A recent New York Times article titled, “Climate Report Card Says Countries Are Trying, but Urgently Need Improvement,” noted that while the rate of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGe) has slowed, it needs to drop some 60 percent by 2035 to keep global warming at safer levels.

Is fashion at the cusp of a philosophical shift? Post-pandemic, we’ve emerged from athleisure, but comfort remains key. While fast-fashion pumps out fodder for the landfills, sustainability drives textile innovation.

In January 2022, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) targeted the textile industry when it identified more than 1,500 textile mills that may be problem PFAS polluters in EWG’s analysis of 29,900 U.S. industrial sites.

Most of us are somewhat familiar with textile recycling, with recycled polyester, and recycled nylon, well-commercialized, yet the share of post-consumer textile waste recycled into new textiles is shocking — less than 0.5 percent in 2021, according to Textile Exchange.

The concentration of CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere has risen some 47 percent since the beginning of the industrial age, and 11 percent over the past 20 years alone, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Technology that brings sustainability to the table with ambitious innovation and appealing aesthetics is the order of the day when it comes to satisfying the desires and demands of the performance textiles marketplace currently.

Dyeing and finishing — the wet processing stage of textile manufacturing — has historically been a dirty business. The Tier 2 stage of the textile supply chain (which includes pre-treatment, coloration, and finishing) makes up 52 percent of the industry’s GHG emissions, according to...

Textile technologies for performance apparel seem to pop up at a rapid pace these days from academic labs and tech startups. And that’s a good thing. But the road to commercialization—and ultimately profitability—relies on a number of factors...

Sustainability has sparked a surge in responsible developments in functional fabrications in recent years, and continues to serve as a strong market driver. Yet despite recent advances in PFC-free and bio-based textile solutions, belief remains, that going “green” means giving up performance.

Tech products for team sports are changing the game. Here are 12 of them as chosen by Team Insight editors.

For decades team dealers have focused on developing and maintaining personal relationships with their customers, perhaps more so than in any other segment within the sporting goods industry.

While some pinpoint the Rana Plaza factory collapse tragedy as the tipping point, and others cite the impact of the pandemic as the real change-maker, all agree that the era of textile traceability has arrived.

In the early days of smart textiles the expectation was that by now we’d all be wearing connected garments as part of our lifestyle wardrobe. One could pick up the latest smart shirt at the local Walmart and it would be no big deal.

Wildland firefighters (WLFFs), or as they are called by the U.S. government, “forestry technicians,” are finding 2020 to be their most challenging year on record. Fueled by climate change, the hotter, drier conditions have resulted in a massively destructive fire season that seems unending.

Call it an extra barrier, or a safety shield, yet regardless of a specific label, consumers are on the lookout for materials that offer protection. Of course antimicrobials are being used widely for all sort of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), however, as the COVID crisis continues to...

Spotlighting the coolest gear, footwear, apparel & accessories for Fall ’20 and Spring ’21.

With many believing that the future of football has a flag attached to it, the National Flag Football National Championships in Tampa, FL, this month marked the debut of two flag football technologies aimed at growing the game.

While brands and consumers alike appreciate functional fabrics — offering performance benefits such as odor control, moisture management, and weather protection — many are starting to question exactly what kind of mad science goes into them.

If you are looking to differentiate your sporting goods or team dealer business using technology, there may not be a better way than by offering an online designer on your website. And here’s why.

In the team dealer universe, an emphasis on personal service and the ability to connect with customers have always been, and still are, the keys to doing business. But the way this is achieved is now being augmented with a new generation of technology that allows dealers to grow and thrive...

While it’s true that the team market hasn’t always been comprised of early adopters, an increasing number of dealers have overcome their tech fears by investing in platforms that are helping them thrive by boosting efficiency, accuracy, reliability and, of course, profits.

Technology is undoubtedly changing the team sports business and no where is that more apparent than in the proliferation of online Uniform Builders being offered by almost all of the major apparel and headwear vendors to team dealers.

From rising tariffs to falling demand, and from sustainability issues to supply chain ethics, the cotton industry is currently dealing with a perfect storm of challenges.

Carbon sequestration — the process of capturing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing it in the soil, the ocean, or in geologic formations — is one of the best ways to move the climate change needle toward net-zero.

The textile and apparel industries are steadily making strides towards becoming more sustainable. Recycled and organic fibers, kinder chemistries, more efficient manufacturing and local sourcing are yielding measurable reductions in waste and pollution.

Circularity” has become the new buzzword in the textile industry’s struggle for sustainability. But what does it mean? And how does circularity differ from sustainability?

For industry critics who complain that “there’s nothing new in textiles,” we say: “Rubbish!”Efforts to mitigate textile “rubbish” in the form of fast-fashion discards, microfiber ocean pollution, and harmful chemicals leached into the environment are driving the development of disruptive textile...

Move over, cut-and-sew. The advent of knitted footwear for sports and leisure has inspired a new way of thinking about the design and manufacture of active and athleisure sportswear.