Date
13 March 2025
Talking about sustainable fashion and circularity without mentioning Adele Orcajada would mean leaving out one of the most influential voices in the industry. With a career that has taken her into the research of new materials and sustainability consultancy, her professional journey reflects the transformation currently taking place within the fashion sector.
Today, as coordinator of the Official Master’s Degree in Sustainable Fashion Design and Circularity at IED Kunsthal Bilbao, she is helping shape a new generation of designers capable of tackling the industry’s challenges with a holistic vision.
How has your vision of circular fashion evolved over the years?
When I first started working in fashion, it was with major fast fashion brands, where, in reality, I learned everything we should not be doing.
My first step was moving into fair trade. I took part in a couple of projects with Indigenous communities in South America, and that helped me better understand our relationship with nature and the role it plays in the development of new materials. It’s something I’m still studying and exploring today. This is an emerging field, and all of us involved are collectively creating something new.
What role do new materials play in the transition towards truly sustainable fashion?
Without a doubt, they are the key factor. Materials are what we extract from the Earth, and how we transform them will determine whether we can eventually return them to it. For example, we are currently developing biodegradable plastics from corn, which proves that the issue was never the material itself, but rather the chemical processes we applied to it.
In your experience, is sustainability a genuine priority, or are there still many structural barriers within the industry?
I would say that over the past five years, consumer perception and awareness around these issues have changed tremendously. It’s also true that a new generation of conscious brands is leading the transition. However, large companies still need regulatory pressure to move in this direction. Right now, some fast fashion giants are discarding returned clothing because it is cheaper for them than reintegrating it into stock.
There is increasing talk about the concept of “regenerative fashion.” Do you believe this is the next step in the evolution of circular fashion?
Absolutely. Sustainability is about maintaining balance, but we are already too late for that: there is already a black hole, our oceans are already polluted. That is why regeneration must become our goal — for example, creating biomaterials whose nutrients fertilise the soil once they disappear.
More and more designers are looking to specialise in circular fashion. Why do you think specialised education in this field is so important?
Beyond being an ethical necessity, it is an imminent reality. The European Union already has textile legislation underway that will require brands to adapt to these changes over the coming years. Companies will therefore need professionals who not only understand regulations, but who can also integrate sustainability into design practice itself.
What skills are developed in the Official Master’s Degree in Sustainable Fashion Design and Circularity at IED Kunsthal to prepare students for the realities of the sector?
The key word is precisely reality. It’s not just about studying values, ethics, or legislation, but about training professionals who can become agents of change. Designers who know how to select materials, create zero-waste patterns, and understand the real impact of the industry. People capable of understanding how their creativity can contribute to designs that are also sustainable over time.
How do you see the relationship between technology and sustainability in fashion?
Technology is an incredible tool. 3D printing and software such as CLO 3D, which students use in the master’s programme, allow us to prototype much more quickly to test whether something works, while using far fewer samples, less energy, and reducing all the processes prior to the final product.
But beyond that, technology is also a pathway to innovation. It challenges designers to push their creative boundaries through new resources that were previously unavailable to them. This is a field for the bold and the exploratory.
What is the greatest challenge facing sustainable fashion in the next decade?
Ensuring that all biomaterials can match the durability, warmth, elasticity, and other qualities of the materials we currently use.
And matching them in price as well?
Yes and no. We must recognise that textile prices have fallen so artificially that we have distorted the true value of things. At the same time, of course, we need to produce textiles at prices that allow people to dress with dignity.
That’s why the challenge is multifaceted:
- From the designers’ side: bringing regenerative material technologies to the same level as the materials we already use.
- From society’s side: returning to more responsible consumption habits.
- And from the industry’s side: putting an end to the race for exponential profit growth at the expense of our planet.
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