Abigail Clarke-Sather is an Associate Professor of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) and Director of UMD’s first Makerspace. In 2024, she co-founded Waypoint Forward LLC with her former master’s student Paulo Alves to advance circular textile economies, co-creating the patent-pending Fiber Shredder recycling technology. Dr. Clarke-Sather holds a B.A. in Physics from Earlham College, along with a Graduate Sustainability Certificate, M.S., and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological University. Her background includes post-doctoral work as a Visiting Young Scientist at the Chinese Academy of Sciences studying rural household carbon reduction, project management at the International Center for Appropriate & Sustainable Technology, and faculty roles in Civil & Environmental Engineering and Fashion & Apparel Studies at the University of Delaware. Her research and teaching center on computer-aided design, materials science, manufacturing, sustainability, life cycle assessment, and textile recycling. She has advised seven M.S. students on topics ranging from sustainable bridge repair and textile recycling to wearable health sensors. Through her lab, the Applied Sustainable Product Innovation and Resilient Engineering (ASPIRE) Lab, and Waypoint Forward, she welcomes partnerships in textile recycling and real-world sustainability solutions.