BEL AIR, Md. — March 21, 2012 — The Council for Textile Recycling (CTR) and The Secondary Materials
and Recycled Textiles Association (SMART) today announce a new partnership with SustainU, a
Morgantown, W. Va.-based company that makes high quality apparel in the U.S. using only fabrics
made from 100% recycled materials. CTR and SMART are proud to be an official sponsor for SustainU’s
oneShirt Challenge that promotes clothing recycling on college campuses during Earth Week, April 16
– 22, 2012.
The oneShirt Challenge is the nation’s largest collegiate clothing drive. Together, SMART and
SustainU encourage students on college and university campuses to participate in the oneShirt
Challenge by organizing a community clothing drive to benefit local charities and to raise
awareness about the benefits of textile recycling.
“This is a very exciting partnership for SMART,” says Association Executive Director, Jackie
King. “Our goal is to get people to think of clothing recycling as they already do paper, plastic,
and aluminum recycling. Taking our message to college campuses is a win-win-win for SMART,
SustainU, and the environment.”
At the end of the Challenge, each school will weigh the clothing it has collected and the
school with the highest total will be declared the “Big Shirt on Campus.” The students won’t just
be competing to see which campus collects the most clothing; they are also competing for tickets to
the 2012 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival. Bonnaroo has committed to providing the group from the
winning campus with 24 4-day passes to the 2012 Festival to be held in Manchester, TN June 7-10.
Bonnaroo is another sponsor of the oneShirt Challenge along with MobileU, an Earth Day network
initiative.
Students on college campuses in all 50 states are expected to participate in this year’s
oneShirt Challenge. Now in its second year, the oneShirt Challenge included students from nearly
100 schools in 2011. This year’s goal is to have more than 200 colleges and universities
participating.Many people do not realize that donated textiles not only reduce the waste stream to
our landfills, but also support job training programs,” said Rich Goodstone, Bonnaroo Partner.
“Because apparel is such an integral and meaningful part of the festival experience, we want to do
all we can to encourage sustainable practices.”
Chris Yura, CEO and Founder of SustainU and organizer of the oneShirt Challenge says, “We are
very happy to partner with CTR and SMART, the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival as well as
MobilizeU and Earth Day Network. Each of these organizations has demonstrated their commitment to
make the world a better place. With our new connection to MobilizeU, each of our participating
schools can now simultaneously be part of A Billion Acts of Green® during the week of Earth Day.”
According to CTR and SMART, more than 21 billion pounds of clothing and textiles that could
be recycled are put into the nation’s landfills and incinerators every year. “When clothing is
recycled, more than 95% of the materials can processed by our member companies,” says King. “As
long as the clothing is clean and dry, even if it is ripped or stained, it can be recycled.”
Campus groups, clubs or departments interested in joining the oneShirt can visit:
www.SustainUclothing.com/oneShirt or contact Tiffany Newcomb at 304-413-416. Registration ends on
Friday, March 23, 2012.
SustainU produces high quality apparel using fabrics made from 100% recycled materials that
are manufactured in the USA to provide extraordinary comfort and wear, while reducing environmental
waste, carbon emissions and water use. Our mission is to change the way clothes are made to improve
the environment, reinvigorate America’s manufacturing sector, and educate the world about how
clothing can positively impact people’s lives. For more information about SustainU, visit their
website at: SustainUclothing.com
The oneShirt National Collegiate Clothing Challenge is a SustainU initiative aimed at raising
awareness about the social, environmental and economic benefits of textile recycling. Student
groups from more than 200 colleges and universities in all 50 states organize clothing drives to
benefit local charities and textile recycling programs. In 2011, more than 16 tons of clothing was
collected and donated.
SustainU is a clothing company that produces high quality apparel using fabrics made in the
USA from 100% recycled materials to provide extraordinary comfort and wear, while reducing
environmental waste, carbon emissions and water use. For more information about the oneShirt
National Collegiate Clothing Challenge visit: www.SustainUclothing.com/oneShirt.
MobilizeU is an international competition between colleges and universities that encourages
students to engage their campus communities in four weeks of environmental activism surrounding
Earth Day 2012 (March 29 – April 29). Over the month-long competition, students will mobilize their
campuses to generate as many “acts of green” as possible, through activities such as registering
new voters, collecting personal act-of-green pledges, leading community clean-ups, and organizing
major Earth Day events, as well as amplifying environmental initiatives that their schools are
already working on. For more information visit the MobileU website at: www.EarthDay.org/MobilizeU.
Set on 700 acres in Manchester, TN, Bonnaroo is a four-day festival that draws 80,000 fans
every summer. Featuring over 120 musical performances, along with comedy, cinema, sustainability
workshops and more, the grounds are converted into a virtual city of music and art. The legendary
event began in 2002 as a remarkable idea to serve a passionate fanbase, and ended up becoming the
premier multi-day concert destination of the summer which dynamic and eclectic programming paved
the way for the age of the great American music festival. Bonnaroo has now evolved into becoming
much more than just a concert destination; it has become a cultural touchstone and, for two
generations of music fans, a rite of passage. Bonnaroo has served as a launching pad for such
popular artists as Kings of Leon, The Black Keys, Norah Jones, Jack Johnson, Robert Randolph, My
Morning Jacket, Ray Lamontagne, Matisyahu, and many others. A creative and cultural mega-success,
Bonnaroo has featured a staggeringly diverse range of world-class acts such as Bob Dylan,
Metallica, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, Radiohead, Jay-Z,
Phish, Eminem, Willie Nelson, The Police, Pearl Jam, David Byrne, Tom Petty, The Black Keys, Tool,
Wilco, The Dave Matthews Band, James Brown, The White Stripes, Al Green, Arcade Fire, Nine Inch
Nails, The Dead, Mumford & Sons, Widespread Panic, Death Cab For Cutie, Elvis Costello, Ornette
Coleman, Amadou and Mariam, Beck, TV on the Radio, Against Me!, Merle Haggard, Florence & The
Machine, Phoenix, Alison Krauss, Robert Plant, Bright Eyes, Bonnie Raitt, Lil’ Wayne, Steve Earle,
Jurassic 5, Modest Mouse, The Mars Volta, Deerhunter, Common, Burning Spear, the Flaming Lips,
among many others. The website for Bonnarroo is: www.Bonnarroo.com.
For more information on the CTR and SMART or to find clothing recyclers in your area, visit
www.WearDonateRecycle.org and www.SMARTasn.org. To view informational videos about items that
can be recycled and how clothing is processed by some textile recyclers, visit the SMART video
website at: http://www.smartasn.org/about/videos.cfm.
Posted on March 27, 2012
Source: SMART
