National Stewardship Action Council, Stewardship Action Foundation launch National Textile Circularity Working Group

The National Stewardship Action Council (NSAC) and the Stewardship Action Foundation (SAF), both based in Sacramento, California, have launched the National Textile Circularity Working Group, a cross-sector initiative aiming to align retailers, resellers, nonprofits, manufacturers and government agencies to accelerate circular economy solutions across the U.S. for clothing, carpet, mattresses and furniture.

Building on the foundation of NSAC’s leadership in carpet stewardship laws in California and new momentum emerging in Washington, Minnesota and Rhode Island, NSAC says this working group will focus on advancing fair, practical and scalable approaches that keep textiles in use and out of landfills. 

“Circularity isn’t just about materials—it’s about systems,” NSAC and SAF Executive Director and CEO Heidi Sanborn says. “This working group brings together the doers, innovators and decision-makers who can advance smart policy and turn policy into practice. When we collaborate across sectors and across states, we move from ideas to implementation and from waste to value.”

The new effort builds on NSAC and SAF’s national working group model, which currently convenes leaders across five active groups focused on packaging EPR implementation, household hazardous waste, recycling refunds (deposit-return systems) and illegal printer cartridges. According to NSAC, these groups connect a network of more than 2,700 leaders and changemakers representing more than 120 sustainable communities, associations, companies and government agencies nationwide. 

NSAC says the Textile Circularity Working Group has drawn participation from Target, the American Apparel & Footwear Association, Reverse Logistics Group, Goodwill of Southern California, Goatote and the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA).

“This national working group is uniquely positioned to convene, advance and scale the collaboration needed to achieve circularity in this resource stream,” SWANA CEO Amy Lestition Burke says. “We’re honored to advance these solutions together, which began with a dedicated roundtable of industry and public-sector leaders at SWANA’s RCon 2025 conference in November.” 

The first meeting of the working group is scheduled for Dec. 15, 2025, and will feature opening remarks from Washington State Rep. Kristine Reeves. In advance NSAC and SAF will host a LinkedIn Live event Dec. 4, featuring Resource Recycling, SWANA, Planet Aid, Goodwill, SCS Engineers and the Washington State Department of Ecology to discuss scaling circular textile systems. 

“We’re inviting leaders and changemakers from across the value chain to join us at the table—from clothing to carpet to mattresses, furniture and more,” says Heath Nettles, deputy director of NSAC and SAF. “Whether you represent industry, local government or the nonprofit sector, this is a chance to shape practical solutions and fair policies that move the needle on textile circularity nationwide.” 

As part of this launch, NSAC will present its 2025 National Leadership Award to Bentley Mills, a California-based carpet manufacturer recognized for pioneering circular design, take-back systems and recycled material innovation.