The textile and clothing industry make up a large part of the world economy and represent significant challenges for the environment and humanity at the global level. As a result, collaborative governance networks have emerged that aim to find global governance solutions to social and environmental challenges. They consist of various actors to gain insights from all relevant perspectives. Collaboration, exchange of knowledge and negotiation can help to promote the joint creation of knowledge among the participants and lead to innovative solutions. A systematic literature review on inter-organizational networks and governance partnerships maps out academic literature and distinguishes modes of governance that aim to contribute to a sustainability transformation. A qualitative case study then focuses on learning processes in collaborative multi-stakeholder governance under the hypothesis that interaction and dialogue within governance networks can lead to innovative outcomes through the exchange of different perspectives, information and insights conducive to mutual learning. Thus, drivers and barriers for the joint creation of knowledge in collaborative governance can be identified. A final article then examines the role of science and potential of transformative research to contribute to knowledge co-creation within collaborative governance.