FashionKIC (Knowledge Innovation Community for Sustainable Fashion), a project co-funded by the European Union, officially launched in 2026 with the aim of accelerating the sustainable and digital transition of the European Fashion system through the creation of a transnational community for knowledge and innovation. The consortium’s first in-person meeting took place in March, in Athens, marking the beginning of a programme that will run until the end of 2027.

The consortium brings together Envolve Entrepreneurship, INFOLYSIS and the Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia from Greece; Associação ModaLisboa from Portugal; Reginnova NE from Romania; Elisava from Spain; and Global Fashion Agenda from Denmark. Through this network, the project seeks to connect industry, education, research, entrepreneurship, culture and regional development within a collaborative infrastructure focused on sustainability, innovation and digital transformation.

FashionKIC emerges at a moment of deep reconfiguration within the European Fashion system. Environmental pressure, technological acceleration and the growing need for productive and professional adaptation are simultaneously reshaping the ways Fashion is created, produced, distributed and taught. Yet many initiatives dedicated to sustainability, circularity or digital innovation remain fragmented across sectors, geographies and fields of expertise, limiting both the circulation of knowledge and the implementation of structural responses at a European scale.

The project positions itself precisely within this space of connection, creating the conditions to transform specialised knowledge, applied research and European policies into tools, skills and collaborative models capable of generating concrete impact within the sector. Particular attention is given to supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, startups and creative professionals, strengthening access to resources, collaborative networks and capacity-building opportunities within a context of rapid technological and environmental change.

Over the course of two years, FashionKIC will develop a set of complementary actions. The FashionKIC Acceleration Programme will support innovative sustainable Fashion projects, accompanying the development of solutions with concrete application potential and market growth. The FashionKIC Innovation Nodes Network will establish innovation hubs in Greece, Portugal, Spain and Romania, creating local infrastructures for collaboration, experimentation and the circulation of knowledge between different regional ecosystems. FashionKIC Next-Generation Knowledge and Capacity Building will develop training programmes focused on sustainability, digital skills and new production practices, responding to the growing need for professional reskilling across the sector. The project also includes the development of a digital platform powered by artificial intelligence tools, designed to centralise resources, support learning processes and facilitate new forms of collaboration between participants from different fields and geographies.

FashionKIC contributes directly to the objectives of the European Green Deal and the EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles by promoting models of innovation aligned with circularity, sustainability and digital transition. As a pilot project, it aims to test new forms of collaboration across sectors, territories and disciplines, creating methodologies and infrastructures capable of generating systemic change within the European Fashion system.

By bringing together education, acceleration, technology, research and regional development within the same working structure, FashionKIC seeks to build a more distributed, connected and resilient foundation for the future of European Fashion.

Disclaimer
FashionKIC has received funding from the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) under the Grant Agreement 101256183.  Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.