Looking back: the best of Fashion Revolution Week 2019 on the East Coast
Fashion Revolution USA Roundtable Discussions in New York
This year, our New York team aimed to amplify the issues facing the fashion industry by creating an interactive dialogue on April 23, 2019 to mark a day of remembrance for the 6th anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse which occurred on April 24, 2013. The goal of the event was to deliver actionable solutions for three key issues: Human Rights, the Environment and Governance. A key leader in each area had a fifteen minute presentation followed by three twenty minute round table discussions with attendees and speakers.
Our key speakers included: Elizabeth L. Cline (Author & Journalist), Aaron Halegua (Human Rights Lawyer), Eszter Csicsai (Senior Manager, Reuse & Donations at NYC Department of Sanitation) and Mark Anner (Associate Professor of Labor and Employment Relations, and Political Science, The Pennsylvania State University).
GFX Clothing Swap and Rally in New York
The Global Fashion Exchange (GFX) team hosted one of their famous clothing swaps at Union Square Park as part of Fashion Revolution Week and the Earth Day Initiative. This swap also included a curated selection of ethical and sustainable brands from The Canvas by Querencia Studio.There was also a peaceful rally aimed to inspire everyone to create a positive change for people and planet! The rally featured Model Mafia founder Brana Dane, and speakers from Ellen MacArthur Foundation Make Fashion Circular Campaign, and Milo McBride from Sunrise Movement.
Thre3fold Events in New York
Partners at Thre3foldwere excited to host their 3rd annual event in New York made possible by ethical/sustainable coworking space CSI (Center for Social Innovation), and even more excited for such a powerhouse panel that gave such a diverse perspective on what we can each be doing to make a difference now.
Cal McNeil from the CFDA brought an important perspective on looking for opportunities in existing organizations and how to navigate those changes internally. Ngozi Okaro discussed her transition from law to launching Custom Collaborative to tangibly provide sustainable employment through production for low income and immigrant women here in NYC. Jessica Schreiber, self proclaimed trash nerd, made a big career transition as well coming from city sanitation to launching Fabscrap to tackle our pre-consumer textile waste issue (it’s big)! She brought great insight into why non-profit was the route they chose and the challenges as they’ve scaled so quickly. And of course Patrick Duffy from Global Fashion Exchange brought his years of experience through collaboration to show just how much impact you can create when you bring people together, not to mention how much fun is to shop a swap!
After the panel there was a shopping event where attendees could discover and buy clothes from ethically made brands such as: Agaati, ONE432, Half United, Par en Par, ELMNTL, Kat Bond Co, Casa Ysla, Alajas, TL Brooke, Article 22, Voz, The Root Collective, Nineh, Blue Hair Days, Tai, and Volta Atelier.
Screenings and Events in Washington, D.C.
The DC team started the week with the screening of The Price of Free by Nobel Price winning human rights activist Mr Kailash Satyarthi. We were given a room at the Eaton Workshop. Approximately 15 people made it. The impact of the documentary was immediate. At the end, everyone left the room speechless, questioning their daily consumer choices.
On Wednesday, The DC Department of Energy and Environment, in conjunction with Optoro, hosted “Fashion in Full Circle: An Evening of Conversation About Circularity in DC’s Textile Industry”. That evening, panelist, Joelle Firzli, Co-Founder of the DC Sustainable Fashion Collective and founder of Tribute; Kaveri Marathe, Co-Founder of the DC Sustainable Fashion Collective and Founder of Texiles; and Rosalie Ferris, of Pattern Sample Sew, explored solutions to connect the global imperative to move textile production and consumption toward a more circular model with local efforts. Turnout was amazing, with approximately 80 people attending, engaging, and asking questions about how to get involved.
On Thursday, Green America hosted a clothing swap, “Don’t shop, Swap!” and finally, the Fashion Revolution USA team closed the week with an Open Studio at Tribute, a cross-disciplinary space that promotes sustainable and ethical fashion and design. That day Tribute opened its doors, offering a behind the scenes look at what it takes to run a conscious cross-disciplinary and multi-brand platform. The team, in collaboration with the DC Sustainable Fashion Collective, shared insights about how to operate a sustainable retail business. The open studio was a moment for gathering committed projects and persons with the same passion and interest for conscious and ethical fashion.
