Category Archives: Fashion Design

Ethical Fashion Show Paris: Education For Sustainable Fashion

Title: Ethical Fashion Show Paris: Education For Sustainable Fashion
Location: Paris, France
Link out: Click here
Description: Fashioning an Ethical Industry will be hosting a round table on Education for Sustainable Fashion at the Ethical Fashion Show in Paris from 1pm to 3:30pm on Sunday October 4th 2009. The event will take place at Tapis Rouge: 67, rue du fg St Martin 75010 Paris.

Speakers and themes are to be confirmed. The event is aimed at fashion tutors and students but everyone is welcome. Tickets will be available from the Ethical Fashion Show website nearer the time.

Source: FEI
Date: 2009-10-04

New NLC Report on Human Rights violations in Jordan

NLC

A new report out of the National Labor Committee today cites multiple human rights violations at the Muse Textile Ltd. garment factory in Al Hassan Industrial City, Irbid, Jordan.

  • Human Trafficking
  • Primitive Dorm Conditions
  • Substandard Food
  • Forced Overtime and Seven-Day Work Weeks
  • A Failure to Communicate

Check out the full report, as well as the Ministry of Labor Report from July 19th. These workers still have 11 months left on their contract. The NLC is calling for the factory to be brought up to international standards and Jordanian law of compliance immediately.

 

Source: NLC

Oxfam Hong Kong launches new CSR report for the Garment Industry

Oxfam CSR Guidebook

Oxfam Hong Kong has just launched a new guidebook for the garment industry titled Good Fashion: A Guide to Being an Ethical Clothing Company.

Although they encourage the use of the guidebook for educational use, as well as for research, advocacy and campaign purposes, be sure to notify them if you are going to use the guidebook so that they may assess its impact.

 

“As an active promoter of corporate social responsibility (CSR), Oxfam Hong Kong launches the first corporate social responsibility guidebook: Good Fashion: A Guide to Being an Ethical Clothing Company today. Good Fashion targets to support the garment sector in Hong Kong to further develop and implement CSR policy. In producing Good Fashion, Oxfam aims to raise awareness within the business sector on the importance of CSR and to encourage them to put CSR principles into practice.

The 71-page Good Fashion, which is divided into four sections, is a comprehensive guidebook containing practical tips for implementing CSR throughout the production process, such as merchandising and manufacturing. Good Fashion also includes CSR insights from various stakeholders, including workers, community organisations, union representatives, and other groups. Online resources and a simple checklist are also included for companies’ reference.”

You can download the full report in English (PDF) here.

Also, be sure to check out Oxfam Hong Kong’s previous reports. In 2004 they published Turning the Garment Industry Inside Out – Purchasing Practices and Workers’ Lives. They have also published two transparency reports: Transparency Report – How Hong Kong Garment Companies Can Improve Public Reporting of their Labour Standards (2006) and Transparency Report II: Have Hong Kong Garment Companies Improved Their Reporting on Labour Standards (2009).

Source: CSR Asia

Portland Fashion Week: Sustainable and Independent

Title: Portland Fashion Week: Sustainable and Independent

Location: Pearl District, Portland, Oregon
Link out: Click here
Description: As a longtime hotbed of creativity for modern art, design, and urban development, Portland is being unveiled as fashion’s best-kept secret.
On the runway since 2003, Portland Fashion Week is the second-longest running fashion
week on the West Coast. PFW stages the collections of the upcoming season through a
week-long series of high-production runway shows in downtown Portland, and exposes
independent designers to regional, national and international press, buyers as well as
style-savvy consumers.

Source: Portland Fashion Week
Start Date: 2009-10-07
End Date: 2009-10-11

Greener By Design 2009 Conference

The second annual Greener By Design 2009 “Greener Products for Leaner Times” conference was held yesterday and today in San Fransisco. William McDonough gave the keynote speech at the conference yesterday. This article, “Greener By Design: Nature’s Rights, Nutrients and Quality Design,” by Jonathan Bardelline sums it up.

Check it out. For more on the conference, live blog posts, and twitter feeds (#gbd09) visit Greener Design

 

 

cradle to cradle

Just added William McDonough’s TED talk on ‘cradle to cradle’ design theory to the videos section. You will also find Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things in the suggested reading section of the site.

“I think we have a design problem.” (William McDonough’s, TED)

upcoming FEI events

Image Source: Fashioning an Ethical Industry (FEI)

Image Source: Fashioning an Ethical Industry (FEI)

 7th July 2009

Teaching Ethical Fashion

“A Fashioning an Ethical Industry tutor training day and official launch of Sustainable Fashion: A Handbook for Educators edited by Liz Parker for Fashioning an Ethical Industry, UK, and Dr Marsha A. Dickson for Educators for Socially Responsible Apparel Business, USA.

This event will bring together educators from fashion-related courses and organisations around the country to share ideas and resources, and support tutors in teaching about ethical fashion. The day is aimed at tutors on any fashion-related further or higher education course who are looking to be inspired and share best practice with other tutors.

The event will also launch the HEA funded research, being coordinated by the Centre For Sustainable Fashion at London College of Fashion, into the needs and expectations of fashion industry employers in relation to sustainable education within fashion related courses at HE.

The event will take place at London College of Fashion between 9.30 – 4.30.” (FEI)

Direct Source: Fashioning an Ethical Industry (FEI)

appropriate?

 

Back in 2007 Cameron Diaz offended many people in Peru with her choice in bag while climbing Machu Picchu. The bag in question flaunted a popular communist slogan, which brought back not so distant memories of the Maoist Shining Path group, responsible for murdering an estimated 70,000 Peruvians. Diaz publicly apologized for the mishap.

 

diaz bag

Photo Credit: Mail Online

 

 

Photos of Madonna’s recent trip to Malawi have generated some controversy over the political correctness of her outfit choice. Most critics have commented on the expensive tracksuit she wore on arrival, but I thought I might draw your attention to this outfit. The message seems mixed, with the “Malawi Love” t-shirt juxtaposed against army pants, and what looks to be military inspired boots. Surely Madonna was aware of the media circus that would be following her every move while visiting Malawi to finalize an already controversial adoption. What is the social responsibility of a celebrity when it comes to  their wardrobe?

 

Photo Source: examiner.com

 

So, you guessed it; time for another poll.

 


Oxfam Langara connects fashion design to social justice

 

This weekend, Oxfam Langara will challenge the role of fashion in the context of human rights and social justice.

 

When: Friday, April 3rd, 2009, 6:00pm (to end @2am, Sat. April 4th)

Where: Fashion Show, Langara College, 100 West 49th Street, Cafeteria/ After Party, Tonic night club, Vancouver

 

According to the Facebook page:

 

The Oxfam Campaigns that we will be concentrating on are:
• fair trade
• education
• debt and aid
• health and sanitation
• HIV/AIDS
• gender equality
• Arms Control


The show will feature selected appetizers, refreshments, prizes and raffles, entertaining music and key note speakers such as Miriam Palacios, head of Oxfam B.C/Yukon Region and Peter Prontzos, Political Science Professor from Langara College. Ticket holders will have the opportunity to network within the Oxfam community, Vancouver Fashion Week designers, media and photographers, fashion industry leaders, local community leaders, leading social justice advocate, and the head of Oxfam B.C/Yukon Region.

 

Tickets are 20$, with all proceeds going to Oxfam Canada.

 

For more information, and to purchase tickets, email oxfamfashion@gmail.com

Source: Stylefinds