GCU fashion experts lead global summit

GCU will be at the forefront of a global summit on sustainable fashion this week.

Our academics are leading six workshops on fashion and sustainability in Valencia, the World Design Capital for 2022.

The Future of Fashion showcase, staged in conjunction with Universidad Politecnica de Valencia and Universidad Villanueva, brings together fashion educators, designers and brands from all over the globe and unites them under one common goal: to create a more sustainable future for the fashion industry.

Major international brands such as H&M and IKEA will be in attendance to hear GCU experts deliver the findings of their latest research.

Dr Louise McBride will present on sustainable fashion retail, Tim Jackson, Director of the British School of Fashion, will discuss the role of blockchain in the industry, and Professor Natascha Radclyffe-Thomas will highlight innovations in circular fashion and beauty, on day one of the conference on October 5.

Dr Cara Connell and Dr Ruth Marciniak will provide an overview of sustainable brand ratings, Dr Elaine Ritch will outline authentic sustainability practice, and Dr Lindsey Drylie Carey will examine how to measure impact, on the second day.

GCU honorary graduate Christopher Raeburn will also deliver a keynote address on how to grow a responsible fashion design company.

Dr Drylie Carey, principal investigator of the GCU-led Sustainable Fashion Employability Skills (SFES) project, said: “The SFES project team and my colleagues from GCU are so excited to be at the heart of the future of fashion as we move towards making sustainability an integral part of the fashion industry.”