10 years of backing early-stage innovation and why it still matters

When the Global Change Award launched in 2015, the word circularity was barely part of fashion’s vocabulary. Journalists called the innovation challenge “the green prize”, and early conversations often began with explaining what circular fashion actually meant.

Anna Gedda, CEO of the H&M Foundation and a seasoned sustainability leader with over 15 years in the fashion and textile industry, remembers those early days clearly. “Back then, the idea of closing the loop felt radical. We had to explain that sustainability wasn’t only about organic cotton or recycling, it was about rethinking the entire system.”

The world looks very different today. Over the past decade, sustainability has moved from the margins to the heart of business strategy, driven by legislation, investor pressure and shifting consumer expectations. Circularity, decarbonisation and systems change are increasingly part of the mainstream conversation. Yet while the language has matured, the challenges remain complex and innovation continues to be one of our most powerful tools to meet them.

As Suzanne Lee, designer, author and founder of Biofabricate, has pointed out: “Fashion loves to flirt with innovation, but often loses patience before it gets serious.”

Suzanne argues that unlike industries such as automotive or tech, the textile field has a shorter history of sustained investment in R&D. Many startups are expected to scale at high speed, quickly and cheaply, even though developing new materials or production models requires years of experimentation and partnership.

This tension between the pace of the market and the pace of innovation has defined much of the past ten years.

“If there’s one thing we’ve learned working with the Global Change Award for a decade, it’s that there is no lack of creativity or scientific potential,” says Annie Lindmark, Programme Director for Innovation at H&M Foundation.

“However, innovators often struggle to find support when their ideas are still developing or commercially uncertain. Everyone wants solutions, but they want them now.”

Early-stage is often too soon for industry investment, which is exactly where a philanthropic actor like the H&M Foundation can have the greatest impact by taking bold early bets and helping to de-risk innovation for others.

Over the years, the Global Change Award has supported 50+ changemakers worldwide to turn ideas into tangible innovations. Some, like TextileGenesis, Reverse Resources, unspun, Orange Fiber and Ambercycle, have gone on to scale. Shay Sethi, co-founder of Ambercycle, says: “One of the biggest challenges in trying to transform the textile industry has been the time it takes to create real change.” Other winners are still in progress, working through technical, financial or infrastructure barriers.

Annie Lindmark explains that early-stage support isn’t about predicting which innovations will succeed, but about creating the conditions for them to do so, through funding, networks, expertise and partnerships, that turn potential into possibility. Shay Sethi describes the GCA’s Changemaker Programme as “even more catalytic than the actual prize dollar amount” thanks to the exposure and connections it provided.

Professor Rebecca Earley, co-founder of UAL’s Centre for Circular Design, was part of the very first expert panel in 2016. “You can’t predict the winners,” she says, “but you can design the conditions for circular ideas to thrive.”

In 2015, most sustainability efforts were focused on single fixes such as better fibres, improved dyeing or more efficient logistics. Ten years later, it’s clear that transformation requires a systems approach that connects innovations, policies and people across the entire value chain.

As Professor Earley puts it, “Emergent material systems cannot be created by any single stakeholder; they require exploration through ambitious partnerships.”

This interconnected view now shapes how Global Change Award operates. Anna Gedda explains, “Philanthropy plays a unique role in connecting the dots: linking changemakers, investors, suppliers, brands and researchers who wouldn’t otherwise meet.”

This connective work is increasingly vital. Systems change means real work; it’s about building the structures that make collaboration, scaling and learning possible across an industry still defined by fragmentation.

“If the past ten years have taught us anything, it’s that transformation is rarely linear. It moves in cycles of experimentation, failure, learning and reinvention”, says Anna Gedda and points out that the next decade must deliver not only new ideas, but measurable, scalable progress. To stay within planetary boundaries and ensure a just transition, the coming years demand acceleration across a few critical shifts:

• Large-scale electrification in supply chain to reduce fossil-fuel dependency.
• New circular business models that reduce waste and rethink value creation.
• A shift to bio-based and recyclable fibres, paired with responsible infrastructure to support them.
• Incentives that reward long-term innovation and collaboration.

“These aren’t separate goals,” Anna continues. “Each one reinforces the other. Electrification depends on access to renewable energy. Circular business models rely on new materials and data transparency. And incentives depend on collaboration between policy, finance and industry. It’s all connected.”

But transformation isn’t just technical, Anna emphasises, it’s also social. “As we accelerate these shifts, we must also consider the people they affect, ensuring that progress benefits workers and communities across the value chain.”

As we accelerate these shifts, we must also consider the people they affect, ensuring that progress benefits workers and communities across the value chain.

Anna Gedda

Signs of that transformation are starting to appear across the fashion and textile landscape, giving rise to a new ecosystem built on shared responsibility, collaboration and a growing sense of interconnection. The industry has caught up on innovation, with a much stronger appetite and understanding of its potential than a decade ago. Collaboration between industry actors, investors and innovators is beginning to bear fruit, supported by global frameworks that promote shared accountability. Yet there’s still a need for more flexible, risk-tolerant funding and for storytelling that keeps the human side of innovation visible.

“The future will be shaped by those willing to act, and by the changemakers we choose to support. Someone once told me the future is built by optimists. Looking at our winners of the Global Change Award, I believe that despite the headwinds facing the industry, we have a bright future ahead,” Anna concludes.