On 19 November 2025, SOLSTICE held its first regional event in Prato, Italy. The event was organised by Textile ETP with Next Technology Tecnotessile (NTT) and co-hosted with the RegioGreenTex project. Both projects belong to the ECOSYSTEX community, so they chose to pool their efforts in one joint event instead of holding two separate ones. The half-day programme brought together 82 participants from industry, research, policy and regional authorities from across Italy and Europe.
After a welcome from Textile ETP and a keynote from the European Commission on EU funding for sustainable textiles, SOLSTICE presented its overall objectives and its 5R approach: Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Recycle and Repurpose. The next session focused on Prato. Circle Economy shared the results of the Prato regional study, GreenApes presented the city’s gamification app that rewards citizens for sustainable actions, and NTT reported progress on scaling up elastane chemical recycling. A closing panel with the European Commission, Axel’One, EURATEX and Confindustria Toscana Nord discussed how European and regional initiatives can work together to speed up the transition to a circular textile economy.
The day ended with a guided visit to Lanificio Faliero Sarti, a historic Prato textile manufacturer. Participants saw how the company uses recycled wool and regenerated fibres, recovers production leftovers, and cuts its energy, water and chemical use.
Photos from the event are available on Textile ETP’s Flickr.
