New Upstream Circularity Playbook provides a blueprint for scaling textile recycling in manufacturing countries

Global Fashion Agenda (GFA), with support from Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the H&M Foundation, has launched the Upstream Circularity Playbook, now available in six languages. The comprehensive resource draws on case studies across multiple countries to provide a globally accessible, step-by-step guide for garment manufacturing regions.

The Upstream Circularity Playbook draws on over 20 case studies from regions such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia and Vietnam, providing an international and regional perspective across the fashion industry. The examples showcase successful collaborations between brands, manufacturers, recyclers and textile waste collectors, offering a replicable model for scaling circular solutions.

The playbook provides essential tools for:

• Segregating textile waste at the factory level to prevent contamination and enhance recycling quality.
• Leveraging digital traceability platforms to track waste flows and align with recycler requirements.
• Collecting, aggregating and sorting textile waste to ensure it is properly prepared and delivered to recyclers.
• Matching textile waste to the most suitable recycling technologies.
• Designing for circularity by incorporating recycled materials into new products.

“The Upstream Circularity Playbook is a vital tool for embedding circularity across the fashion value chain on a global scale. By prioritizing innovation and value creation in key manufacturing regions, we are using post-industrial waste to build the infrastructure needed to attract and scale recyclers, ultimately preparing these regions for post-consumer waste recycling and driving meaningful change worldwide,” says Federica Marchionni, CEO of GFA.

With contributions from over 20 experts and organizations, the playbook provides a blueprint for fostering economic, environmental and social benefits in garment manufacturing regions and emphasizes collaboration across the value chain to achieve a scalable solution for textile-to-textile recycling.

Download the Upstream Circularity Playbook here.