With the increasing awareness of environmental protection, people nowadays want to live a greener lifestyle, which makes the sustainable development of the textile and fashion industry that much more of a concern.
Eco-friendly farming: The Fashion Future Lab’s “Farm-to-Garment” project utilises a hydroponic cotton farming system, which significantly reduces water consumption by up to 90%. Source from news.gov.hk
In the view of this trend, The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles & Apparel (HKRITA) partnered with a non-profit organisation to establish Open Lab, a 20,000 sq ft research and development space. Open Lab aims to develop solutions for the textile, clothing and fashion industry to address climate change by showcasing innovative solutions, providing a collaborative platform and contributing to problem-solving and resource optimisation.
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Eco-friendly farming: The Fashion Future Lab’s “Farm-to-Garment” project utilises a hydroponic cotton farming system, which significantly reduces water consumption by up to 90%. Source from news.gov.hk
Limitless opportunities: Different from traditional soil-based farming, hydroponic farms and related production lines can be located near cities, which in turn reduces carbon emissions from transportation. Source from news.gov.hk
Fibre-to-fibre recycling: The Pilot Plant, an industrial-scale recycling line, utilises the Green Machine 2.0 as a way to recover polyester fibres for re-spinning into new yarn products. Source from news.gov.hk
Fostering collaboration: The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles & Apparel Director (Business Development) Katherine Chan hopes the Open Lab will step up collective efforts and promote further advancements in sustainable practices across the industry. Source from news.gov.hk
The large space features two primary components, the Fashion Future Lab and the Pilot Plant.
The lab is a modular research space used for focusing on emerging and forward-thinking ideas. Its modular design is beneficial for the development of flexible and adjustable solutions to meet the market’s fast-changing needs.
The HKRITA highlights that the lab serves as a platform for innovations to be developed into scalable applications, ensuring that research outcomes are market-ready.
Limitless opportunities: Different from traditional soil-based farming, hydroponic farms and related production lines can be located near cities, which in turn reduces carbon emissions from transportation. Source from news.gov.hk
Eco-friendly production
The first project presented in the Fashion Future Lab is “Farm-to-Garment”, which is a location-independent production line consisting of a hydroponics cotton farming system.
Traditional cotton farming is a soil-based cultivation method which relies on soil to provide nutrients and water to plants. It uses significant amount of water for irrigation. The lab utilises vertical hydroponic techniques, which is a soilless cultivation method where plants are grown in nutrient-rich water solutions.
Nutrients are directly delivered to the plant roots through water. This means that any water that is not absorbed by the plants can be reused, which significantly reduces water consumption, by up to 90%.
In addition, the hydroponic farming method provides controlled environments for continuous cropping. Plus, this type of farm can be located near cities, thus reducing carbon emissions from transportation.
At the same time, the small production line was set up at the lab to showcases its strength at being a one-stop shop for the textile industry.
After the cotton is harvested, it undergoes various processes, such as opening and drawing, to produce yarn for making clothes.
Fibre-to-fibre recycling: The Pilot Plant, an industrial-scale recycling line, utilises the Green Machine 2.0 as a way to recover polyester fibres for re-spinning into new yarn products. Source from news.gov.hk
Efficient upcycling
Another key feature of Open Lab is the Pilot Plant, which is an upcycling line featuring a smart garment sorting system for recycling, and the Green Machine 2.0, which separates mixed fibres.
The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles & Apparel Director (Business Development) Katherine Chan explained that cotton and polyester blended material is the most commonly used material in textile products.
“So we created Green Machine, using hydrothermal technology, to recover the polyester fibres in textiles. Then, we can do fibre-to-fibre recycling.
“The separated fibres are ready for re-spinning into new yarn products while the cellulose powders, decomposed from the cotton, can be reused for other purposes. As such, it forms a circular production system.”
With the upgraded Green Machine 2.0, the system has the capacity to recycle around a tonne of material daily. The research institute hopes that by demonstrating the feasibility and benefits of circular production, it can inspire and encourage the textiles and apparel industry to adopt similar practices to combat climate change.
Fostering collaboration: The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles & Apparel Director (Business Development) Katherine Chan hopes the Open Lab will step up collective efforts and promote further advancements in sustainable practices across the industry. Source from news.gov.hk
Achieving sustainability
Open Lab officially opened in September. The HKRITA described the establishment of the lab as marking a significant milestone in leading the textile and fashion industry toward a more resilient future.
The organisation also stated that Open Lab drives collective efforts and further advancements in sustainable practices across the industry.
TOKYO (AP) — The kimono, that elaborate, delicate wrap-around garment worn by geisha and samurai from centuries back, is getting a vibrant remake, appreciated these days for a virtue that’s more relevant than ever: sustainability.
A genuine silk kimono, which literally means “worn thing,” lasts a hundred years or more. In a Japanese family, it’s handed down over generations like heirloom jewelry, artworks and military medals.
It never goes out of style.
The design of the kimono and accompanying “obi” sash has remained basically the same since the 17th century Edo period depicted in Akira Kurosawa samurai movies.
But today, some people are taking a different creative approach, refashioning the traditional kimono, and also taking apart and resewing them as jackets, dresses and pants.
“I noticed that a lot of beautiful kimono is just sleeping in people’s closets. That’s such a waste,” said Mari Kubo, who heads a kimono-remake business called K’Forward, pronounced “K dash forward.”
Hers is among a recent surge in such services, which also turn old kimono into tote bags and dolls.
The most popular among Kubo’s products are “tomesode,” a type of formal kimono that is black with colorful, embroidered flowers, birds or foliage at the bottom.
She also creates matching sets, or what she calls “set-ups.” A tomesode is turned into a jacket with its long, flowing sleeves intact, and its intricate patterns placed at the center in the back. She then takes a kimono with a matching pattern to create a skirt or pants to go with the top. Sometimes, an obi is used at the collar to add a pop of color.
Kubo said many of her customers are young people who want to enjoy a kimono without the fuss.
A remade kimono at K’Forward can cost as much as 160,000 yen ($1,000) for a “furisode,” a colorful kimono with long sleeves meant for young unmarried women, while a black tomesode goes for about 25,000 yen ($160).
What Tomoko Ohkata loves most about the products she designs using old kimonos is that she doesn’t have to live with a guilty conscience, and instead feels she is helping solve an ecological problem.
“I feel the answer was right there, being handed down from our ancestors,” she said.
Recycling venues in Japan get thousands of old kimonos a day as people find them stashed away in closets by parents and grandparents. These days, Japanese generally wear kimonos just for special occasions like weddings. Many women prefer to wear a Western-style white wedding dress rather than the kimono, or they wear both.
Many of Ohkata’s clientele are people who have found a kimono at home and want to give it new life. They care about the story behind the kimono, she added.
Her small store in downtown Tokyo displays various dolls, including a figure of an emperor paired with his wife, who are traditionally brought out for display in Japanese homes for the Girls’ Day festival every March 3. Her dolls, however, are exquisitely dressed in recycled kimonos, tailored in tiny sizes to fit the dolls. They sell for 245,000 yen ($1,600) a pair.
The original old-style kimono is also getting rediscovered.
“Unlike the dress, you can arrange it,” says Nao Shimizu, who heads a school in Japan’s ancient capital of Kyoto that teaches people how to wear a kimono and how to carry oneself while wearing it.
“In half a year, you can learn how to do it all by yourself,” she said, briskly demonstrating several ways to tie the obi to express different moods, from playful to understated.
Besides its durability, said Shimizu, that versatility also makes the kimono sustainable.
Younger Japanese are taking a more relaxed view, wearing a kimono with boots, for instance, she laughed. Traditionally, kimono is worn with sandals called “zori.”
Although it requires some skill to put on a kimono in the traditional way, one can take lessons from teachers like Shimizu, like learning a musical instrument. Professional help is also available at beauty parlors, hotels and some shops.
Most Japanese might wear a kimono just a few times in their lives. But wearing one is a memorable experience.
Sumie Kaneko, a singer who plays the traditional Japanese instruments koto and shamisen, often performs wearing flashy dresses made of recycled kimonos. The idea of sustainability is deeply rooted in Japanese culture, she says, noting that the ivory and animal hide used in her musical instruments are now hard to obtain.
She calls it “the recycling of life.”
“The performer breathes new life into them,” says the New York-based Kaneko.
“In the same way, a past moment — and those patterns and colors that were once loved — can come back to life.”
Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama
This story has been corrected in the “Reuse and recycle” section to note that the male doll depicts an emperor, not a samurai.
FILE - Young adults arrive at a venue to celebrate the Coming-of-Age Day, a centuries-old tradition and national holiday marking the milestone from childhood to adulthood, Jan. 12, 2026, in Yokohama near Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)
Nao Shimizu, Representative Director of Kimono Sunao Co., Ltd., left, demonstrates various ways of tying an obi on assistant Emiko Terai during a kimono presentation in Tokyo Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Nao Shimizu, Representative Director of Kimono Sunao Co., Ltd., left, demonstrates various ways of tying an obi on Emiko Terai during a kimono presentation in Tokyo on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Dolls dressed in miniature kimonos made by designer Tomoko Ohkata from recycled kimonos are pictured in Tokyo, on Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)
Nao Shimizu, Representative Director of Kimono Sunao Co., Ltd., left, demonstrates various ways of tying an obi on dressing assistant Emiko Terai during a kimono presentation in Tokyo on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A woman displays a kimono in Tokyo Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Designer Tomoko Ohkata, left, and her assistant Koki Unami hold Ohkata's designs made from old kimono, in Tokyo, on Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)
