 100% textile-to-textile recycling? Acting CEO of Renewcell Magnus Håkansson joins Ecotextile Talks to discuss the company's current challenges in receiving a higher price for a product offering the circularity so often discussed at textile sustainability conferences. Despite great industry excitement when Renewcell moved to a full-scale production facility ear...
Nov 22, 2023•17 min
In a new three-part sponsored series entitled, Threaded Together, podcast host Philip Berman looks at Cotton Incorporated's role in improving the sustainability of cotton in the textile industry. Cotton Incorporated a US-based, not-for-profit company, provides resources and research to help companies develop and market innovative, and profitable cotton products. It’s probably best known for its Seal of Cotton trademark which was created 50 years ago, in 1973, and has become an iconic symbol to c...
Oct 24, 2023•47 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Following a report outlining the potential benefits for fashion brands looking to integrate resale into their business model, Ecotextile Talks hears from Andy Ruben, founder of recommerce specialist Trove, who shares his insights on where the greatest opportunities lie. In a conversation dominated by statistics rather than rhetoric, Ruben speaks to Ecotextile News editor John Mowbray at an industry event in Boston to discuss how Trove worked with sustainable tech platform Worldly to identify the...
Oct 18, 2023•19 min
As a formal partnership between the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) and International Apparel Federation (IAF) is signed, a key figure involved in the collaborative process speaks to Ecotextile Talks about what the duo hope to achieve. Andrew Martin, executive vice president of the SAC, sits down with podcast host David Styles to discuss what a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the two organisations might mean for the fashion and textile industries at large. When asked about the purp...
Oct 11, 2023•16 min
In an extended episode of Ecotextile Talks , the way in which the apparel sector responds to natural disasters is placed under the microscope. Podcast host David Styles is this week joined by two guests to discuss reports which respectively shine a light on the past, present and potential future of the industry’s collective response to crises caused by catastrophes such as earthquakes or extreme weather events. First, Penelope Kyritsis from the Worker Rights Consortium discusses the findings of ...
Sep 29, 2023•37 min
The latest instalment of the Ecotextile Talks podcast series explores the motivations behind a campaign calling on the fashion industry to move away from conventional care and content labels in favour of digital alternatives. Steve Lamar, president and CEO of the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA), who is one of the most prominent industry voices behind the #CutTheTape campaign, sits down with Tom Bithell to share his views on why digital solutions such as QR codes ought to be impl...
Sep 13, 2023•18 min
Earlier this summer host Phil Berman sat down with Carolina Ledl, Lenzing’s head of product and application management, to discuss the company's ambitious plans to start producing its Ecovero-branded viscose in its manufacturing plant in Indonesia. Lenzing first launched its ‘EcoVero’ branded viscose in 2017, in response to growing a demand for more transparent viscose fibres. And with the expansion of its dope-dyed ‘Black’ version now imminent, Carolina explains what the company’s €100m expansi...
Sep 05, 2023•29 min
