With funding from the Walmart Foundation, secondhand giant Goodwill is working to lead the way in textile recycling efforts.
Goodwill Industries International (GII) has successfully concluded a two-year initiative aimed at advancing textile circularity across its extensive network. The $1.28 million project, funded by the Walmart Foundation, was designed to develop the necessary skills, systems, and infrastructure to collect, sort, and prepare textiles for reuse and recycling. The results of this project were revealed during the inaugural Goodwill Sustainability Summit, a two-day event held in Washington, D.C., which brought together leaders from private and nonprofit organizations, recyclers, and researchers.
GII also announced a forthcoming traceability study, supported by a $2 million grant from the Walmart Foundation. This study will track the global journey of secondhand textiles and is intended to inform future reuse and recycling strategies while contributing to the establishment of industry standards for traceability and product lifecycle stewardship.
“Goodwill is focused on developing solutions for textiles that are scalable, circular and traceable,” said Brittany Dickinson, GII’s Director of Sustainability. “We are committed to advancing textile circularity by ensuring that we preserve the highest value of every item entrusted to us for our planet, our communities and our people.”
The textile circularity project, which began in the summer of 2022, was conducted in partnership with Accelerating Circularity. The initiative involved analyzing the fiber composition of textiles that had reached the end of their reusable lifespan to determine their suitability as high-value recycling feedstock. According to Goodwill, approximately 60 percent of the material examined was compatible with existing recycling technologies, including cotton, polyester, and cotton-poly blends.
As part of the project, four regional textile hubs were established in Canada, Michigan, the Northeast, and the Southeast. These hubs, representing 25 local Goodwill organizations, were responsible for sorting and grading post-retail textiles to identify materials suitable for resale or recycling. The nonreusable textiles were processed into feedstock that met the specifications required by recyclers.
Each of the four hubs developed business plans and advanced sorting models, which Goodwill plans to replicate across its network. The organization also aims to share these models with other social enterprises, further promoting the advancement of textile circularity.
“Goodwill is leading the charge to solve a societal problem,” said Karla Magruder, president and founder of Accelerating Circularity. “No other nonprofit collector has explored solutions at this scale before. The size and scale of the Goodwill network place it in a unique position to help pioneer solutions to the overproduction of textiles.”
Steve Preston, GII President and CEO, emphasized the organization’s commitment to textile-to-textile recycling and its ambition to become a preferred partner for brands, retailers, and other stakeholders in the industry. “We are working with a variety of partners to determine how Goodwill can best lead in the textile-to-textile recycling market and develop a number of pathways for goods to minimize waste and maximize value through reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling,” Preston said.
Goodwill’s efforts in textile circularity are closely aligned with its broader mission of supporting job training, job placement, and other essential services for individuals facing barriers to employment. The revenue generated from the sale of donated goods is reinvested into local communities, where it funds workforce development programs and services. In 2023, Goodwill reports that it recovered the value of over 4.3 billion pounds of donated products, benefiting more than 1.7 million people through skills development, job placement, and career advancement opportunities.
Related on Ethos:
