Researcher Network for a Green Transition of the Fashion Industry
It was when Lund University participated with a application to the EU's major innovation initiative KIC (Knowledge Innovation Community) for the cultural and creative industries (KKN) as it became clear that KKN is part of all parts of Lund University. This is especially evident in the work on the transformation of the fashion and textile industries. That is why Lund University wants to build a network of researchers so that it will be possible to work with the textile transformation by finding surfaces that are interesting to transform together. With the help of university deans, the steering group has contributed to a list of 80 researchers from all nine faculties, all of whom could relate to the field of fashion and textiles. To date, about 25 of these are active in the network which now brings together researchers in packaging logistics, trade, industrial design, consumption, materials, fashion science, history, biotechnology, chemical engineering and food, among others. In March, there was a meeting at Future by Lund's premises, and the meeting was arranged together with Lund University's Collaboration Department and Fashion Innovation Center.
- Our hope is that the researchers will find each other across faculty boundaries, says Charlotte Lorentz Hjorth. There are perhaps not so many of those who are here who would initially see themselves as fashion researchers. It will be exciting to see where we find the intersecting surfaces and discover what collaborations might be possible. Now we can see that Lund is becoming a “fashion university” — in a broad sense.
Klas Hjort and Daniel Hellström are researchers in trade and packaging logistics and both have been active in the network from an early age. Outside the university there is the company Fashion Innovation Center, represented at the meeting by Lars Mattiasson, with the opportunity to help build external partnerships. Together, they want to create opportunities for researchers, including in project form, to step into different contexts to help the industry achieve a transformation.
- I see innovation projects with the industry as one of the ways forward to solve our major climate challenges, says Daniel Hellström, Associate Professor of Packaging Logistics at Design Sciences, LTH. In addition, in the role of researcher, innovation projects are an excellent context for carrying out knowledge development that contributes to a high impact. The pooling of our expertise at the university is needed to accelerate the sustainable transition.
An example of a project in which both faculties and the industry are involved is in the work on digital labelling of garments (tagging).
- From 2026, the EU will require digital product passports for all garments. The aim is to steer the market towards transparency, measurability and traceability,” says Lars Mattiasson. Can we use this to measure resources/circularity in new ways? What incentives are needed to create behavioral change in consumers? The questions are many and we are at the beginning of this and do not yet know what happens when you get new type of data from tagged garments. Therefore, we want to test already now by tagging up students' clothes and collecting data to see what completely new knowledge can mean for the industry.
A small group consisting of the Fashion Innovation Center, the cultural incubator XPlot, Future by Lund and Lund University has also been formed to create innovation portfolios. It is hoped that cooperation between the different faculties will give rise to something completely new, such as combining cultural and creative industries with technical issues and opportunities.
- We want to connect large and small companies with researchers and act as a switchboard function, says Charlotte Lorentz Hjorth. One such area is when you combine fashion with the computer game industry and the film and media industry. Another example is when electronics are integrated into clothing or other body-worn equipment. In the long run, this will mean new jobs — but first we also need to understand what training courses we are going to offer. The more we link up with Europe, the more requests we get. We need to have a common understanding of how to work with the green transition while also seeing what opportunities arise for us.
Are you a researcher and interested in participating in the Fashion @LU network? Contact Lars Palm at LU Samverkan