2022: Pathways to Impact
Sustainable Business & Design Conference
April 5 and 6, 2022
FIT’s 16th annual Sustainable Business and Design Conference: Pathways to Impact centers on four core themes that highlight the intersectionality of sustainable practices. Over the course of two intensive days, attendees will be immersed in keynotes, talks, and panel discussions providing pathways to Social Justice x Social Responsibility, Environment x Materials, Consumption x Waste, and Design x Business. The speakers are trailblazers in numerous facets of sustainability and emphasize the FIT community’s commitment to best practices in all its operations—including student projects, faculty and staff initiatives, and campus facilities.
- Social Justice x Social Responsibility considers how our individual and collective actions can make an impact on society, with an emphasis on both people and the environment. Topics include representation within fashion and design, how designers use their work to help build community, and socially responsible sourcing of food and use of food waste.
- Environment x Materials focuses on the ethical and environmental issues surrounding our choice of materials. Speakers will engage with the ways that action and accountability in material selection can improve quality of life, with emphasis on alternatives to plastics, less harmful fabric choices, and strategies for conservation.
- Consumption x Waste emphasizes the importance of equitable and sustainable consumer practices. The interrelated events will reveal how technological innovations and creative business solutions can help us become more mindful, informed shoppers—ultimately consuming better and less.
- Design X Business offers guidelines and inventive strategies for sustainable business practices, and emphasizes the importance of forming professional networks. Both existing initiatives and future concepts will offer ideas for how to begin working sustainably while also providing inspiration for what might come next.
You can help contribute to FIT's Sustainability efforts by donating to our fund.
Tuesday, April 5
Opening Remarks
9:00- 9:45 AM (EST)
Dr. Joyce F. Brown, President, FIT
Dr. Karen Pearson, Chair, Sustainability Council
Caroline Levine, Secretary of Sustainability, Student Government Association, FIT
Karisma Hishikawa, FIT Student, Land Acknowledgment
Impact Video
Grad Student Highlight:
Hillary Higginbotham, Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice MA
Project: Independent Study, World Dress and Textiles in Museum Collections
Where Sustainability Meets Inclusion
10:00 - 10:45 AM (EST)
Pathway Speaker:
Zinnia Kumar, Chartered CIEEM Ecologist, Environmental Sustainability Consultant, Conservation Biologist, and fashion model
Social Justice X Social Responsibility
11:00 - 11:45 AM (EST)
Pathway Speaker:
Leah Thomas, The Intersectional Feminist
Moderator:Dr. Karen Pearson, Professor, Science and Math
Visions for Representation in Fashion
12:00 - 12:45 PM (EST)
Panel:
Gianna Pilar González, Multi-Disciplinary Artist, Hacking Couture
Mimi Plange, Creative Director, Co-Founder, Mimi Plange
Allison Ko, Fashion Design Student, FIT
Moderator: Ariele Elia, Assistant Director of the Fashion Law Institute, Fordham Law; and Adjunct Instructor, Cultural Awareness, Design Responsibility, and the Law at FIT
Process, Preservation, and Fashioning Food Waste
1:00- 1:45 PM (EST)
Conversation:
Mimi Prober, Artist and Designer
Dr. Karen Pearson, Professor, Science and Math
Susanne Goetz, Associate Professor, Textile/Surface Design
Valuing Progress Over Perfection
2:00 - 2:45 PM (EST)
Conversation:
Dr. Deborah Berhanu, Associate Professor, Science & Mathematics, FIT
Lauren Ritchie, Founder, The Eco Justice Project
The Fashion Farmer
2:45 - 3:30 PM (EST)
Conversation:
Lorenza Wong, Fashion Farmer
Melissa Marra-Alvarez, Curator of Education, The Museum at FIT
Impact Video
FIT Student Success and Operations Highlight:
Angela Brown, Associate Director, Residential Life, FIT
Project: Sustainability Grant Winner, Urban Edible Garden
The Promise of Bio-Based Fibers
3:30-4:15 PM (EST)
Panel:
Aleksandra Gosiewski, Co-Founder & COO, AlgiKnit
Chui-Lian Lee, CEO and Cofounder, Werewool
Moderator: Dr. Evelyn Rynkiewicz, Assistant Professor, Ecology, FIT
Redesigning Consumer Choices
4:15 - 5:00 PM (EST)
Michelle Zhu, CEO and Co-founder, HUUE
Kara Mac, Designer, Kara Mac Shoes
Moderator: Colleen Hill, Curator of Costume and Accessories, The Museum at FIT
Wednesday, April 6
Conference Day 2 Opening Remarks
10:00 AM (EST)
Conference Co-Chairs:
Angela Brown, Associate Director of Residential Life, FIT
Colleen Hill, Curator of Costume and Accessories, The Museum at FIT
Empowerment Through Education and Collaboration
10:15 - 11:00 AM (EST)
Pathway Speaker:
Patrick Duffy, founder, Global Fashion Exchange
Moderator: Dr. Karen Pearson, Professor, Science and Math
Impact Video
Undergraduate Student Highlight:
Idil Bayik, Sustainability Council Student Member Fashion Design (BS), Spring 23
Project: Genspace Scholars Program
Circularity, Beauty and Sustainability
11:15 AM - 12:00 PM (EST)
Panel:
Gigi Ganatra Duff, Vice President Public Relations & Corporate Affairs, Nordstrom
Moderator: Stephan Kanlian, Chairperson/Professor, Master's Program, Cosmetics and Fragrance Marketing and Management, FIT
Shaping a New Supply Chain
11:45 AM - 12:30 PM (EST)
Noah Tager in conversation with Borre Akkersdijk on the founding of fabric innovation studio ByBorre.
Noah Tager, FIT Student
Borre Akkersdijk, co-founder and creative director, ByBorre
Alumni Spotlight in Sustainability
12:00 - 12:45 PM (EST)
Conversation: Ann Cantrell in conversation with Julia Viner
Julia Viner, Investment Associate, Fashion, Closed Loop Partners
Moderator: Ann Cantrell, Associate Professor, Fashion Business Management, FIT
The Power of Partnerships
12:30 - 1:00 PM (EST)
Panel:
WoTO Partners - Discussion on collaboration in the fashion industry
Borre Akkersdijk, co-founder and creative director, ByBorre
Roberto Circelli, Suedwolle Group Italia S.p.a.
Hao Ding, Sorona®
Cloé Lankhorst , WoTO™ Manager
Michel Mastio, Südwolle Group GmbH
Moderator: Dr. Karen Pearson, Professor, Science and Math
Impact Video
Faculty Highlight:
Steven Ceraso, Display and Exhibit Design, School of Art and Design
Project: Sustainability Grant Winner, Precious Plastic Machinery
Creative Reuse and Making Clothes That Last
2:00 - 2:45 PM (EST)
Panel:
Johanna Orlowski, Fashion Design MFA Student, Former Intern, The RealReal
Delfina Farías, Designer
Jussara Lee, Designer
Moderator: Elizabeth Way, Associate Curator, The Museum at FIT
ReFashion Week NYC
2:45 - 3:00 PM (EST)
Talk:
New York Department of Sanitation Refashion NY Project
Julie Raskin, Executive Director, Sanitation Foundation, NYC Department of Sanitation
Alissa Westervelt, Senior Manager, donateNYC, Bureau of Recycling & Sustainability, NYC Department of Sanitation
Finding Worth in Waste
3:00 - 3:45 PM (EST)
Conversation:
Dr. Daniel Benkendorf, Associate Professor, Psychology, FIT
Jessica Schreiber, Founder and CEO, FABSCRAP
Spreading the Message for Change
4:00 - 5:00 PM (EST)
Panel:
Jennifer Grove, Founder & CEO, Rijois
Tina Hedges, CEO & Founder, LOLI
Chris White, Partner & Executive Director, America's Best Cleaners
Conference Closing Remarks
5:00 PM (EST)
Speaker:
Amber Valletta, Supermodel, Actress, Advocate, and FIT's Sustainability Ambassador
Additional Event
Virtual Artist Talk via Google Meet, Thursday, April 7th, 1–2 pm with student sustainable designers, Anne Kong, and Glenn Sokoli.
Exhibition, FIT's Art and Design Gallery, Under the Umbrella is a curriculum-based project facilitated by professors Anne Kong and Glenn Sokoli and their sixth-semester Visual Presentation and Exhibition Design students. Inspired by Rentbrella, an umbrella-sharing company, the students are collaborating on a large-scale exhibition concept that highlights sustainability and solutions for eliminating tons of umbrella waste from reaching landfills each year. Focusing on reuse and recycling, Under the Umbrella is a call to action and salute to New York City.