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As 2016 resurfaces in our feeds, we take a look at how sustainability wove through fashion that year — from recycled denim and water-saving techniques to early circular commitments from brands big and small.

Stella McCartney’s SS26 collection references Britain’s disappearing wildflower meadows through hand-embroidered tailoring, continuing the label’s long-standing practice of embedding environmental themes into design and materials.

L’Oréal has revealed the first cohort for L’AcceleratOR, its €100 million sustainable innovation program, selecting 13 companies focused on packaging, ingredients, circular systems, and emissions data. The group was chosen from nearly 1,000 applicants and represents the first pilot phase of the five-year initiative, which is designed to identify, test, and potentially scale sustainability-focused technologies across the company’s global operations and the wider beauty industry. https://www.loreal.com/en/press-release/sustainable-development/-l-oreal-announces-the-first-13-change-makers-chosen-to-join-its-eur-100-million-sustainable-innovation-l-accelerator-program/ Launched in 2024, L’AcceleratOR was created to move beyond concept-stage innovation and toward commercial deployment, with a particular emphasis on solutions that can be piloted within existing industrial systems. The program is operated in partnership with the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, which is overseeing a structured support phase centered on pilot readiness and business integration. https://www.cisl.cam.ac.uk/ Rather than narrowing its scope to a single sustainability challenge, L’Oréal has positioned the accelerator around a broad set of operational priorities, including low-carbon materials and energy, nature-sourced ingredients, water resilience, the reduction of fossil-based plastics, circular manufacturing processes, and inclusive business models. The composition of the first cohort reflects that approach, with selected companies spanning physical materials, chemical inputs, waste transformation, and digital infrastructure. https://www.esgtoday.com/loreal-backs-13-climate-nature-and-circularity-solutions-startups/ Packaging, Materials, and the Push Away From Fossil Inputs Several of the selected companies focus on rethinking packaging formats that remain deeply embedded in beauty supply chains. United Kingdom-based Pulpex is developing recyclable paper bottles intended to replace rigid plastic packaging, while Japan’s Bioworks produces bioplastics derived from sugarcane and other plant-based feedstocks. Sweden’s Blue Ocean Closures and PULPAC are advancing fiber-based packaging systems designed to reduce both material complexity and carbon intensity, and Estonia’s RAIKU transforms natural wood into protective packaging alternatives traditionally made from petroleum-based foams. https://esgpost.com/loreal-selects-first-13-start-ups-for-laccelerator-sustainability-programme/ Ingredients and formulation inputs are also central to the cohort. France-based Biosynthis focuses on renewable and biodegradable raw materials, while U.S. company P2 Science applies green chemistry principles to develop bio-sourced fragrance and ingredient components. Another U.S. firm, Oberon Fuels, converts wood and pulp waste into renewable dimethyl ether suitable for aerosol formulations, addressing a category that has historically relied on fossil-derived propellants. https://esgpost.com/loreal-selects-first-13-start-ups-for-laccelerator-sustainability-programme/ Circular Systems and Measuring What Matters Circularity solutions appear throughout the cohort, including Belgium’s Novobiom, which uses fungi to break down complex waste streams into higher-value materials, and France’s REPLACE, which has developed a single-step process to convert multi-layer waste into new durable products. From Brazil, Gàs Verde contributes biomethane production technology aimed at reducing fossil fuel use in industrial energy and transport. https://esgpost.com/loreal-selects-first-13-start-ups-for-laccelerator-sustainability-programme/ The only data intelligence company selected, United Kingdom-based Neutreeno, focuses on supply-chain emissions measurement and reduction, reflecting the growing role of digital infrastructure in meeting climate targets and regulatory expectations. https://www.esgtoday.com/loreal-backs-13-climate-nature-and-circularity-solutions-startups/ The thirteen companies will now enter a CISL-led support phase focused on pilot readiness, with opportunities to run six- to nine-month pilots and, if successful, scale solutions across L’Oréal’s operations. Ezgi Barcenas, Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer at L’Oréal, described the approach as intentionally collaborative, saying, “To accelerate sustainable solutions to market, we are being even more intentional and inclusive in our pursuit of partnerships through L’AcceleratOR. We are really energized to be co-designing the future of beauty with CISL and these 13 change-makers.” https://www.esgtoday.com/loreal-backs-13-climate-nature-and-circularity-solutions-startups/ L’AcceleratOR sits within the company’s broader ten-year sustainability strategy, which includes goals to reach one hundred percent renewable energy, source at least ninety percent bio-based materials in formulas and packaging, reduce virgin plastic use by fifty percent, and significantly cut Scope One, Scope Two, and selected Scope Three emissions by 2030. https://www.loreal.com/en/commitments-and-responsibilities/

Eco-brutalism is an architectural style gaining popularity for combining brutalist design elements with greenery to create a unique aesthetic and the perception that it is more sustainable than traditional brutalism. However, it has also faced criticism, particularly regarding its sustainability status.