2008

• 15-18 May Fashion Made Fair, London, UK
• 9-10 June Organic and Sustainable Textile Seminar, hosted by Organic Exchange and MADE-BY, London, UK
• 16-17 June IFOAM International Organic Fibre and Textile Conference, Carpi (Modena), Italy
• 24-27 June Organic Exchange 2008 Africa Regional Conference, Kampala, Uganda
• 5-8 Sep So Ethic at Pret a Porter, Paris, France
• 6-7 Sep Soil Association Organic Festival, Bristol, UK
• 14-19 Sep estethica at London Fashion Week, London, UK
• 7 Oct RITE Group Conference, London, UK
• 9-12 Oct Ethical Fashion Show, Paris, France
• 14-17 Oct Organic Exchange 2008 Global Conference and Marketplace, Porto, Portugal
• 18-25 Oct Southampton Fair Trade Group, Pick Your Cotton Carefully Conference Southampton, UK
• 27-28 Oct Fashioning the Future Conference, London College of Fashion - Centre for Sustainable Fashion
• 3-4 Nov Organic and Sustainable Textile Seminar, hosted by Organic Exchange and MADE-BY, Sweden
• 13 Nov RE: FASHION AWARDS, Shoreditch Town Hall, London, UK  

Oxfam are restyling their stores as fashion boutiques with the first store opened in Westbourne Grove, on World Fair Trade Day (10.05.08).  The UK charity is redesigning the look and feel of their stores in a bid to move away from their bric-a-brac image and inject a new lease of style into sustainable recycled clothing.

The charity is collaborating with young designers from London School of Fashion and will stock ethical labels such as People Tree and Amana alongside donated clothing that has been re-branded ‘Loved for Longer’.  Oxfam hopes to open 25 of these stores within the next two years with the main emphasis on promoting sustainable fashion, rather than opting for cheap throw – away fashion. 

How to avoid Greenwash recommended by Futerra Sustainability Communications –

How to spot clever advertising campaigns and marketing messages that claim to be saving the Earth.

1. Fluffy language 
Words or terms with no clear meaning, e.g. ‘eco-friendly’

2. Green products vs. dirty companies 
Such as energy-efficient lightbulbs made in a factory that pollutes rivers

3. Suggestive pictures 
Green images that indicate a (unjustified) green impact, e.g. flowers blooming from exhaust pipes

4. Irrelevant claims 
Emphasising one tiny green attribute when everything else is un-green

5. Best in class 
Declaring you are slightly greener than the rest, even if the rest are pretty terrible

6. Just not credible 
’Eco-friendly’ cigarettes anyone? ‘Greening’ a dangerous product doesn’t make it safe

7. Gobbledygook 
Jargon or information that only a scientist could check or understand

8. Imaginary friends 
A ‘label’ that looks like third-party endorsement…except it’s made up

9. No proof 
It could be right, but where’s the evidence?

10. Outright lying 
Totally fabricated claims or data

If you are in London this weekend try and pop along to LONDON AWARE, its an exhibition that is being held at the Barbican Centre, London and aims to offer information, advice and inspiration in order to live more sustainably.  There are hundreds of companies and products that will be on show covering all areas of sustainable living from environmentally friendly transport to banking, health and even DIY.

There are also two lecture theatres that will be hosting a schedule of speakers talking about climate change.

Tickets for this event are priced at £5 per day. 

To find out further information log onto www.ukaware.com