The 2026 Circular Design Challenge received a record 220 applications from over 15 countries, its largest yet. The initiative has evolved into a global platform for young entrepreneurs in sustainable fashion, helping them commercialize their innovations.
The Circular Design Challenge (CDC), an initiative to promote sustainability in the fashion industry, received around 220 applications from more than 15 countries in its 2026 edition, making it the largest since its launch in 2018, Hemant Sharma, President, Polyester Segment, Reliance Industries Limited, said.
From Local Event to Global Platform
Speaking on the sidelines of the eighth edition of the Circular Design Challenge, organised as part of the India-France Year of Innovation 2026, Sharma said the initiative had evolved from a local event into a global platform for young entrepreneurs working on sustainable fashion solutions.
“The purpose of CDC was to provide a kind of platform to the young entrepreneurs to improve sustainability in the fashion industry,” Sharma said.
He said the CDC had received close to 1,500 applications since its inception, with 40 participants reaching the final stage over the years. The finalists and awardees have received recognition, awards and mentorship from leading names in the fashion industry, he added.
The 2026 edition is being organised in collaboration with the Embassy of France, the United Nations in India and Lakme Fashion Week, coinciding with the India-France Year of Innovation.
From Pilot to Commercialisation
Sharma said one of the key achievements of the initiative had been helping entrepreneurs take their ideas beyond the pilot stage towards commercialisation.
“We have seen that most of the awardees, their ideas, their innovations have been able to be scaled up and also commercialized to a very, very large extent,” he said.
He added that the initiative had provided young entrepreneurs with an opportunity to showcase innovations that could be developed and brought to market, rather than remaining at the experimental stage.
Expanding Global Awareness
Sharma said the growing participation in the challenge could help expand global awareness of sustainability in fashion and textiles.
He expressed hope that the initiative's success would encourage more young entrepreneurs worldwide to develop sustainable solutions.
“We believe bigger the participation in CDC, more the number of ambassadors of CDC globally, wider the awareness about the sustainability at the global level,” he said.
Sharma said the broader objective was to make sustainability a way of life rather than simply a matter of individual choice, stressing its importance for protecting the planet and securing the future. (ANI)
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