ReMade in Cambodia – Designing Futures 2050

ReMade in Cambodia is a youth-led initiative transforming textile waste into opportunities for environmental sustainability, economic empowerment, and cultural preservation. Rooted in Cambodia’s pressing need for circular solutions, we address the urgent challenges of textile pollution, climate change, and economic inequities while uplifting young creatives to shape a sustainable future.

Our Vision for a Sustainable Future
ReMade in Cambodia envisions a future where textile waste is transformed into opportunity, where creativity fuels sustainability, and where young changemakers lead the shift toward a circular economy. We see Cambodia’s rivers free from textile pollution, its artisans and youth thriving in green industries, and its creative talents empowered to shape the future of sustainable fashion. By bridging innovation, tradition, and environmental responsibility, we are building a model where fashion regenerates rather than depletes—creating a world where every thread tells a story of impact, resilience, and possibility.

Empowering Young Creatives to Implement the SDGs
ReMade actively involves young designers, artisans, and changemakers in shaping sustainable solutions that align with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our ReImagine program elevates emerging Cambodian designers, giving them platforms to create, showcase, and sell upcycled fashion. Through mentorship, workshops, and sustainable fashion events, we empower them to rethink production and consumption patterns, contributing to SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 13 (Climate Action).
Our ReMake program collaborates with businesses in the hospitality and tourism industries to upcycle textile waste, preventing it from ending up in landfills and waterways. By repurposing discarded fabrics into valuable products, we reduce environmental harm and integrate sustainable business practices, advancing SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure) and SDG 14 (Life Below Water).
Through ReVive, we provide skills training and income-generating opportunities for vulnerable communities, including women and artisans in climate-affected areas. By teaching upcycling techniques and integrating them into the sustainable economy, we create green jobs, address poverty, and strengthen local resilience, supporting SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth).
At Pteah ReMade, our upcycling studio and community hub, we engage young artists and local communities in hands-on educational experiences about sustainability and circular economy practices. By hosting interactive workshops, and collaborating with local sustainable businesses for unique events, we raise awareness about SDGs and foster an active community of changemakers working toward SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).

Driving Action and Innovation
ReMade is about raising awareness and taking action. Through large-scale events like our Earth Day Sustainable Arts Festival, we unite youth, businesses, and sustainability leaders to showcase innovative solutions, reinforcing the need for urgent action. Our collaboration with organizations like Everwave to remove textile waste from Cambodia’s rivers further amplifies our impact, proving that local action leads to global change.
By investing in young creatives and innovative upcycling models, ReMade is adjusting the SDG agenda to the realities of today and ensuring that the next generation leads the shift toward a circular and regenerative future.

Overview of the issue and your approach: ReMade tackles the environmental, economic, and social injustices caused by the fashion and textile industry. Cambodia, a hub for garment manufacturing, experiences severe textile waste pollution, including in its rivers. This pollution disrupts livelihoods dependent on clean water, and contributes to climate change through methane emissions from decomposing textiles. The lack of waste management infrastructure exacerbates this issue, making textile waste a persistent environmental threat.
Beyond environmental harm, the fast fashion industry exploits garment workers, many of whom face precarious working conditions and limited financial stability. Meanwhile, Cambodia’s rich artistic heritage remains underrepresented in the fashion world, with young designers and artisans struggling to access resources, markets, and support to develop sustainable careers.
Our approach transforms textile waste into economic opportunities while fostering a circular economy. Through our ReMake program, we partner with businesses—mainly in the hospitality sector—to upcycle their discarded textiles into high-quality products, reducing waste and shifting corporate mindsets toward sustainability. We also facilitate hands-on workshops to engage employees and customers in sustainable practices, encouraging behavioral change.
Our ReImagine program provides platforms for young Cambodian designers to showcase their work, blending sustainability with cultural preservation. By offering mentorship, exposure, and revenue opportunities, we empower emerging talent to lead Cambodia’s circular fashion movement.
Additionally, our ReVive program uplifts vulnerable communities by equipping them with upcycling skills, creating green jobs, and fostering economic resilience. By repurposing textile waste, we provide new income streams for marginalized groups.
To date, we have diverted 829kg of textile waste from Cambodia’s rivers and landfills, and avoiding 4,504 kg of CO₂ emissions.

The stakeholders in your project: ReMade collaborates with diverse stakeholders to drive impact. We partner with hospitality businesses to upcycle their textile waste, local designers and artisans to create sustainable products, and vulnerable communities to provide green job opportunities. We engage community members through workshops, work with NGOs and government agencies on waste management solutions, and collaborate with global sustainability initiatives like Everwave to remove textile waste from Cambodia’s rivers.

Agreement: Accepted