With Dianne Dodd Cheseldine, founder of the speaker series in her name at the Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC)

Earlier this month, I had the privilege of being invited to speak at Truckee Meadows Community College, thanks to the invitation of fellow The American University of Paris alum Dianne Dodd Cheseldine, a longtime professor there. I met Dianne in Paris at our alumni event last year, and I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to bring our global conversation locally to her campus.

In my presentation, I connected the dots between the women's empowerment and sustainable fashion movements, and I gave an overview of the complex nature of the global fashion supply chain.

A few key takeaways :

1.) SUSTAINABLE FASHION IS A BIPOC, FEMINIST ISSUE. Before our clothes reach us, they go through hundreds of human hands. 80% of the people making our clothes are women from the Global South, who fight for fair pay and freedom from sexual harassment and violence at work.

2.) Sustainability starts at the design process. A reformation of the fashion education process is sorely needed as fashion students need to be educated about the environmental and social impact of their design decisions so we can transform the future of our industry.

3.) Sustainability isn't just about buying sustainable brands! It is about sustainable habits and advocating for companies to practice responsible business decisions.

4.) We must be responsible consumers AND active, conscious global citizens. To move fashion forward, we need to participate in the legislation process and advocate for policies that help regulate the industry.

5.) SUSTAINABILITY IS AN ACT OF LOVE. We must remember that we are part of a global community, and view sustainability as a practice of collective care.

Special thanks to the work of Remake-- I showed their "Made in Cambodia" video in this presentation, which solidified my commitment to this advocacy when I first saw it as a grad student back in 2014.

Watch the replay below: