#Sustainability

2024-12-05

The Good Cashmere Conference 2025: Two-day event in Hamburg

The Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) invites you to the annual conference of The Good Cashmere Standard® (GCS), which will be held on 25 and 26 March 2025 in the historic Speicherstadt warehouse district of the Hanseatic city of Hamburg. At this event, the independent sustainability standard will bring together international experts, fashion brands, companies, and scientists to discuss the latest developments in sustainable cashmere production.

Cashmere Goats in Inner Mongolia © 2024 Aid by Trade Foundation

The focus will be on animal welfare, due diligence in the supply chain, biodiversity, and the use of virtual reality. The latter offers the opportunity to experience a GCS model farm in Inner Mongolia.

Established in 2019 by the Aid by Trade Foundation, The Good Cashmere Standard® has always been committed to sustainable cashmere production and transparent traceability for casmere fibres in the textile supply chain. As one of the world’s leading standards for sustainable cashmere, its focus is on the welfare of over four million cashmere goats and on working conditions at more than 9,000 farms. Over 50 international brands, including H&M, Galeries Lafayette, J.Crew, or The White Company, rely on GCS-verified cashmere.

Aimed at representatives of textile companies, fashion brands, cashmere producers, standards organisations, and non-governmental organisations as well as members of the textile supply chain and other stakeholders, the two-day conference will offer valuable insight into current developments and trends in the cashmere industry. It will also present an opportunity to establish new contacts and gain deeper knowledge about sustainable cashmere production.

The conference will be opened by Prof. Dr Michael Otto, the founder of the Aid by Trade Foundation, on Tuesday, 25 March, and Wednesday, 26 March 2025, in Hamburg’s historic Speicherstadt warehouse district.

More information about the conference and the event programme is available on the conference website. Direct ticket bookings can also be made there.

https://gcsconference.aidbytrade.org/

Aid by Trade Foundation publishes 2024 annual report: Growing impact for environment and people

The Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) is on a growth track. Despite a challenging global economy, AbTF increased its income by six percent from 2023 to 2024, reaching a total of EUR 8.6 million. This revenue has been invested in comprehensive measures for the sustainable production of cotton and cashmere as well as for expanded measures to ensure transparency in global value chains. In addition to gaining new partners in 2024—including big names like Mango, Nordstrom, and CWS Workwear—AbTF was able to expand its global stakeholder network active in the production of raw materials or textiles.

Aid by Trade Foundation receives Honorary Award of the German Africa Foundation 2025

On the evening of 25 June, the Hamburg-based Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) received the Honorary Award of the German Africa Foundation 2025. Prof. Dr Michael Otto, the foundation’s founder and a prominent entrepreneur, accepted the award at a ceremony held at the German Bundestag. The Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Dr Bärbel Kofler, presented the award in the presence of guests from politics, business and civil society as well as representatives of African embassies.

Aid by Trade Foundation turns 20, invests half a million Euros in new biodiversity fund

To effectively promote nature conservation and biodiversity, the Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) announced at the second Hamburg Sustainability Conference (HSC) that it would be investing 500,000 euros in the ‘AbTF Biodiversity Fund’ to mark the foundation's 20th anniversary. Since it was established in 2005 by the entrepreneur Prof. Dr Michael Otto, AbTF has been committed to transforming the textile and fashion industries.

Laly Lichtenfeld joins AbTF Board of Trustees

The Aid by Trade Foundation is pleased to welcome Laly Lichtenfeld, an internationally renowned leader in community-driven nature conservation, to its board of trustees. After years of researching community-driven conservation, including as a Fulbright Scholar in 1996, she co-founded African People & Wildlife in 2005 with the aim of promoting peaceful coexistence between rural communities and wildlife such as lions and elephants.

EU aims to advance global clean transition and implementation of the Paris Agreement at UN's COP30

At the COP30 UN Climate Change Conference in Belém, Brazil, from 10-21 November, the European Union will reaffirm its strong commitment to climate action. The EU is dedicated to paving the way toward a global transition that is clean, fair, and resilient. This transition aims to provide clean and affordable energy, create business opportunities, stimulate growth, enhance industrial competitiveness, and leave no one behind.

Indorama Ventures and Indovinya Global Leaders represent the Group at the Climate Action Innovation Zone in São Paulo

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, a global sustainable chemical company, proudly joins the Climate Action Innovation Zone taking place this year in São Paulo (SP), from November 6 to 8, held for the fifth time in parallel with the UN Climate Change Conference (COP). The event brings together global leaders, companies, and policymakers committed to accelerating industrial innovation and sustainability.

Knitex Industries Ltd. (Mondol Group) invests in advanced Mahlo technology

Bangladesh’s Knittex Industries Ltd. is known for its commitment to top-quality knitwear and responsible produc-tion. To further enhance fabric quality, the company has invested in a Mahlo Orthopac RVMC-15 weft straightener. Installed by Tootal Quality Resources, the system ensures perfect fabric alignment and supports Knittex’s goal of continuous improvement.

Room for more: experience brand diversity at Heimtextil 2026

Interior designers are planners, craftspeople, consultants and designers all at once. Many of them work alone or in small teams - under high time pressure, with a clear goal: to design rooms that are harmonious down to the last detail. This makes it all the more important to have offerings that provide guidance, open up new perspectives and support the development of holistic solutions. Heimtextil 2026, taking place from 13 to 16 January in Frankfurt, offers exactly that: a newly structured hall concept that enables targeted comparisons, saves time and provides valuable inspiration for consulting practice.

EFI and Fiery, LLC, reach agreement on Fiery acquisition of Inèdit software

Electronics For Imaging, Inc. (EFI™) today announced that it has signed an agreement for Fiery, LLC, to acquire all interests in Inèdit Software, the leading RIP and color management software company serving all brands of digital textile printers worldwide. Inèdit’s software products, including neoStampa, neoTextil and neoCatalog, serve the digital textile and specialty printing markets, and will enable Fiery to broaden its suite of solutions targeted at those markets. EFI Reggiani will continue its strong working relationship with Inèdit as an OEM partner.