Leading the Circular Economy category
The Circular Campus is a collaboration with the College of Vocational Education’s Creative Industries Fashion Team and the School of Fashion and Textiles who together, have transformed the RMIT Brunswick campus into a dynamic ‘Circular Campus’, integrating circular economy principles across education, operations, research, and community engagement. This multifaceted initiative addresses sustainability challenges in the fashion industry by embedding ‘R strategies’—from Refuse to Regenerate—into every aspect of campus life. Highlights include a regenerative dye garden, student-led remanufacturing of surplus textiles, resource rooms for fabric reuse, and scalable industry collaborations. With over 1,500 students engaged annually and over 200kg of textile waste diverted from landfill, RMIT’s approach demonstrates how design education can lead systemic and scalable transformation towards a circular economy.
Environmental and Social Benefits
- Diverted 200+ kg of textile waste from landfill via remanufacturing, recycling, and laser-cutting technologies that reduce material waste.
- Reused over 2,000 surplus t-shirts and offcuts, developed natural dyes through an Indigenous-informed dye garden, and reduced demand for virgin resources.
- Empowered community and student participation through public repair workshops, circular skills training, and hands-on sustainable design education.
Leadership and Engagement
- Visionary leadership by Professor Alice Payne and a whole-of-school commitment to embedding circularity in curriculum, operations, and research.
- Over 1,500 students and 50+ staff engage annually through projects such as remanufacturing, repair events, and industry collaboration.
- Industry partnerships with major brands, retailers, start-ups, NGOs and governments strengthen impact and reach.
Significance to the Sector
- Integrates circular design deeply into core education, producing graduates equipped to lead sustainable innovation in fashion and beyond.
- Scalable projects like the Refashioning Guide and Same, Same But Different act as sector benchmarks for circular curriculum and applied learning.
- Supported by cross-sector collaboration, policy influence, and shared public resources, the Circular Campus offers a replicable model for institutions nationwide.
Wider Societal Impact
- Catalysed cultural change by embedding circularity as a mindset, not just a project.
- Informed national clothing stewardship policy and sustainable procurement practices.
- Advanced regenerative education models that connect Indigenous knowledge, design innovation, and community practice.
Top 3 learnings
Supported by
Category finalists
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy category
The Circular Campus is a collaboration with the College of Vocational Education’s Creative Industries Fashion Team and the School of Fashion and Textiles who together, have transformed the RMIT Brunswick campus into a dynamic ‘Circular Campus’, integrating circular economy principles across education, operations, research, and community engagement. This multifaceted initiative addresses sustainability challenges in the fashion industry by embedding ‘R strategies’—from Refuse to Regenerate—into every aspect of campus life. Highlights include a regenerative dye garden, student-led remanufacturing of surplus textiles, resource rooms for fabric reuse, and scalable industry collaborations. With over 1,500 students engaged annually and over 200kg of textile waste diverted from landfill, RMIT’s approach demonstrates how design education can lead systemic and scalable transformation towards a circular economy.
Top 3 learnings
Environmental and Social Benefits
- Diverted 200+ kg of textile waste from landfill via remanufacturing, recycling, and laser-cutting technologies that reduce material waste.
- Reused over 2,000 surplus t-shirts and offcuts, developed natural dyes through an Indigenous-informed dye garden, and reduced demand for virgin resources.
- Empowered community and student participation through public repair workshops, circular skills training, and hands-on sustainable design education.
Leadership and Engagement
- Visionary leadership by Professor Alice Payne and a whole-of-school commitment to embedding circularity in curriculum, operations, and research.
- Over 1,500 students and 50+ staff engage annually through projects such as remanufacturing, repair events, and industry collaboration.
- Industry partnerships with major brands, retailers, start-ups, NGOs and governments strengthen impact and reach.
Significance to the Sector
- Integrates circular design deeply into core education, producing graduates equipped to lead sustainable innovation in fashion and beyond.
- Scalable projects like the Refashioning Guide and Same, Same But Different act as sector benchmarks for circular curriculum and applied learning.
- Supported by cross-sector collaboration, policy influence, and shared public resources, the Circular Campus offers a replicable model for institutions nationwide.
Wider Societal Impact
- Catalysed cultural change by embedding circularity as a mindset, not just a project.
- Informed national clothing stewardship policy and sustainable procurement practices.
- Advanced regenerative education models that connect Indigenous knowledge, design innovation, and community practice.
Supported by
Category finalists
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
Leading the Circular Economy
