MODELLING SUSTAINABILITY: Global Report from Sweden Textile Water Initiative Projects

Textile manufacturing is amongst the largest industrial users of water and is poised for transformation. In order to inspire this transformation towards a water wise future, the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) and Sustainability Outlook have teamed up to move beyond anecdotes and share fact-based trends on how the textile industry is evolving in some key production centres, based on data and information gathered, analysed and collated from the Sweden Textile Water Initiative’s Global Projects. Through 'Modelling Sustainability' we also hope to inform you on how manufacturers are taking steps towards short-term resource efficiency. This first edition of the report is based on information from two key sources: 

• Data obtained from the STWI Programme where we are closely working with 80+ factories in China, India, Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Turkey 
• Inputs from field practitioners and experts who are actively engaged in the STWI

This report provides a glimpse of STWI’s global benchmark database, putting such high-level data in the public domain for the first time. 

It captures the 2015 policy action in major textile manufacturing countries like China, India, and Bangladesh etc which are helping textile sector in their respective countries to move towards sustainable manufacturing: be it the Zero Liquid Discharge mandate in India or the Water 10 Action Plan in China. Policy may be at different stages of evolution, but there are learnings that across geographies. It also showcases an example of how Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) has been made a reality.

This issue contains interviews of participants of STWI’s award-winning pilot SWAR, which provide insights into the practicalities of collaboration among competing brands and manufacturers on establishing a common learning platform.

To read the entire report click here

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions regarding this report, please feel free to contact us

Aparna Khadelwal, Sustainability Outlook: akhandelwal@sustainabilityoutlook.in

Rami Abdelrahman, Programme Manager, STWI Projects: rami.abdelrahman@siwi.org

To receive the reports, get engaged or to learn more about the on-going work related to Resource Sustainability, please email us at mait@sustainabilityoutlook.in (Market Access & Insights Team at Sustainability Outlook)