Circular solutions for the textile industry
Glaukos will develop innovative textile fibres and textile coatings that reconcile an excellent environmental performance with adequate technical characteristics. The focus lies on two important contributors to the (micro)plastic pollution in our oceans: fishing gear and clothing. The complete life cycle of these textiles will be redesigned: their sustainability performance (i.e. biodegradability and bio-recyclability) will be enhanced significantly, while their technical performance will be matched to end-user requirements. Glaukos builds upon i) triggerable biodegradability as key concept in polymer design to mitigate textile-based microplastics pollution, and ii) bio-recycling as sustainable end-of-life solution. In addition, the supply chain distance is substantially reduced by scaling up a disruptive way of producing the main polymer building block from several bio-based feedstocks. The underlying objective of Glaukos is to reduce the carbon and the plastic footprint of clothing and fishing gear.

Stakeholder engagement is an integral part of the project: i) Stakeholder Labs will be set up to involve end-users from the clothing and fishing gear industry (e.g. to match technical requirements), ii) consumer awareness will be raised via e.g. influencer marketing, and iii) the fishing gear industry will be supported as regards to Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) on fishing gear litter. New Life Cycle Assessment methods will be developed to better assess the plastic footprint of textile value chains. Finally, integrated methods to assess the biodegradability and ecotoxicity of microplastics in marine environments will be developed and their standardization initiated. 

(* Glaukos is the Greek sea god of fishermen. He was commonly believed to protect the oceans, as is the ambition of this project by developing innovative alternatives for textiles that are currently polluting our oceans.)