From Fashion graveyard to green: reimagining apparel waste through design and emotion

Abstract

The global fashion industry is often critiqued for its unsustainable practices, particularly the linear “take-make-dispose” system. In Sri Lanka, the consequences of this model are visible in growing textile landfills, mounting post-consumer waste, and a lack of structured recycling or reuse mechanisms. Against this backdrop, the Fashion Graveyard to Green project, led by researchers at the University of Moratuwa (UoM), emerges as a bold and timely initiative. The project explores how discarded garments—often considered waste—can be transformed through design thinking, giving them new life and meaning.