On March 14, 2025, the Textile Center Haslach (TZH) and the Institute for Applied Arts Research (IAGF) hosted a dynamic networking event titled “WASTE! Rethinking Textile Waste”, as part of the EU Interreg project SYMCRAFT.
The one-day event brought together 136 participants from the fields of industry, design, crafts, and higher education. The goal was clear: to foster collaborative, future-oriented solutions for the reuse of industrial textile waste and to highlight the value of cross-sector dialogue in building a circular textile economy.
A key highlight was the participation of 20 Austrian textile companies, which provided actual waste materials from their production processes. These materials served not only as case studies for discussion, but also as tangible starting points for experimentation and reuse.
Throughout the day, attendees engaged in an inspiring program of presentations and discussions. Speakers included:
- Lara Wernert (13 Rugs), who demonstrated how selvage edges can be transformed into unique carpets.
- Christian Schimper (FH Wiener Neustadt), offering insights into textile recycling and sustainability projects.
- Ute Ploier (Fashion & Technology, University of Art and Design Linz), who spoke about designing with secondary raw materials.
- Additional contributions came from industry and research experts such as Reinhard Backhausen, Marina Crnoja-Cosic (Textile ETP), and the team from Manaomea.
A particularly engaging part of the event were the Material Stations, where the donated textile waste was displayed, discussed, and made available to interested designers and craft professionals. Using special vouchers, attendees could select and take materials home to explore new ideas aligned with circular principles.
The event also had a strong academic dimension. Thanks to close collaboration with art universities in Linz, Salzburg, and Vienna, the SYMCRAFT project topic has been integrated into curricula for the upcoming semesters. Students from design and fashion programs are already working with the material packages they collected during the event — the first step in a hands-on, solution-oriented learning journey.
In summary, the SYMCRAFT networking event was not only a project milestone, but a successful demonstration of how waste can be reframed as a resource when diverse stakeholders come together. The enthusiasm, curiosity, and expertise shared at Haslach will continue to ripple outward in the form of student projects, design experiments, and further industry collaboration.
The SYMCRAFT team remains closely involved, documenting progress and looking forward to showcasing outcomes in future events.