Conference Speakers

Janet O'Regan

Director, Nonwovens Marketing, Cotton Incorporated

Jan O'Regan is Director, Nonwovens Marketing for Cotton Incorporated. In this capacity she works to uncover new opportunities for cotton to bring value in to the nonwovens industry. The work includes leading efforts in strategic planning, technical and market project management and sharing ideas and results with the global supply chain.

Jan's professional experience is strong in nonwovens. She has spent over three decades in this industry in a variety of assignments including sales, marketing, strategic planning and business management. Market responsibilities included consumer and industrial markets on regional, national and global teams. Over the past ten years, she has had the opportunity to apply these broad experiences to new markets for cotton in nontraditional applications.

Jan earned a BS in Textiles and Business, summa cum laud from Penn State and an MBA from New York University's Stern School of Business. Since then she has continued to learn through executive education programs at Northwestern University.

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Wednesday 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Microfibers in the Marine Environment

Breaking it Down: Microfiber Biodegradability in Aquatic Environments

Did you know apparel begins to break down in the wash?

Fabrics (both natural and synthetic) shed microfibers which enter into rivers, lakes, and oceans. Research shows synthetic fibers contribute to plastic pollution in the earth's water supply by shedding microplastics into waterways when laundered.

It is estimated that there is now a minimum of 5.25 trillion plastic particles, weighing 270,000 tons, floating in the world's oceans. Do these particles break down? Do they continue to bio-accumulate causing further harm to Earth's marine habitats?

Cotton Incorporated and North Carolina State University with support from the University of California, Santa Barbara teamed up on a two-year study to better understand the path of cotton and synthetic microfibers as they shed in the wash, enter waterways and breakdown in water, fresh and salt. 

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