Redesigning Textiles for a Circular Economy
Werewool harnesses nature’s blueprints for function to create regenerative fibers that plug and play in today’s fashion industry. Our engineered microbes brew designer proteins that give performance and color to textile fibers without plastics and water pollution.
Performance without plastics and color without water pollution.
A fashion industry compatible with nature
Committed to the UN SDGs
Our fiber development platform can reduce the fashion industry’s impact on our dwindling natural resources, by eliminating the ecotoxicity of dyes, reducing the raw material impact of fiber production, and the end of life implications of synthetic fibers. Werewool is made with a circular lifecycle, returning nutrients to the ecosystem at the end of their useful life, and protecting biodiversity (Earth’s greatest resilience to climate change) from the effects of microplastic pollution. By creating fibers with inherent color, we are preventing the pollution associated with conventional textile dyes that cause dead zones in rivers, streams and other freshwater resources.
UN SDG #6
Ensure availability and sustainable management of water for all
UN SDG #12
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.
UN SDG #13
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
UN SDG #14
Conserve marine resources for sustainable development
“Nature’s genius adapted for human design through biotechnology”
The Team
Werewool is a team of distinguished scientists and innovative textile developers who want to combat climate change through the exploration of nature’s genius for sustainable textile innovations.
Chui-Lian
Lee
Co-Founder, CEO
Valentina
Gomez
Co-Founder, COO
Theanne
Schiros, PhD
Co-Founder, CSO
Allie
Obermeyer, PhD
Co-Founder, Bio-Lead
Recognized by:
Press
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FAQs
+ What are your fibers made of?
We are working on refining the composition of our fibers to minimize their impact on the environment—we are starting to explore composite materials and waste streams to minimize our fiber’s footprint.
+ So where does the color of your fibers come from?
The color of our fibers can be attributed to protein structure! The way light hits these proteins gives them their natural color and fluorescence!
+ What does structural performance properties mean?
Nature uses structure-function relationships for performance. This means that the physical shape of a protein can give the protein “building block” specific properties. For example, The protein collagen is shaped like a spring/spiral, as a result, this protein is known to have elastic properties!
+ How does Werewool contribute to make the fashion industry circular and waste-free?
Our fibers will support a circular fashion industry by providing textile manufacturers with a fiber source that can be returned to the earth as nutrients at the end of their useful life. In addition, Werewool fibers will be designed to have features such as color and stretch built into the fiber on the DNA level, minimizing the fashion industry’s environmental footprint by eliminating the water polluting and chemical intensive dyeing and finishing processes that the industry is currently reliant on.
+ Why the name Werewool?
Our first project together explored the idea that proteins come from DNA—which can come from anywhere, chickpeas, goldfish, your great aunt cathy! Ultimately we were asking our audience to ask themselves—could humans be the new source of wool?
+ What is our goal?
Our mission is to reduce the industry’s reliance on socially and environmentally impactful fibers whose production is degrading our environment. Our platform will have far reaching impacts on communities and environments around the world, increasing the availability of arable land for agriculture and potable water for human consumption.
+ What is the after use for your fibers? Do they shed microplastics?
We are developing our fibers so they can be returned as nutrients for a healthy ecosystem at the end of their useful life.
+ Can you make a garment out of your fibers yet?
Not yet, we are still in the early stages of development. With growth and support—we aim to reach our goal of making a prototype garment out of Werewool in 3-5 years!
+ Do your fibers glow and have fluorescence under daylight?
No, under normal light our fibers have normal color (our green fiber is quite bright/neon). The fluorescence is revealed when under black light.