The Columbia Climate School, in collaboration with Yale’s Center for Business and the Environment, hosted a Sustainable Fashion Exchange event in The Forum on Wednesday, February 5.

Upon entering, it was clear the inviting set-up of the venue reflected the dispositions of the 200+ students, alumni, researchers, and fashion and climate professionals who gathered in this space. There were upbeat pop tunes playing, soft-colored lighting fixtures, and a refreshment table that pulled you in (particularly the truffle oil cheese). It was impossible not to feel a sense of comfort there, especially when the community that filled it was so welcoming. Sporting silver boots and fuzzy hats, lime green sweaters, and stacked jewelry, this group of sustainable fashion devotees came dressed to impress and, more importantly, ready to answer the difficult questions of this field.

The introduction by Sandra Goldmark, Associate Dean of Interdisciplinary Engagement at the Columbia Climate School, set a tone of urgency and passion that carried throughout the night. She expressed the importance of facilitating change across sectors (e.g. fashion and sustainability) in higher education by encouraging radical collaboration. With an audience of such passionate workers, her advice to “become change experts and teach each other how to do it,” surely resonated with those who feel alone in overcoming the challenges of the sustainable fashion industry. This theme of relying on and tying into community members was built on during each panelist’s turn to speak.

For Michelle Gabriel, Program Director of the MS Sustainable Fashion Program at IENYC and the first panelist of the night, defining sustainability is key to understanding how to achieve it in this industry. By her terms, sustainability is a “system meant to change systems.” It is actively trying to influence others to wake up and join the movement. Of course, this is easier said than done. While sharing what Michelle sees as the greatest challenges within her work, she explained that it’s hard to move forward when you feel alone in making a change. If one company reassesses its products through the lens of sustainability, but no other companies join the effort, progress will be slow. However, this is not to say we should lose sight of hope. “There are solutions out there, we’re not applying them,” said Michelle. Furthermore, if we can get others to view the issues at hand more gravely and care to alleviate them, moving forward in sustainability is far from out of the picture.

The next panelist, Kevin Karl, echoed these sentiments from a different background in sustainability work. He is the Co-Director of the Fashion, Climate, and Energy Network at the Columbia Climate School, with most of his expertise surrounding the intersection of climate change and food systems. Although he may be newer to sustainable fashion, his work as a farmer helped him understand the importance of adaptability, an applicable concept within this field. “Seeing and experiencing with your own eyes the impacts across the supply chain, you do what you can,” Kevin said. In his opinion, one of the biggest ways we can adapt to create an environmentally conscious fashion industry is to move away from synthetic fabrics. Kevin acknowledges that for this change to be successful, extra attention should be given to the communities affected by this shift. Cultural adaptation training should be implemented in areas that depend on the natural textiles we want to transition towards consistently using.

Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Economics at Yale University, Dr. Meital Peleg Mizrachi, was the final panelist of the event. Her insight drew from her work in public policy as she shared with the audience the biggest question she seeks to answer these days: “What are the key components in consumer behavior that we can leverage into policy?” There are no flawless answers yet, but what Meital does highlight is action through behavior should be valued as much as it is through innovation. She uses the example of writing an academic article, which is certainly useful and informative but cannot be effective as a sole solution. So, what would a more effective solution look like? Meital noted many companies are already transforming consumer products with sustainable materials but equal efforts must be put into changing consumer behavior. “Our patterns of waste are not sustainable,” she said, calling on a necessity to acknowledge it is not just the manufactured products at fault. The practices we perpetuate make us complicit in environmental harm.

Following the discussion that left attendees feeling ready to tackle their industry-specific challenges, icebreaker questions were provided to connect community members and students to industry professionals. This was unlike other networking events in that the priorities of conversation were not personal advancement but instead creating collaborative dialogue to progress shared objectives. Though conversations were sometimes lighthearted, as they were when sharing outfit details and the new developments in one’s family, one exchange stood out and spoke to the prospective thinking of the individuals in the room. 

A Columbia Climate School alumna opened up a discussion about the unfortunate truth that not everyone cares about the environment. Articles and infographics that educate people about the effects of damaging fashion practices are not reaching the hearts of a whole group that values personal gain over collective well-being. It may feel upsetting to confront this, but it is necessary to do so if there is to be any future of recruiting these people for the sustainable fashion movement. The alumni and current students in this conversation agreed that a shift away from only marketing toward environmentalists is essential. For those within a higher tax bracket who may be able to make substantial contributions, helping them understand sustainable fashion as financially beneficial for them could be a real game changer.

 This event shined a much-needed light on the importance of collaborative spaces that promote productive dialogue. Though it is refreshing to be surrounded by a community that cares so deeply about making a difference, we can no longer allow the complicity of those who do not care to go unnoticed. If we are to execute this “system meant to change systems” in a way that does it justice, all efforts are needed. You do not need to be looking for a career in the sustainable fashion industry to want to help progress it. Share ideas through your passions and put your pen, needle, shovel, or microscope to use knowing there is always space for you in this discussion. The most valuable tool we have in this movement is our community.

Sustainable Fashion Exchange Panel via Manaia Taula-Lieras