Repeltec, Waste2Wear and Logonet make uniforms for the rangers of Gombe

In 2020 the Jane Goodall Institute marked 60 years of Jane Goodall's research at Gombe, Tanzania. To recognise the work of the institute's researchers and rangers, three companies with different roles in the textile chain worked together on a uniform: Waste2Wear, Logonet, and Affix Labs with Repeltec.

The rangers who protect Gombe's chimpanzees kept working through the Covid-19 lockdown in the region. The uniforms were a way of saying thank you.

Who did what

• Waste2Wear, a textile company that turns recycled plastic bottles into polyester, made the fabric: a soft, durable blend of recycled polyester and cotton.
• Logonet, a Finnish uniform specialist, designed the garments, drawing on its experience with tropical workwear.
• Affix Labs treated the finished garments with Repeltec.

Monique Maissan, founder of Waste2Wear, said: “It is a privilege to donate these uniforms and t-shirts to the Jane Goodall Institute in recognition of the truly valuable work they do to protect chimpanzees, other animals and our planet.”

The recycled fabric

According to an environmental study of the production run, making the uniforms from recycled fabric kept 2,484 PET bottles out of landfill and saved 2,347 litres of water, 188 kg of CO2 and 2,527 MJ of energy compared with conventional textiles.

The three companies shared the institute's values of discovery, innovation and hope, and donated the uniforms in recognition of its work for animals, people and the planet.