Columbia To Host Fashion Revolution Week Activities April 20-27

Campus Communications Staff / Apr 17, 2023

graphic that says 'you are fashion revolution' with background photo of people with picket signs saying things like 'what's in my clohtes?'
photo of anna hoding up her mending.Senior Anna Stobaugh, shown here at last year's mending workshop, is helping lead efforts for this year's Fashion Revolution Week at Columbia College Chicago.
Fashion Revolution Week activities at Columbia include an ethical fashion panel discussion with "Worn’" author Sofi Thanhauser, a display of student work, a mending workshop, and more.

Join the Fashion Studies department for activities during Fashion Revolution Week—the world’s largest fashion movement. Events will be held April 20 through 27. The week kicks off with a display of student work and a meet-and-greet with the student designers on April 20 and includes a panel discussion featuring Worn author Sofi Thanhauser on April 26.  

What Is Fashion Revolution Week? 

Fashion Revolution Week was created in the wake of the 2013 Rana Plaza Collapse, which killed more than 1,000 people and injured another 2,500—all while producing cheap garments for some of the world’s most well-known fashion brands. Fashion Revolution Week is premised on the idea that no one should die for fashion and that there is no sustainable fashion without fair pay.  

Through community-based events and workshops, participants will be empowered to learn about the relationship between labor exploitation and the climate crisis and will be introduced to the skills that will allow them to take action. 

Ethical Fashion Panel Discussion: A Collaborative Effort 

One of the week’s highlights will be the Ethical Fashion Panel Discussion with Sofi Thanhauser, author of the book Worn (available at Semicolon Bookstore & Gallery and here):  The event came together thanks to a partnership with the Apparel Industry Board (AIBI), Penguin Random House, Cloth + Home, Chicago Fair Trade’s Conscious Closet Club, Chicago Fashion Incubator, and Columbia.  

The panel will explore the intersection of fashion, sustainability, and ethics, and how consumers can make a difference by choosing to support ethical fashion brands. A pre-panel reception will include mocktails and light bites. The panel will be moderated by Anna Hovet Diaz, executive director of the Chicago Fashion Incubator. It will feature Thanhauser; Chelsey Carter-Sanders, designer of the unisex clothing brand, Alex Carter; and Jami Hayes, founder and designer of Production Mode and adjunct professor at Columbia College Chicago.

Attendees will learn about ethical fashion practices and how they can incorporate them into their daily lives. The Ethical Fashion Panel Discussion is open to the public and free to current Columbia students, but registration is required. Attendees can register at Eventbrite. 

The Week’s Schedule 

In addition to the panel discussion, the week includes several student-led events. Below is the full schedule of events held on the Columbia campus: 

  • April 20, 6:30 to 8 p.m. – Fashion Revolution Week Kickoff Event (a display of student work and a meet-and-greet with student designers), Haus at 623 S. Wabash 
  • April 24, 12 to 1 p.m. – Fashion and Thirst Project Lecture With Legacy Youth Leadership (Virtual), 12 to 1 p.m. Email nhumbert@colum.edu for Zoom link. 
  • April 25, 6:30 t 8 p.m. – Zine Workshop, Library, 3rd floor, 624 S. Michigan 
  • April 26, 6 to 8 p.m. - The Ethical Fashion Panel Discussion With Sofi Thanhauser, Cloth Swap, and Networking (preregistration required at Eventbrite), 1104 S. Wabash, 8th floor 
  • April 27, 6:30 to 8 p.m. – Visible Mending Workshop, 623 S. Wabash, Room 702 

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