Landfills2Landmarks Summit 2026 to Convene Global and Local Stakeholders on Textile Traceability and Circular Governance in Accra

Accra, Ghana — 28 April 2026

There is a part of the global clothing trade that rarely features in policy discussions. It begins after garments leave producing countries and arrive in markets where they are sorted, resold, reused, or discarded. This is where the real outcomes are determined. It is also where oversight is weakest.

Volumes have increased sharply over the past two decades. But the systems responsible for handling used clothing have not scaled at the same pace. In many receiving markets, traders and sorters make daily decisions about what can be worn again, what can be recovered, and what must be thrown away. Those decisions determine how much value is preserved, how much is lost, and how much ends up in landfill systems.

Most rules, however, are set far from these markets. Regulation tends to focus on production and export. By the time garments reach secondary markets, there are few shared standards for how they should be sorted or classified. Tracking is inconsistent. Responsibility is often unclear.

Landfills2Landmarks Summit 2026 is being convened to address that gap. Taking place from 18–22 May at Labadi Beach Hotel, the meeting will bring together regulators, industry operators, development partners, and market actors to examine how governance can better reflect what is happening on the ground.

The focus is practical. How should garments be classified at the point of sorting. What defines reuse, recovery, or waste. How can material flows be tracked across borders. And who is accountable when outcomes fall short.

These questions are becoming more urgent as Extended Producer Responsibility frameworks expand. Without clearer definitions and better data from receiving markets, it is difficult to measure compliance or enforce responsibility in a meaningful way.

Participants will also examine proposals such as a bale index to benchmark quality, and the role of verified data in supporting regulation and investment. The aim is not to revisit familiar debates, but to establish workable approaches that connect policy with operations.

Textile Recycling International will participate as Headline Sponsor, bringing experience from large scale sorting systems. Their involvement reflects a growing recognition that classification is not a technical detail but a central part of how the trade functions.

The programme will include local traders, youth voices, and academic perspectives alongside policymakers and international partners. That mix is deliberate. Any system that seeks to govern textile flows will need to account for both formal regulation and the realities of informal markets.

Landfills2Landmarks is positioned as more than a single gathering. It is intended as a platform for coordinating how textile flows are measured, reported, and managed across borders. The Accra meeting marks a step toward aligning global expectations with local practice.

Event Details
18–22 May 2026
Labadi Beach Hotel, Accra, Ghana

Register: https://lnkd.in/dE4wkMaR

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