Acclaimed sustainability and design contest celebrates ten years by launching in FIVE international cities in 2021
Thirteen cities spanning seven continents by 2023
Re-scheduled date for 2020 Grand Final revealed
Powered by RT : Only on RT 2fm and RT Player
Junk Kouture announces 10-year ambition to enrich and empower the lives of a billion young people across the world through sustainability and creativity.
All-island fashion and sustainability contest Junk Kouture takes on the world as it expands globally after ten incredible years of empowering young people to create high-end couture from everyday junk. Capturing the imagination of 100,000 students in Ireland to date, a decade of design prowess on a national stage has led to plans to grow Junk Kouture into a World Tour that spans the world's seven continents between January and August each year and culminates with a World Final at the end of September.
Junk Kouture's World Final has the ambition to become the Eurovision of young sustainable fashion and creativity, as the world's youth gather to showcase their creative skills. Junk Kouture's World Tour will build momentum over the next three years. Beginning in January 2021, the initial season will take place digitally in five new cities: London, Milan, New York City, Paris, and Dubai, before adding further digital shows in Tokyo, Auckland, Sydney, Sao Paolo, Los Angeles, Cape Town, and Singapore in 2022 and then transition back to a full live tour with shows being hosted in some of the most iconic venues around the world as we return to pre-Covid normality.
Next year sixty finalists - ten each from Ireland, the UK, Italy, America, France, and the UAE will compete in the Global Digital Final. There will be one winner from each territory while one talented designer will be crowned Junk Kouture World Designer of the Year'. See our website for more details on the other amazing awards up for grabs.
Incorporating elements of environmental sustainability, fashion, art, design, and engineering, Junk Kouture annually showcases aspiring designers aged 12 - 18-years from across Ireland as they rise to the challenge to envision, design, create and model wearable fashion styled from household rubbish, discarded bits and bobs, and upcycled tat the golden rule is that everything used must be 100% recycled.
This new international element now gives Generation Z worldwide a creative voice they have never had before to drive home the message that the biggest crisis the generation face is our changing climate and finding a sustainable future for our planet. Now more than ever our fashion choices have an impact on the world around us and Junk Kouture is calling on young innovative minds to push the boundaries and choose materials for their designs that might usually be overlooked.
If you think you have what it takes to reign supreme on the global stage, you can enter as an individual or as a team with a maximum of three members for this exciting digital contest. There is no time like the present to get your thinking cap on and start considering your designs. Follow these simple steps to kickstart your Junk Kouture Digital journey:
Go to the Junk Kouture website to download the handbook which has everything you need to get started.
Follow us on our social channels @junkkouture for daily updates and inspiration.
Create an Instagram account for your design and document your journey.
In November, go to app.junkkouture.com
Register as a Junk Kouture Member and join our community!
And that's not our only news
Junk Kouture 2020 was sadly disrupted by the outbreak of Covid-19 in Ireland and the grand final in the 3Arena postponed in April. The new normal is something we are all still acclimatising to and with that in mind, we have come up with a solution to ensure that you still have the opportunity to strut your stuff and possibly walk away as the overall winner of this year's competition.
It will be lights, camera, action for this year's finalists as their grand final is broadcast from Dublin on the RT Player in a carefully socially-distanced final hosted by RT 2FM presenters Laura Fox and Emma Power in December. Our celebrity judges Michelle Visage and Louis Walsh will also be back on hand to help choose the over-all winner. In what promises to be an incredible display of haute-couture and high-energy performances, a public vote for a brand new award will also take place on the night so be sure to tell your friends to tune in and show their support!
Star of RuPaul's Drag Race and Junk Kouture judge Michelle Visage said: This year has been a huge test for everyone and I am so happy that Junk Kouture has been able to adapt in the face of adversity so we can still celebrate the amazing talent of Ireland's emerging young designers. I love everything about this competition as it not only showcases the extraordinary creativity of the next generation but also carries an important message for us all, to look after the world that we live in. The new digital format means that I can still be involved from the other side of the world here in LA - who would have thought it? I cannot wait to sit back and take in all the fabulous creations on the night of the final. As for my advice to our fantastic finalists on the night - be true to yourself, bring big energy on stage, and remember this is your moment to shine! See you all online very soon.
TV talent show judge extraordinaire and Junk Kouture judge Louis Walsh said: I was so disappointed when the Grand Final of Junk Kouture was cancelled in April. We have had a tough six months and we all need good news right now. The JK team have been working behind the scenes on this and it is fantastic news that the final can now go ahead. All of you future designers will have the opportunity to strut your stuff on
Europe Stories
22/12/2025
For a decade, popular German podcast Fest & Flauschig has hosted an annual Chris...
22/12/2025
Monday 22 December 2025
Sky extends PGA TOUR partnership until 2029, as Sky Spo...
22/12/2025
Siobh n McSweeney, Rory McIlroy, Elon Musk, Catherine Connolly, Jim Gavin, Ivan Yates and Traitor Paudie Moloney lead new characters for Callan Kicks the Year 2...
22/12/2025
Winner announced in the picturesque surroundings of Wicklow's Avondale Tower and Treetop Walk
Andrew Trimble wins the show in his first series as coach
Th...
22/12/2025
The 2025 winners have been announced today, Sunday 21 December, for Ireland's largest choral competition Choirs for Christmas hosted by RT lyric fm.
Ove...
21/12/2025
John Shortt named Young Sportsperson of the Year Kerry are the Team of the Year
...
19/12/2025
With Playout Release 2025.4, ToolsOnAir continues to push professional playout w...
19/12/2025
19 Dec 2025
VEON's Mobilink Microfinance Bank Launches Islamic Banking Oper...
19/12/2025
The six-part drama, set in a close-knit Welsh town fractured by an unspeakable c...
19/12/2025
Rohde & Schwarz drives the future of mobility at CES 2026 At the 2026 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Rohde & Schwarz will present a powerful lineup o...
19/12/2025
RT is proud to return to the RDS to support the 2026 Stripe Young Scientist & T...
18/12/2025
Canada's largest indoor arena has transformed its live production capabilities with a full ST 2110 infrastructure and Calrec's compact Argo S console. S...
18/12/2025
Long-term agreement includes the SES SCORE platform and hybrid distribution worldwide to deliver more than 5,000 hours of golf tournaments annually featuring th...
18/12/2025
18 Dec 2025
VEON Upgraded to Nasdaq Global Select Market, Enhancing Investor Visibility Dubai, December 18, 2025 - VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON), a global digital o...
18/12/2025
Thursday 18 December 2025
Sky Sports remains the exclusive home of the Masters ...
18/12/2025
Using the additive process of 3D printing, layer after layer gets printed until an object is as close to the final shape needed as possible. Historically, machi...
18/12/2025
In 2025, RT proudly supported 185 arts and cultural events across the island of Ireland, reflecting significant growth since the scheme was re-launched in 2014...
18/12/2025
RT Sports Awards 2025 live on RT One and RT Player at 8:05pm on Saturday 20 December
On Saturday 20 December live on RT One and RT Player at the earlier t...
18/12/2025
RT lyric fm presents a very special Winter Solstice edition of Ambient Orbit, l...
18/12/2025
At 7.45pm on 1st January 1926, the precursor to RT , then 2RN, delivered the fledgling new Irish state's first public radio transmission. From those first c...
18/12/2025
December 18 2025, 05:30 (PST) The Movie Experience SLO Becomes First U.S. Exhib...
17/12/2025
Investigative journalists across the Western Balkans and T rkiye continue to con...
17/12/2025
The right playlist is essential on New Year's Eve, building the energy as you get ready and keeping it high as you count down to midnight. This year, Spotif...
17/12/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
17/12/2025
Wuppertal December 17, 2025
Riedel Builds Global Communication and Commentary ...
17/12/2025
December 17 2025, 17:00 (PST) Dolby and LG Unveil a New Era of Home Audio With ...
17/12/2025
Wednesday 17 December 2025
Heated Rivalry will be coming to Sky and streaming service NOW on 10 JanuaryTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy opti...
17/12/2025
RT has announced that Kathy Fox has been appointed Commissioning Editor with re...
17/12/2025
With the new season of Dancing with the Stars shimmering in the not-too-distant future this New Year, the celebrity and dancer pairings of the twelve couples ha...
16/12/2025
Hawkins has landed on Spotify, just in time for Stranger Things Season 5, Volume...
16/12/2025
Wherever you are, your favorite music and audio content should go seamlessly with you. That's why Spotify has partnered with NAVER Corp, Korea's leading...
16/12/2025
2025 Wrapped arrived bigger and bolder than ever. This year's experience is designed to be ultra personal and shareable, with new features like Wrapped Part...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON Announces Release Date for Full Year and Fourth Quarter 2025 R...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON's Kyivstar Invests in Renewable Energy in Ukraine with Acq...
16/12/2025
Harmonic's XOS Advanced Media Processor Improves Streaming Video Quality and Boosts Viewer Engagement SAN JOSE, Calif. - Dec. 16, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: ...
16/12/2025
RT Sport Awards 2025 live on RT One and RT Player at 8:05pm on Saturday 20 December.
On Saturday 20 December live on RT One and RT Player at the earlier t...
16/12/2025
Singer -songwriter Brian Kennedy has been announced as the final celebrity dance...
15/12/2025
Cape Town, November 13, 2025 - SES and International artist and humanitarian, Fo...
15/12/2025
Luxembourg, December 15, 2025 - SES, a leading space solutions company, and Abra Group launched fast and reliable multi-orbit inflight connectivity service on t...
15/12/2025
15 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan Delivers First Starlink Direct to Cel...
15/12/2025
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor finds himself the topic of year's cracker jokes
Oasis, David Harbour, Celebrity Traitors and Angela Rayner all feature in this y...
15/12/2025
Comscore Expands Cross-Platform Campaign Measurement to Include Audio and Social New capabilities strengthen cross-platform campaign reporting suite; CCR rebran...
15/12/2025
RT .ie has reached one billion page views this year and is on track to finish 2025 2% ahead of last year. Average time spent on the site is up 3% on 2024, with ...
12/12/2025
Last month, Spotify announced a new collaboration with the ATP Tour, the global governing body of men's professional tennis, aimed at bringing the next gene...
12/12/2025
Friday 12 December 2025
Ted is back! Seth MacFarlane's live-action comedic ...
12/12/2025
Uachtar n na h ireann, Catherine Connolly visited RT Raidi na Gaeltachta's...
12/12/2025
Ireland AM host Eric Roberts has been revealed as the sixth contestant taking to...
11/12/2025
Thomson and the Center for News, Technology and Innovation (CNTI) convened a two-day workshop in Sarajevo bringing together more than 35 journalists, editors, p...
11/12/2025
Having the right song soundtrack your moves can make all the difference when gam...
Acclaimed sustainability and design contest celebrates ten years by launching in FIVE international cities in 2021
