Cotton Australia joined industry representatives at last week’s Textile Exchange Regional Summit: Cotton & Wool Workshop in Sydney, taking part in discussions about sustainable fibre production and how international policy decisions can impact growers and supply chains.

Textile Exchange is a global non-profit working across all types of fibres—natural and synthetic—to improve how materials are produced, sourced and measured. They bring together supply chain partners to develop standards, share data and guide sustainability efforts.

The Sydney workshop brought together people from Australia’s cotton and wool sectors to hear updates on Textile Exchange’s work, including Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs), the Preferred Fiber & Materials Matrix, and new labelling requirements.

Breakout sessions gave attendees the chance to dig into what these changes mean on the ground—particularly how value flows through the supply chain and how more of it can be returned to Australian growers.

“Conversations like these are important for helping brands and sustainability organisations understand how things work on the ground in Australia,” said Brooke Summers, Cotton Australia’s Cotton to Market Lead. “It also gives us a seat at the table as they shape global programs that affect our growers.”

Ahead of the workshop, Cotton Australia CEO Adam Kay and Brooke Summers met with Debra Guo, Textile Exchange’s Lead for Cotton and Crops, to learn more about several of their new initiatives—like the Regenerative Agriculture Outcome Framework, the Fiber and Materials Matrix, and the Materials Matter Standard.

“These conversations are really about making sure Australian cotton growers have a voice in the global space,” Adam said. “We want to make sure the decisions being made overseas reflect what’s already happening here on farm and how we do things in Australia.”