Episode 1 – Sustainable Fashion panel at the Victoria Eco Fashion Week

Chic

For the first episode, I was invited to moderate a discussion panel on Sustainable Fashion at the first Victoria Eco Fashion Week, that took place in April 2019 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The panelists included Jess Montgomery,who is the founder of Think the World Differently, a non-profit organization based in Vancouver that offers educational workshops on the environmental impacts of the global clothing industry. Jess empowers participants to embrace sustainable alternatives, and speaks regularly on the environmental impacts of clothing over-consumption and the need for values-based change. Her TED Talk “How Your Clothes Can Save the Planet” for TEDxChilliwack is now available online.

The second panelist was Jakelina Listes, who is the Project Leader at Sewlutions, a sewing-based program for immigrant and other marginalized women in the Greater Victoria area. They offers opportunities to learn new skills, socialize, practice English, exchange cultures, and promote acceptance and integration. Jakelina is an artist, interior decorator, jewellery and accessories designer. She is originally from Croatia, and her diverse background is reflected in her work. She has been designing sustainable jewellery and accessories for over 25 years, always looking for ways to use existing pieces and materials, and to redesign them into something new.

And finally, the third panelist was Jessie Malott, who is the Clothing Department Manager at Women in Need (or WIN), a non-profit community co-operative that has been empowering women in Victoria for over 28 years. Revenues from their five Resale Shops finance their operations and their empowerment programs for women, which include: New Start Program for women ready to leave a transition house and set up a home for themselves and their children. The Self Sufficiency Program supports women’s financial independence and wellness (through educational pursuits, or helping them to start a small business). And the Crisis and Referral Program that supports women’s access to information, referrals, and community resources that they need for moving out of crisis.

In preparation for our panel on Sustainable Fashion, I asked the three panelists to answer a few questions that I prepared for them, as well as to submit a question of their own, on what they consider the most pressing issue in their field. During our panel, I first asked each of them to describe what they do, and how their work relates to sustainability, ethics, and empowerment of people and the environment, and who inspired their values.