For a lot of people, environmentally conscious fashion choices might feel like an overwhelming path to embark on. To help inspire sustainable and ethical practices are a host of sustainable fashion influencers from around the world who actively share advice and demonstrate how to make ethical choices. Let’s get acquainted!
Bandana Tewari
Armed with a bachelor’s degree in literature and a master’s degree in communications and filmmaking, Bandana Tewari is a sustainable fashion influencer, activist and former fashion features director of Vogue India. After thirteen years, she shifted her base to Bali where she now resides, serves as a special advisor to the Global Fashion agenda and is a contributor to The Business of Fashion, The New York Times, The International Herald Tribune and Vogue.
”What Gandhi said three-quarters of a century ago still rings true today: ‘The world has enough for everyone’s needs, but not everyone’s greed’. Gandhi was an activist who believed in social change. Today we need a world of Activist Designers and Activist Consumers who are committed to being slow thinkers, slow creators, and slow consumers,” she said at a TedX event
Rosie Kotcha
London-based model Rosie Kotcha is an ethical and sustainable fashion advocate. She encourages re-wearing, re-selling and re-using garments and creates the most fabulous looks from pre-loved apparel. Her all-thrifted outfits makes her the perfect influencer for the slow-fashion movement.
”Despite having always shopped on charity shops and veered towards a less fast fashion based shopping style, I found sustainable fashion through the feelings of inadequacy and climate inadequacy,” she posted on Instagram. ‘’I felt I wasn’t giving anything back to the beautiful world we are so lucky to live on. I wanted to do more. … I spent time figuring what I am good at and seeing how beneficial each could be to the collective in the climate crisis. Once I found sustainable fashion, I immersed myself in stand have tried my best to learn as much as I can so I can share it with everyone and hopefully inspire and create change.”
Kathleen
Blogging on sustainable fashion since 2009, Kathleen loves speaking about ethical fashion. She is known for saying ”I promote progress not perfection”, and she influences people by walking the talk — she showcases what it takes to practice ethical fashion with everyday practical steps through her Instagram feed that is packed with tips to ”live your most sustainable life”. She showcases real-world examples of eco-friendly fashion choices, from thrift shopping to caring for garments to extend their lifespan. And, her content demystifies ethical fashion, making it relatable and approachable, and motivates her followers to adopt more conscious habits. By combining fashion education with authenticity, Kathleen continues to influence the movement towards a more sustainable fashion industry.
Aditi Mayer
Ethical fashion blogger Aditi Mayer has been channelling her efforts into expanding the purview of sustainable fashion to craft an intersectional movement. Per Vogue, Over the years, ‘Mayer, now 24, has used her platform to start conversations on fashion through the lens of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, socioeconomic status and much more… she is a spokesperson for small sustainable businesses, local and BIPOC-run brands, speaker on concepts of ethical manufacturing practices and creator of visually-compelling editorials that spotlight designers’ works. While the widespread farmers protest took place in India, Mayer’s focus quickly shifted towards simplifying ”how our agrarian roots as a nation are deeply tied to sustainable fashion systems” via chats that recounted the country’s colonised history and its relationship with the fashion we wear today.’
”It’s an unfortunate truth that our relationship with fashion consumption can often be rooted in convenience or a fleeting dopamine hit,” she tells Vogue. “However, it’s important to shift our mindsets from quantity to quality. This translates into buying pieces we can see in our closets for years to come, re-orienting our understanding of a fair price and looking at the pieces we buy as an equation of longevity rather than the cheapest possible deal, because a poorly made shirt from a fast fashion brand at a throwaway price may not stand the test of time and durability.”
Céline Semaan
Céline Semaan is a designer, advocate, writer and founder of a design lab, Slow Factory, which she describes as ‘Good for Earth and Good for the People — we are a school and a lab working with fashion companies to research and implement sustainability-focused initiatives, from waste recovery to software and production.’ Semaan also orchestrates an annual summit on sustainable fashion and writes on ethical fashion for The Cut, Elle, and Huffington Post, among other publications. Céline’s commitment to sustainability and justice is reflected in her initiatives that encourage mindful consumption and support for ethical brands.
As a fashion designer and activist, she has dedicated her work to promoting ethical practices within the fashion industry, emphasizing the importance of transparency, sustainability, and worker rights. Céline is known for her innovative approach to blending activism with fashion, often using her platform to raise awareness about environmental issues and the exploitation often hidden behind fast fashion. Her efforts aim to challenge industry norms and inspire consumers and brands alike to adopt more responsible and conscious practices.
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Jasmeen Dugal is Associate Editor at FashionABC, contributing her insights on fashion, technology, and sustainability. She brings with herself more than two decades of editorial experience, working for national newspapers and luxury magazines in India.
Jasmeen Dugal has worked with exchange4media as a senior writer contributing articles on the country’s advertising and marketing movements, and then with Condenast India as Net Editor where she helmed Vogue India’s official website in terms of design, layout and daily content. Besides this, she is also an entrepreneur running her own luxury portal, Explosivefashion, which highlights the latest in luxury fashion and hospitality.
