TFC Connections is a show about the latest happenings in sustainable fashion brought to you by The Fashion Connection, a nonprofit based in Washington, DC empowering members of the US sustainable fashion movement.
Each month, new episodes will be hosted by members of our executive board. Through conversations with experts and friends, we’ll discuss policy, labor rights, textile innovations, circular solutions, and more ...
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Hosts Wendy Blanpied and Rebecca Ballard are joined by experts and practitioners in the area of sustainable cotton production and traceability, Patricia Jurewicz, Eric Henry, and Leyla Shamchiyeva, for a conversation centered around due diligence in cotton supply chains. This conversion will increase your understanding of where cotton comes from as well as your understanding of what experts and brands are doing to ensure workers in cotton fields are treated fairly. Patricia Jurewicz is the Founder and CEO of Responsible Sourcing Network, a for-benefit NGO that champions human rights in the mining and harvesting of raw materials found in products we use every day. Since 2004, Patricia has worked with civil society and shareholder communities to address labor and human rights abuses in supply chains. She is the co-founder of the Cotton Campaign and helped encourage the transition of Uzbekistan away from forced labor through brand engagement and multi-stakeholder advocacy. Prior to RSN, Patricia managed production at Gap, Inc., encouraged equitable trade for IATP, and trained women's artisan cooperatives. Leyla Shamchiyeva is the Decent Work Lead at Better Cotton. She is is a passionate advocate for labor rights and for creating better working conditions in global supply chains. Leyla leads Better Cotton's global effort to improve working conditions in cotton farming. With a background in labor rights risk assessment and employment policy at the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank, as well as contributing to the PwC-led flagship Girls Education Challenge program, Leyla is dedicated to making a positive impact. Eric Henry is the President of TS Designs. Eric got his start when he launched Creative Screen Designs in 1978 while attending North Carolina State University. Two years later, he and Tom Sineath merged companies to incorporate TS Designs. Eric’s journey into sustainability started the day NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) was enacted and he saw the business destroyed when his long-time customers went overseas for their products. He pivoted the TS Designs strategy based on a triple bottom line of People, Planet, and Profit. In 2008, TS Designs became the first apparel B-Corporation in North Carolina, and they aim to make the highest quality printed apparel in a domestic transparent and trackable supply chain. For more information please visit: https://www.sourcingnetwork.org/yess https://bettercotton.org/ https://tsdesigns.com/ For more on The Fashion Connection visit: thefashionconnection.org
Textile waste is the fastest-growing waste stream in the U.S. and worldwide. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that textile materials generate 17 million tons of annual municipal solid waste. Of which, 11.3 million tons end up in landfill, emitting heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere and leaching toxins into the environment. The vast majority of discarded textiles could be given a second life, but the lack of sorting and recycling infrastructure, along with the absence of critical textile fiber information, have posed severe challenges to mitigating the growing textile waste issue. Enter Brian Iezzi and Fibarcode. Brian is a Materials Science and Engineering post-doctoral researcher at the University of Michigan. His research focuses on new technologies for enhanced traceability, authentication, and end-of-use management, particularly in the apparel and industrial textile industry. He has recently led research into developing new textile fiber "barcodes" with unique, engineered optical properties that can be directly integrated into textiles and garments, enabling indelible labeling of critical information for apparel re-sale, repair, and recycling. On this episode of TFC Connections, hosts Nicole Clenney and Costanza Promontorio sit down with Brian to talk circularity, textile waste, and his fiber barcode solution. For more information on Fibarcode and to learn about engagement opportunities, visit https://www.fibarcode.com/
On this episode of TFC Connections, Nicole Clenney and Rebecca Ballard host Khalid Mahmood, the Director of the Labour Education Foundation in Pakistan, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse, fashion’s most significant industrial disaster that killed 1,134 individuals and injured 2,500 more, and discuss the way forward. In the decade since the tragedy, brands have increasingly tried to establish sustainable supply chains. Still, progress toward labor rights, workplace safety, and human rights generally has lagged behind other sustainability initiatives. Rana Plaza, in many ways, was a catalyst for change and accountability, and it moved brands to sign the International Accord to ensure health and safety programs in Bangladesh. Ten years later, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Morocco, and India have been identified by the Accord Secretariat as priority countries to establish workplace programs. In December of 2022, the expansion of the Accord into Pakistan was announced, with 35 brands signing on to ensure worker safety in the garment and textile industry. Khalid shares his views on the progress and challenges to successfully implementing the Accord in Pakistan.To learn more about the Labour Education Foundation please visit https://www.lef.org.pk/
In our second episode, hosts Nicole Clenney and Gabrielle Clary, are joined by our first official guests, Nayantara Banerjee and Jennifer Guarino, for a conversation centered around the current shifting landscape of domestic manufacturing and its role in cultural sustainability. Nayantara Banerjee leads Research and Strategic Partnerships for The Garment Worker Center in Los Angeles – a worker-led organization that fights to end sweatshops, ensure fair wages, and improve working conditions for tens of thousands of garment workers in Los Angeles. In this conversation, she shares an update on policy and the land use changes currently underway that stand to threaten the city's 130-year garment industry history and the livelihoods of nearly 40,000 garment workers. Jennifer Guarino is the President, CEO, and Co-founder of ISAIC – the Industrial Sewing and Innovation Center in Detroit dedicated to creating better lives through better industry via worker empowerment, training, and skill-building. Jennifer shares her vast experience, vision, and optimism to turn Motor City into the next fashion city. Using Detroit's rich history in manufacturing and engineering, ISAIC is pioneering a reciprocal and sustainable path into a new era of fashion manufacturing. For more information and ways to support these incredible organizations and their efforts to create a sustainable fashion industry please visit: https://garmentworkercenter.org/ https://isaic.org/ To learn more about the land use changes and support The Garment Worker Center's latest campaign please visit: https://www.protectdtlagarmentjobs.org/ Co-hosted by Gabrielle Clary Co-hosted & Produced by Nicole Clenney Audio Engineering by Nicole Clenney For more on The Fashion Connection visit: thefashionconnection.org
In our first episode, Sustainability & Partnerships Strategy Manager Nicole Clenney leads a conversation about our backgrounds and our journeys into sustainable fashion. Founder & Executive Director Rebecca Ballard shares why The Fashion Connection was founded. Featuring Rebecca Ballard, Founder & Executive Director Gabrielle Clary, Board President, and World Bank Consultant Carolina Millon, Board Treasurer, and Omnichannel Retail Strategist Costanza Promontorio, Project Strategy Lead Nicole Clenney, Sustainability & Partnerships Strategy Manager. Hosted & Produced by Nicole Clenney Audio Engineering by Nicole Clenney