Global Change Award 2026 top 20 finalists revealed

From more than 450 ideas across 81 countries, the H&M Foundation has shortlisted 20 early-stage changemakers for the Global Change Award 2026, the ideas now advancing to the final stage of the challenge. Their innovations aim to help the textile industry halve its greenhouse gas emissions while promoting a just transition for people and the planet.

The H&M Foundation today announces the 20 finalists of the Global Change Award (GCA) 2026, selected from more than 450 ideas submitted from 81 countries across six continents. The finalists will now be reviewed by the GCA Expert Panel who, together with the H&M Foundation team, will recommend ten winners to the H&M Foundation Board. The winners will be announced in June 2026.

The GCA accelerates innovation to support the textile industry in halving its greenhouse gas emissions every decade until 2050, while promoting a socially inclusive and planet positive future. By focusing on early-stage changemakers, the programme aims to catalyse ideas that can unlock systemic transformation across the value chain.

This year’s finalists reflect the breadth and complexity of the textile industry’s climate challenge, from raw material innovation to manufacturing efficiency and shifting consumption models.

Among the selected ideas are carbon-negative dye systems that turn atmospheric CO₂ into bio-based colourants, seaweed-derived stretch fibres designed to replace fossil-based elastane, and AI-powered digital twins that help manufacturers identify inefficiencies and reduce energy loss in real time. Other finalists are rethinking quality control in garment factories through machine-learning enabled smart systems, while community-led initiatives are rebuilding local repair ecosystems to extend garment lifespans and make circularity visible and accessible.

Together, the 20 finalists demonstrate that decarbonising fashion requires both technological breakthroughs and cultural shifts, addressing emissions at source while reimagining how garments are produced, used and valued.

“This year’s top 20 list shows that innovation in fashion is becoming more applied and more connected to industrial reality,” says Beatrice Oldenburg, Project Manager, H&M Foundation. “We’re seeing solutions that address digitisation, recycling of blended textiles, bio-based alternatives and energy reduction, all areas that require both technical depth and system-level thinking. Early-stage ideas like these need backing and the right support to move from concept into real-world implementation. That’s exactly what the Global Change Award is designed to provide.”

The 20 finalists of Global Change Award 2026 are:

• Curbon by Joe Wahba & Alan Zhang (US)
• EntroMetri by Mohammed Ali, Iusiph Eiubovi and Steve Evans (UK)
• ThreadBridge by Md Ridwan Hossain (Bangladesh)
• ALU by Donatela Bellone (US)
• Menders Without Border by Bhaavya Goenka, Filippo Ricci and Orsola De Castro (India)
• AIPER by Ailton Pereira (Brazil)
• AgroLyocell (Canvaloop) by Shreyans Kokra and Dhruv Gupta (India)
• ArtSilk by Anna Rising and Benjamin Schmuck (Sweden)
• Dawn Technologies (Avantium) by Peter Mangnus (Netherlands)
• DiamondCool™ by Shadi Houshyar (Australia)
• EnzymeThreads by Alfonso Gautieri and Emilio Parisini (Italy)
• Fiberly by Bénédicte Quinta (France)
• KelTex by Laetus Baberwa and Emeliana Said (Tanzania)
• Living Carbon Capture Dye Systems by Kavuma Henry (Uganda)
• MicroHues by Suchitha Raghunathan and Anjana Badrinarayanan (India)
• Colour Earth by Aurelie Fontan, Meredith Wood and Christopher Ferguson (UK)
• RheaCycle™ by Arzu Sandicki and Mert Topcu (US)
• Tera Mira by Jeanne Begon-Lours and Lucy Dain-Williams (UK)
• Arxy Fashion OS by Meng Ji (Luxembourg)
• MycoRenew by Tomasz Mierzwa and Katarzyna Turnau (Poland)

Read more about the finalists here.

The ten winners of Global Change Award 2026 will be announced in June and will join the GCA Changemaker Programme, receiving a €200,000 grant, mentorship and access to a global network designed to accelerate their ideas from concept to impact.