Istanbul, 9 December 2026: Today, Global Fashion Agenda (GFA) announced the launch of the Circular Fashion Partnership: Türkiye, a new initiative that aims to support the development of a circular textile system in the country by capturing and recycling post-industrial textile waste. Announced during Sustainability Talks Istanbul, the partnership is led by GFA in collaboration with national lead Rematters, supported by implementation partners Reverse Resources, Closed Loop Fashion, and Circle Economy Foundation and funded by H&M Foundation
Set to commence in early 2026, the Circular Fashion Partnership: Türkiye aims to establish textile waste management systems within factories, enhance traceability through digital tools, and connect manufacturers with recyclers to ensure higher-value recovery of post-industrial textile waste. The programme will also provide supplier support on compliance with evolving policy frameworks and foster national collaboration to drive systemic change. GFA is now calling on brands producing in Türkiye to participate in the programme.
As one of the world’s leading apparel manufacturing hubs, Türkiye is uniquely positioned to scale textile-to-textile recycling due to its vertically integrated industry, proximity to the EU, and increasing regulatory pressure to reduce waste and emissions. The Circular Fashion Partnership: Türkiye will build on these strengths by developing scalable models for improved waste segregation, fibre-to-fibre recycling, and domestic recovery routes that reduce dependency on virgin materials and landfill.
The programme is part of the Global Circular Fashion Forum (GCFF), a wider initiative led by Global Fashion Agenda to advance post-industrial textile recycling through local partnerships in manufacturing regions. Building on successful implementation in Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Indonesia, the Circular Fashion Partnership: Türkiye becomes the fourth national programme to deploy this model — which has already digitally traced over 21,000 tonnes of textile waste and connected more than 100 factories and 20 global brands to recycling partners across its programmes. The locally owned and led partnership in Türkiye will be customised to the regional context, while drawing on best practices from other countries. Throughout 2026, the Circular Fashion Partnership: Türkiye will engage stakeholders across the value chain via targeted activities including on-site waste management assessments, training and capacity building through a Train-the-Trainer model, recycling pitch sessions and matchmaking events, as well as roundtables and policy dialogues with key national actors. In doing so, the partnership aims to support Türkiye in futureproofing its textile ecosystem, unlock economic value from waste, and contribute to a just, circular transition in one of the industry’s most influential sourcing regions.
Federica Marchionni, CEO, Global Fashion Agenda, said: “Türkiye represents a critical opportunity to accelerate circularity at scale. Through the Circular Fashion Partnership: Türkiye, we aim to foster local collaboration and unlock innovation that can serve as a model for textile-to-textile recycling globally. Such partnerships can establish scalable systems that not only address textile waste, but also contribute to climate goals, regulatory alignment, and long-term competitiveness. This is a vital step in our mission to support a just and circular transition.”
Learn more about the Global Circular Fashion Forum and the Circular Fashion Partnership: Türkiye at https://globalfashionagenda.org/circular-fashion-partnership/circular-fashion-partnership-turkiye/
Brands producing in Türkiye and interested in exploring how they can better manage post-industrial textile waste are invited to register their interest here.
press@globalfashionagenda.org
To register your interest in learning more about, and/or participating in the Circular Fashion Partnership Türkiye, please contact: impact@globalfashionagenda.org
About the Global Circular Fashion Forum
The Global Circular Fashion Forum (GCFF) is a global initiative established by Global Fashion Agenda (GFA). The GCFF aims to spur global and local action in textile manufacturing countries to accelerate and scale recycling of post-industrial textile waste – an effort to achieve a long-term, scalable, and just transition to a circular fashion industry.
About Global Fashion Agenda
Global Fashion Agenda (GFA) is a non-profit organisation that fosters industry collaboration on sustainability in fashion to accelerate impact. With the vision of a net positive fashion industry, it drives action by mobilising, inspiring, influencing and educating all stakeholders.
The organisation has been leading the movement since 2009 and presents the renowned international forum on sustainability in fashion, Global Fashion Summit in core fashion regions around the world. GFA influences policy through its advocacy efforts including the Global Textiles Policy Forum, publishes thought leadership including The GFA Monitor, Fashion CEO Agenda, and Fashion on Climate, implements impact programmes including the Circular Fashion Partnership and the Global Circular Fashion Forum, presents educational guidance through the GFA Academy, and connects companies with solutions through the Innovation Forum.
Working in partnership with a wide ecosystem of companies and organisations across the value chain, GFA spearheads the fashion industry’s journey towards a more sustainable future. Through its work, GFA reaches thousands of stakeholders including brands, innovators, NGOs, policymakers, manufacturers, investors, and more.
About Rematters
Rematters is a global engineering and consultancy firm focused on accelerating the transition to a circular textile economy. To increase the impact, they establish new circular value streams and drive decarbonization across the textile industry. Leveraging extensive technical and operational expertise, Rematters supports clients with a wide range of services, including innovation, sustainable business model development, and operational consulting. Rematters has a proven track record includes successful project development and implementation in key markets, such as Switzerland, France, Türkiye, Greece, and West Africa. More info on www.re-matters.com
About Closed Loop Fashion
Founded in 2011, Closed Loop Fashion serves as an established competence hub for applied sustainability and circular economy practices in the textile and apparel (T&A) industry across Asia, North Africa, and Europe. Specialising in custom-tailored projects, CLF guide brands, textile manufacturers and related organisations, focusing on environmental sustainability, climate change targets, and circular economy principles. The mission is to expedite the industry’s shift towards a cleaner, more sustainable, and circular fashion system, by piloting untapped opportunities, fostering innovation, and challenging linear resource flows. The identification of post-industrial textile waste flows, the integration of waste management systems (TWMS), resource efficiency measures, and the establishment of closed-loop material cycles through localised and global circular supply chains form the core of CLF’s strategies to promote feasible circular economy business cases.
About Circle Economy
Circle Economy is a global impact organisation with an international team of passionate experts based in Amsterdam. It empowers industries, cities, and nations with practical and scalable solutions to put the circular economy into action. Circle Economy’s vision is an economic system that ensures the planet and all people can thrive. To avoid climate breakdown, its goal is to double global circularity by 2032.
About Reverse Resources
Reverse Resources (RR) is a leading SaaS platform revolutionising the textile recycling industry. It addresses key challenges like limited access to high-quality waste, inefficient market data, and supply chain barriers. By connecting manufacturers, waste handlers, recyclers, and brands, RR provides access to waste and builds data-driven, optimised supply chains for textile-to-textile (T2T) recycling.
About H&M Foundation
H&M Foundation is privately funded by the Stefan Persson family, founders and main owners of the H&M Group. It uses philanthropic resources to find, fund and facilitate disruptive innovations, initiatives and research that enable a socially inclusive and planet positive textile industry. To accelerate the transformation, it takes on a holistic and open approach – bringing diverse partners together to co-create, and to share learnings and solutions. The H&M Foundation can also provide emergency relief. More information on www.hmfoundation.com
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