Junk Kouture Creativity Takes Centre Stage in Dublin
This week, four Junk Kouture designs will be on display in Dublin as young people's creativity and circular thinking become part of two important conversations around sustainable development.
Global Glamour, Grounds for Glam, Reef-lection and Reclaimed by Roots will feature across the Meeting of the Working Party on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development on 1 October and the ESDN Conference 2026 on 2 October.
Taking place as part of Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the events bring together representatives and experts working across sustainable development, the Sustainable Development Goals and Europe's transition towards a more resilient future.
For Junk Kouture, the opportunity is also a chance to bring the ideas of young people into those conversations through the designs themselves.
Creativity with purpose
Each of the four designs tells a different story about materials, consumption and the way we think about waste.
Grounds for Glam transforms used coffee pods into a striking design, alongside reclaimed materials including an old stage backdrop, wire mesh and foil trays. Connected to SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, the design explores the culture of consumption surrounding the coffee industry and challenges us to look again at materials we routinely discard.
Reef-lection also connects to SDG 12, using scrap tubing from Medtronic alongside repurposed straws and spoons to create a design inspired by coral reefs. Through weaving, melting and reshaping materials, its creators explore the relationship between production, consumption and the impact our choices can have on the natural world.
Reclaimed by Roots looks towards SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. Created using old council plant pots, the design imagines nature reclaiming an urban environment, with an architectural-inspired top contrasted by a flower-filled skirt representing plants gradually taking over the built landscape.
Alongside them, Global Glamour completes the four-design showcase, bringing another example of the creativity, storytelling and resourcefulness at the heart of the Junk Kouture community.
Young ideas in a bigger conversation
The Working Party on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development monitors and reviews implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals at EU level.
The following day, the European Sustainable Development Network Conference will bring delegates together under the theme “Environmental Security in Europe: Building the Foundations of Long-Term Resilience”, with discussions spanning the just and green transition, circular economy, citizen and stakeholder engagement, and environment, climate and biodiversity.
Having Junk Kouture designs present across both events provides a visual reminder that sustainable development isn't only something young people can learn about - it is something they can explore, question and respond to creatively.
A huge thank you to the young designers who have allowed their work to be part of this week's events and to the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment for inviting Junk Kouture to contribute.
And the designs aren't the only way the Junk Kouture community will be involved in Dublin this week. Keep an eye on RE:MADE and our social channels as we share more from both events.
