In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, organisations increasingly recognise the value of public commitments to sustainability and social responsibility. The European Commission has collected more than 100 commitments from stakeholders eager to contribute to the implementation of the Transition Pathway for the textiles ecosystem. These structured voluntary actions create transparency and accountability across the textile value chain while facilitating public-private collaboration.  
Pledges are central in co-implementing the Transition Pathway, translating high-level objectives into practical actions aligned with EU strategies. Commitments may include both ongoing and future concrete actions, covering a wide range of topics across the eight building blocks:  

• sustainable competitiveness,
• regulation and governance,
• social dimension,
• R&I,
• infrastructure,
• skills,
• investment/funding,
• EU strategic autonomy/defence support.

Key benefits of publishing a pledge

Publishing pledges offers multiple advantages for both individual organisations and the broader textiles ecosystem:

• concrete commitment: transforms abstract sustainability intentions into specific actions with clear ownership and timelines;
• accountability: enables stakeholders to track progress and evaluate outcomes;
• recognition: showcases sustainability and innovation leadership while building trust with customers and partners;
• knowledge exchange: highlights emerging best practices and innovations across the ecosystem;
• partnership facilitation: encourages collaboration and partnership formation among stakeholders;
• market advantage: signals core values that attract aligned customers, talent, and investors;
• gap identification: the collective pledge inventory helps identify areas requiring additional focus or collaborative effort.

Effective Pledge Structure

A pledge is a voluntary commitment to implement specific, measurable actions advancing ecosystem transformation goals. An effective pledge consists of three essential components:

• commitment: a tangible, ongoing or planned initiative beyond general intentions;
• measurable indicator: a quantifiable metric enabling objective assessment;
• target date: a specific deadline or timeframe establishing accountability. 

Ready to pledge? 

The EU Textiles Ecosystem Platform has created a dedicated section for sharing these commitments. Follow the guidelines to learn how to submit and make your commitment count. Let your action drive the sustainable transformation of the textiles ecosystem across Europe.