In the fall of 2020, the AVDF awarded a grant to Conservation X Labs (CXL) to support their Microfiber Innovation Challenge. Through the Challenge, CXL solicited solutions to halt microfiber pollution. Microfiber shedding impacts both human and planetary health, and stopping microfiber pollution will require system-wide changes to the way textiles are manufactured and processed.
To address this growing global problem, CXL launched the Challenge to solicit ideas to replace plastic in textiles and/or prevent microfiber shedding by replacing textiles that are sources of plastic microfibers or improving the textile manufacturing process to reduce shedding. After reviewing applications from 24 countries, CXL has now announced 26 semi-finalist projects.
According to Dr. Alex Dehgan, CEO and Co-Founder of CXL, “Innovations like those developed by the Microfiber Innovation Challenge semi-finalists are exciting because they are replacing sources of plastic pollution with sustainable alternatives.”
The semi-finalist projects include the creation of new natural fibers to replace synthetics as well as innovations related to processing and wastewater filtration among many other ideas. The semi-finalist projects will now advance to the next round of review with finalists selected in December 2021. Winning projects which will share in a $650,000 prize fund and will be announced in early 2022.
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