A trip towards a net-zero textile industry as H&M Foundation has opened nominations for the Global Change Award (GCA) 2026 on 1 September. The annual innovation challenge supports the bold changemakers working to recreate fashion.
H&M Foundation has opened nominations for the Global Change Award (GCA) 2026, demanding responsible production, arbitrary consumption, permanent materials and initial stage innovations in wildcards. In partnership with mills fabric, the award aims to accelerate transformational solutions such as bio-based fiber, AI-driven design and recycling.
Every year, new ideas emerge to change how fashion is made, used, and is valuable. “Every new year when nominations open up, a lot has happened in the world since the last round; we look at more opportunities through new challenges, needs, technical breaks. I am always eager to see the ability that is out of there, and new disruptive ideas that passionmakers are sitting now,” Program Director for Innovation at Annie Lindmark, H&M Foundation.
For the year 2026, the GCA is demanding initial stage innovations in four categories: how to create responsible production-to make fashion; Mentioning consumption – how we use and value fashion, redefine it again; Durable materials and procedures – re -establish fiber and methods; And wildcards – transformative ideas with unexpected, disruptive capacity.
Applicants can also apply through an official enrolled and prolonged GCA partner mills fabric with the hub in Hong Kong and London. The H&M Foundation stated in a release that the mills, located at the intersection of stability, technology and textiles, often helps ignore fabric surface bold ideas by traditional industry channels.
“We are really excited to move forward to the creative, flexible, and objective-operated innovators-especially those who are with a deep root commitment to the scale and the desire to challenge the status quo,” Cintia Nunes, General Manager and Head of Asia in Mills FabricTells
The enrollment model has already diversified the winning profile and has expanded the global access to the award. Further, Lindmark expressed enthusiasm for more ‘wildcard’ submission, while Syticia of GCA highlighted opportunities in robotics for bio-based fiber, circular materials, AI-driven design, post-conjumer recycling and localized, demand-free manufacturing.
The aim of the 2026 version is to accelerate innovations that can run systemic changes in fashion stability travel, with courage to recreate the industry with the courage to recreate the industry.
“It is necessary to support the innovation of the initial stage as it is where the seeds of radical change begin,” Sintia said.
Annie concluded,
Fibre2fashion News Desk (HU)
