LONDON — Kering has teamed with the Center for Sustainable Fashion, a research facility under the University of the Arts based at the London College of Fashion, for a new, three-year program called Governance for Tomorrow.
Marking the 10th anniversary between the Gucci owner and LCF, the new program is aimed at addressing governance in the luxury fashion sector, an industry that lacks examined means for leading sustainable transformation, according to the Center for Sustainable Fashion.
During the three years, the program will aspire to use creativity as a tool to dissolve barriers and convene experts from across academia, luxury fashion and NGOs to foster new alternative governance models. Swedish scientist Johan Rockström’s call for interspecies, intergenerational and intragenerational justice will be used here as the basis for realizing safe and just earth system boundaries.
The program kicked off with an open call from the Center for Sustainable Fashion, running until Nov. 27, to changemakers from across industries with an invitation to join Governance for Tomorrow’s stewardship board. It will act as a think tank to advise the luxury fashion sector on its mission to create alternative governance models.
Following a research and knowledge exchange stage, Governance for Tomorrow will result in the launch of an education program that offers sector-specific skills, capabilities and interdisciplinary knowledge for fashion industry leaders and professionals.
“In the words of Amitav Ghosh, the climate crisis is a crisis of culture, and thus of the imagination,” said Dilys Williams, director at the Center for Sustainable Fashion.
“Through convening imaginative and curious minds, we will prototype frameworks and practices based on the true rules of prosperity, and thus shift from the rules we invented that missed out on nature and the commitment to living better, as the basis of a thriving luxury fashion sector,” Williams added.
Marie-Claire Daveu, chief sustainability and institutional affairs officer at Kering, said the program marks a key milestone of the group’s commitment to “redefining governance practices in the luxury sector, placing sustainability, equity and social justice at its heart.”
“At Kering, we believe that integrating sustainability at the highest level of governance models is essential to addressing the environmental and social challenges facing the fashion industry while ensuring a more responsible future for generations to come,” Daveu said.
The Center for Sustainable Fashion touted that Governance for Tomorrow arrives at a time when fashion continues to lag on many key sustainability concerns such as responsible production and consumption, decarbonizing supply chains, and ensuring living wages for garment workers, despite some progress in recent years.
It referenced the recent WWF Living Planet report that the Earth is approaching dangerous tipping points, and “a huge collective effort will be required over the next five years to tackle the dual climate and nature crises.”
Industry reports advising that extreme climate events could put at risk an estimated $65 billion of apparel exports by 2030, and the recent news of investors divesting from numerous fashion companies due to slow progress on environmental and social issues highlight the urgent need for the fashion industry to explore alternative governance frameworks as a business and societal imperative.
Kering and the London College of Fashion first teamed in 2014 to support sustainable design and viable innovation in the fashion industry.
Other fashion companies have formed similar education and sustainability alliances in the U.K. as well.
Central Saint Martins has been involved in a multiyear partnership with LVMH Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy since 2017. The investment has been providing additional scholarships and funding to sustainability and innovation programs.
It was through this partnership that Swiss designer Kevin Germanier was discovered and eventually became the driving force behind Prélude, the first collection made from 100 percent upcycled materials from LVMH houses. It was presented at LVMH headquarters during Paris Fashion Week.
Chanel recently extended its sustainability partnership with the University of Cambridge. The brand said nearly 500 leaders and key operational team members across Chanel have attended bespoke executive education programs at the university on topics such as biodiversity, climate change and efficient usage of materials.
