Global Sustainability Leaders Join Goodwill Network in Washington DC to Explore Circularity Opportunities

By Laura Walling, Vice President of Government Affairs, Goodwill Industries International

As part of an ongoing effort to advance circularity, Goodwill Industries International (GII) conducted a two-year pilot project to develop skills, systems and infrastructure to aggregate, sort and prepare textiles for reuse and recycling across its network. The results of the $1.28 million textile circularity project, funded by the Walmart Foundation to transform unsellable textile donations into feedstock for textile recycling, were shared at the Goodwill Sustainability Summit. This two-day conference attracted private and nonprofit industry leaders, recyclers and researchers.

At the conference, Goodwill announced plans to conduct a traceability study, also funded by the Walmart Foundation, which will support a multi-stakeholder initiative to follow the global journey of secondhand textiles. The $2 million study will inform reuse and recycling strategies and help shape industry standards for traceability and product lifecycle stewardship.

The two studies align with the Goodwill network’s goals of increasing waste diversion, improving accountability and transparency, maximizing the value of donations, and making a positive impact on communities around the world. Environmentally, reuse is the highest and best opportunity for secondhand items.

The first grant, the textile circularity research project, was launched in the summer of 2022 in partnership with Accelerating Circularity. The pilot involved the creation of four regional textile hubs, representing 25 local Goodwill organizations. The hubs sorted and graded post-retail textiles to identify reusable materials that could be resold and nonreusable textiles that would be used to create feedstock that meets recyclers’ specifications. Each of the hubs developed business plans and advanced sortation models that can be replicated across the Goodwill network and beyond for the advancement of textile circularity.

The Goodwill network plays a critical role in powering the circular economy. The organization operates over 3,300 stores across the U.S. and Canada, with multiple retail channels to keep products in use and out of landfills. In 2023, Goodwill recovered the value of over 4.3 billion pounds of donated products, which supported the development of skills training, job placement, career advancement opportunities and other community-based services for more than 1.7 million people.

As the Goodwill network works to develop scalable solutions that are traceable and circular, it’s imperative for us to be a part of the conversations shaping the next generation of environmental policy. Goodwill Industries International and our local Goodwill organizations stand ready to partner with federal, state and local governments as they work to address textile waste and other waste and promote the circular economy.

The Goodwill Sustainability Summit was held Aug. 15-16 in Washington, DC, bringing together sustainability experts and Goodwill leaders from across the globe. The conference was sponsored by Goodwill Industries International and Goodwill of Greater Washington (DC), Goodwill Industries of the Chesapeake, Inc. (Baltimore, MD) and Goodwill of Delaware and Delaware County (Wilmington).