School of Design & LITAC announces inaugural International Textile and Colour Conference (ITCC) 2025

The first International Textile and Colour Conference will take place 25 - 26 June 2025 at Nexus, University of Leeds

The Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures’ School of Design and the Leeds Institute of Textiles and Colour (LITAC) will host the first International Textile and Colour Conference (ITCC2025) in Leeds, a city renowned for its centuries-old textile heritage.

Taking place from June 25-26, 2025, at Nexus, University of Leeds, the conference will gather a diverse international audience – academic researchers, industry leaders, policy-makers, and NGO representatives – aiming to create lasting solutions for a sustainable future in the textile and colour sectors.

ITCC2025 will delve into a broad range of topics essential to achieving systemic, sustainable change across these industries, covering innovations in areas such as fibre and material science, manufacturing processes, digitalisation, robotics, machine learning, colour science, environmental impact reduction, and circular economy development.

The conference will also offer critical insights into the role of cultures, behaviours, and policy in transforming global supply chains and enhancing sustainability.

Professor Stephen Russell, Chair of ITCC2025 and Director of LITAC, said:

“Environmental targets, shifting regulation and the practical implementation of viable circular economies are just some of the many challenges faced by industry tackling the green transition. This inaugural international conference will bring together experts from different disciplines, to share new data and the latest results of research and innovation, as well as to provide perspectives on progress. LITAC is delighted to host ITCC2025 and to provide delegates with the collective opportunity to help inform the future of our textile and colour industries.”

Further details on the conference, including registration information, are available on the official ITCC2025 website.

Call for Papers

Researchers are invited to submit a long abstract (1000- 1500 words) by 31 December 2024 on any topic relating to at least one of the areas listed below. It is important that the relevance to the sustainable development of industry is clearly addressed:

  • Textile materials (including biobased fibres, or with fibre-to-fibre recycled content).
  • Product design (in relation to the circular economy / sustainability).
  • Innovative fibre, yarn, fabric and garment manufacturing (including use of robotics).
  • Fibre characterisation, measurement and detection.
  • Intelligent and smart textiles.
  • Digital technology, data science, and AI technologies.
  • Track & trace technologies (e.g. relating to the transparency of supply chains).
  • Innovative sustainable textile supply chains.
  • Circularity and Net Zero compliance strategies.
  • Environmental impacts (of textile/fashion or colour industries).
  • Eco-metrics and standards.
  • Influencing behaviour and culture in relation to sustainability & circular economies.
  • Advanced waste management: collection, automatic sorting, recycling, reuse, waste valorisation, and circular economy development.
  • Colour science and technology.
  • Innovative colour communication for fashion.
  • Total colour appearance measurement and perception for fabrics and garments.
  • Colour forecasting technologies.

Please register for the conference via the conference website: https://conferences.leeds.ac.uk/itcc2025/ 

For enquiries, please contact Giorgio Grande, LITAC Communications Officer at: g.grande@leeds.ac.uk