A New ‘T’ for Textiles: Training Design Researchers to Inspire Buying Office Staff Towards Sustainability at Hennes and Mauritz (H&M)

The paper is based on a training programme given to researchers in the Textiles Environment Design (TED) project at the University of the Arts London (UAL). The programme took place over three years (September 2010 to October 2013) whilst the researchers were engaged as consultants and researchers for Hennes and Mauritz (H&M) and the Sustainable Fashion Academy (SFA) in Stockholm, Sweden. The project was developed as part of the Mistra Future Fashion research consortium, which aims to bring scientists and designers together to find sustainable and profitable industry solutions. The TED’s TEN sustainable design strategies for textiles and fashion was the framework for the Sustainable Design Inspiration (SDI) work at H&M – a broad and holistic approach to redesigning products including materials, process, systems, services, consumer behaviour and activism.