EcoChic Design Award announces finalists for 2015/2016

The EcoChic Design Award, the competition developed and organized by NGO
Redress for emerging sustainable fashion designers in Europe and Asia, has
announced the ten finalists for its 2015/2016 cycle. The design award
witnessed a record number of applicants from over 40 countries this cycle,
including newcomer countries such as India, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Serbia,
Iran and Israel.

The ten finalists, who represent seven countries across Asia and Europe,
include two students studying at Central Saint Martins, Annie Mackinnon and
Sara Kiani respectively and Amy Ward, a British designer who is studying at
Esmod Berlin. Together with the other seven finalists, the designers will
continue with their ambitions to help create a more sustainable fashion
industry by producing their own textile-waste-reducing collection to be
presented during the Hong Kong Fashion Week in January, 2016.

“I was extremely impressed with the level of thought put into the initial
sketches by the designers as well as
the propositions of use of fabrics – be it using unconventional materials,
zero-waste patterns or secondhand
textiles,” commented Susie Lau (Susie Bubble), one of the international
judges for the competition. “It’s interesting to see ideas of reducing
waste being put into practice in a multitude of ways. This competition
shows that when designers are still gestating their ideas at the beginning
of their careers, and they become exposed to the concept of using limited
resources and coupled with their imagination, you get some really exciting
ideas that are truly innovative.”

The EcoChic Design Award current competition cycle received unprecedented
interest from over sixty university partners who were interested in joining
to promote the competition to their students and alumni, including Central
Saint Martins, National Institute of Fashion Technology in India and
Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology in Mainland
China. Designers with less than three years’ industry experience and
students were asked to design a textile waste-reducing women’s wear
collection.

“Industry and people are questioning how the fashion industry has become
the world’s second most polluting industry, after oil. This is a crucial
time to act because fashion consumption is at an all time high and this is
driving up textile waste levels, and the associated pollution, to shocking
highs,” added Christina Dean, Founder,
Redress. “It’s imperative that we instill education into tomorrow’s fashion
industry. Through The EcoChic
m
Design Award, we are educating designers around the world to reduce waste
through sustainable design
innovation to inspire a more positive future for the industry. The change
we need is in their
hands.”

Images: Moodboard and sketches from the three UK finalists
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