H&M opens entries for the 2020 Global Change Award

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Aug 29, 2019

This week, H&M Foundation’s Global Change Award has opened for entries, with disruptive early-stage innovations and fashion startups invited to enter their projects for consideration.

Now in its fifth year, the award aims to speed up the process of finding, supporting and scaling projects that have the potential to make the fashion industry more circular.

The last edition saw five projects receive funding to further develop their ideas, with innovations from Germany, Switzerland, Kenya, the UK and Peru tackling everything from vegan biodegradable leather to outfits that grow with your child.
Winners receive a total of €1 billion, which is shared in grants from €300,000 to €150,000, as well as 1-year support through the Innovation Accelerator Program hosted by H&M Foundation, Accenture and KTH Royal Institute of Technology. 

Neither H&M Foundation or H&M Group take any equity or intellectual property rights in the innovations.

“In its fifth year, the Global Change Award has proven a great gateway for innovators to enter the fashion industry and transform it from the inside. We've seen previous winners move from sketching table to market — but more importantly, inspiring a new generation of creatives, scientists and entrepreneurs to reduce the planetary impact of the fashion industry through innovation. The next big idea that will change the game can come from anyone anywhere. So, if you have an idea you believe in this is the place to go,” said Karl-Johan Persson, board member of the H&M Foundation and CEO of H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB.

“This year, we are especially looking for innovations that make it easier for us as consumers to act more sustainably, ideas that use technology and data that make the fashion industry smarter and solutions that facilitate design with a circular intention,” added Erik Bang, innovation lead at H&M Foundation.

The first deadline for entries to be submitted is Wednesday 16 October. Winners will be revealed at the Grand Award Ceremony in Stockholm City Hall in April 2020.