Welcome back to this month’s AATCC student officer led newsletter. So many amazing events have happened already this year, from New York Textile month in September, Professor Arya’s presentation to Queen’s College in Canada and Vogue Greece’s Sustainability Conference, the Cotton Incorporated trip to North Carolina and the preparation of FIT’s rooftop dye garden for winter. With all the progress we have made, it is very exciting to meet everyone on campus. We are always encouraging FIT students to become club members and join our mailing list for updates on future events. If you are interested you can email mary_sherman@fitnyc.edu and follow us on instagram @aatcc.fitnyc.
AATCC Officers Upcoming Events:
OekoTex and GOTS 10/28
Please join us for a meeting on Thursday, October 28th from 1-2. AATCC club is hosting Oeko Tex and GOTS, both of which ensure quality in our textile, leather, and organic products. Join us for a talk on sustainability and certifications in various segments of the textile industry.
The link to the meeting is:https://meet.google.com/wvf-wnyc-ugq
*If you love a company, let us know and we will reach out to them for a future event*
How to join the AATCC Organization
As students at FIT, we qualify for a discounted membership of $35 a year. As members, we gain access to scholarships, prizes, research articles and projects, competitions, conferences, various publications, the mentorship program, and a huge job database. The AATCC is an incredibly important part of the textile industry and by joining we benefit with becoming apart of a professional network and kickstarting our careers. Click here to join and click here to learn more about the AATCC student membership.
If you have questions regarding AATCC membership you can email Manisha Patel at patelm@aatcc.org
Professor Arya PhD: Queen’s College Sustainability Presentation & Vogue Greece Panel
This past week, our AATCC faculty advisor, Dr. Arya, presented at Queen’s College in Canada. The presentation explored the question, How Sustainability is your Fast Fashion Closet? Professor Arya details the environmental hazards of fast fashion production and consumption.
Professor Arya also presented at the Sustainable Fashion and Beauty Conference organized by Vogue Greece. She defended sustainable fibers, processes, and lifestyle to help bring relief to our ailing planet.
Student Trip: Cotton Incorporated, NC
Thanks to Dr. Ajoy Sarkar, TDM students had the opportunity to travel to North Carolina to visit Cotton Incorporated’s facilities and cotton fields. Students were able to interact with Cotton Inc officials and take in depth tours of their research facility, chemical finishes and patented products.
Mark Messura, the Senior Vice President of Global Supply Chain Marketing gave a great presentation on the many aspects of farming, manufacturing, supplying, and selling cotton. (Fun fact: Did you know that less than 5% of the world’s cotton is organically grown?) After learning about the company overview, we spoke with Mary Ankey, Vice President of Product Development & Implementation Operations and Yvonne, John the Senior Director of Product Development. They showed us the advanced technologies and finishes produced and patented by Cotton Inc. Afterwards, we had a wonderful tour of the research facility which included dozens of knitting and weaving equipment, CAD/CAM studio, and Jeanologia laser cutting machine.
We visited a local North Carolina cotton farm. (Fun fact: Did you know that 98% of cotton farms in the world are family owned and only 2% are owned by corporations?) We learned about the cotton calendar, different cotton seeds, and the ginning process. With cotton prices on the rise and sustainability initiatives on the forefront, this was a very insightful and eye-opening trip.
Rooftop Dye Garden Clean-up
On Thursday 10/21, during common hour, the AATCC club, along with a group of students and faculty members, went to the dye garden, on the 9th floor of the C building, where the beds were weeded and prepared for plantation. It was a fun activity where students and faculty worked and enjoyed sun, food, and each other’s company. Considering the overwhelming response from student volunteers, AATCC club has decided to host the same event in November before Thanksgiving. If you are interested in joining us to work on clean-up, maintenance and gardening, please email rebecca_dillenberger@fitnyc.edu
Thank you Dean Shannon Maher, Suzanne Mcgillicudy, Professor Sean Cormier, Professor Whitney Crutchfield, Michelle Grant, Rebecca Dillenberger and Ellen Davidson for helping us make the dye garden event a success. Thank you so much to all of the student volunteers as well!
TEXTILE NEWS
Circulose: Renewcell
A more sustainable replacement for viscose is now on the horizon, called Circulose from Renewcell, a tech company based in Sweden. Circulose cuts out the potentially harmful process of attaining wood pulp traditionally through extracting pulp at the molecular level from 100% cotton recycled clothing. This fiber works to cut down waste though the use of recycled fabric and produce something new. Renewcell is in the works to change the new standard or regenerated fiber.
To read more about Renewcell and Circulose CLICK HERE
Source: CFDA and Renewcell
New York Textile Month: Youtube Content
If you didn’t get the chance to make it to some of the events that occurred in September for NYTM, please check out their youtube channel with recordings of some other events and conferences that took place. CLICK HERE to access the channel.
Reaching Net Zero in the UK
In 2012, the Sustainable Clothing Action Plan 2020 was produced in the UK to fight against the environmental impact of textile production nation-wide. It was made by WRAP, an organization from the UK that works towards resource efficiency in all industries. The plan, or SCAP, was set to reduce carbon emissions, water use and waste in a drastic way. Companies like ASOS, Boohoo, Urban Outfitters, Primark, and over 90 others are all signatories pledging to make active change in their production cycle. Over the past 8 years, carbon emissions from the clothing industry in the UK were reduced by 21.6%, Water use decreased by 18.2% and clothing waste from households reduced by 4%. Sustainable fiber has been introduced to the market in the UK creating higher than projected change. Through SCAP, companies are reaching a new level of transparency that is described in each report. WRAP and SCAP have produced an effective way to measure their impact through the Durability Protocall, the Sustainable Clothing Guide, and the Sustainable Design Toolkit. To read more about this CLICK HERE.
A new fiber is currently being developed at MIT that is responsive to the movement of the wearer. It is said that the fabric will better help the athlete wearing it to breath through cues felt from the fabric. The fabric’s construction is described as, “multilayered fibers contain a fluid channel in the center, which can be activated by a fluidic system. This system controls the fibers’ geometry by pressurizing and releasing a fluid medium, such as compressed air or water, into the channel, allowing the fiber to act as an artificial muscle. The fibers also contain stretchable sensors that can detect and measure the degree of stretching of the fibers” (Chandler, 2021).
This new fiber innovation goes by the name of OmniFibers and has a compatibility with human skin that has the potential to change the scope of performance textiles and the communication between fiber and wearer. It is also said to help singers better control their breath in order to optimize their performance. The fiber was produced by Ozgun Afsar, Hiroshi Ishii, and others that work in the media lab at MIT, Uppsala University, and KTH Institute in Sweden.
Read more: CLICK HERE
Source for article and photo: Chandler | MIT News Office, D. L. (n.d.). New fibers can make breath-regulating garments. MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved October 23, 2021
REACH OUT TO US! We, the AATCC club, are here to help you make a difference in sustainable living and lifestyle.
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