Background Polyester is the second largest family of plastics in terms of quantity used. In the EU in 2009, half of the 1.75 Mt of polyester textiles produced were used in clothing. Due to their properties, polyester-based textiles predominate in the footwear sector, where they have been introduced in many parts of the shoe (collar, tongue, insole, lining, tip and leg). Up to 7% of high-grade polyester textiles are lost during manufacture. This waste is mainly composed of trimmings and rejections that often contain polyester mixed with other materials, including glues. For this reason, their quality might not be acceptable for recycling with traditional mechanical methods, as it is difficult to separate the contaminants from the plastic efficiently, making landfilling and incineration the only solution. Polyester waste arising from footwear manufacturing is therefore an area which requires further efforts to find economically-viable sustainable management solutions. Objectives The LIFE-ECOTEX project proposes an innovative, eco-efficient and highly replicable recycling system for polyester textile waste generated during shoe manufacturing. The aim is to close the cycle for polyester material, making it possible to replace a part of the non-renewable petrochemical feedstock used to make textile polyester with rejected shoemaking material. The process starts with the chemical de-polymerisation of polyester waste generated, to recycle polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and produce bis (2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (BHET) by catalytic glycolysis. Once purified, the recovered BHET (having identical properties to equivalent ‘virgin’ material) is a suitable building block for the synthesis of fibre-grade polyesters. These recycled materials can be reintroduced in the market for footwear manufacturing or as non-woven insulators for construction. The project is in line with the EU Circular Economy Package, which establishes plastic waste as one its five priority areas. Furthermore, the project contributes to the implementation of the Waste Framework Directive and the Landfill Directive as it valorises a waste stream that was previously only landfilled or incinerated. Expected results: Chemical recycling of 518 kg of polyester waste after pre-treatment, producing 370 kg of BHET and 300 kg of PSF (polyester-staple fibre); Consumption of 300 kg of raw polyester avoided; Reduction in amount of waste incinerated or sent to landfill; Reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 1.47 tCO2eq/t PET; Optimisation of the catalytic glycolysis process; A comprehensive LCA and viability analysis of the proposed process; Development of industry guidelines concerning textile manufacturing and in situ waste recycling; and Policy recommendations to the European Commission on textile manufacturing using chemically recycled polyester.