The Global Fashion Summit the leading international forum for sustainability in fashion organized by Global Fashion Agenda-the non-profit organization that is accelerating the transition to a net positive fashion industry, and hosted in the Copenhagen Concert Hall, from June 27 to 28, 2023, convened over 1000 revered representatives from brands, retailers, NGOs, policy, manufacturers, and innovators to transform ambition into action.

Prominent brands, retailers and organizations unveiled new actions and initiatives at the event. Among the participating companies as solution providers there was also a Modem's partner, Sustainable Brand Platform, the Italian start-up conceived by Alex Albini and Enzo Maria Savelli. Also of note, Unep and Un Climate Change launched The Sustainable Fashion Communication Playbook, a guide for fashion communicators to align efforts to sustainability targets. It shows marketers, imagemakers, media and influencers how to take action through countering misinformation, reducing messages perpetuating overconsumption, redirecting aspiration to sustainable lifestyles, and empowering consumers to demand greater action from businesses and policymakers.

Convening major decision makers from across the world, the forum was first launched in 2009 as a Cop15 side event and has become the nexus for agenda-setting discussions and presentations on the most critical environmental, social and ethical issues facing our industry and planet, all intended to spark urgent action and accelerate impact in the industry.

This year’s theme "Ambition to Action", galvanised participants to transform ambitions into concrete actions that can drive the industry towards more sustainable practices, both socially and environmentally. Under this premise, the event presented content experiences focused on tangible and evidence-based impact, with over half of the programme dedicated to educational and action-oriented business case studies.

This edition included more speakers and content than ever before, with the dynamic and action-orientated sessions spanning across four different stages. The Summit also facilitated more than 10 strategic roundtable meetings that brought together executives and policy makers for productive dialogues on how to address pressing sustainability issues and act accordingly. The content integrated the five priorities of the Fashion ceo Agenda, alongside critical challenges and tangible opportunities relating to some of the key forces that are shaping the fashion industry today: data, policy and storytelling.

Attendees heard from 137 speakers including Hrh The Crown Princess of Denmark; Antoine Arnault, Image & Environment, Lvmh Group; Jonathan Anderson, creative director and founder, JW Anderson and creative director, Loewe; Aude Vergne, chief sustainability officer, Chloé; Nicolaj Reffstrup, founder, Ganni; Fanny Moizant, co-founder and president, Vestiaire Collective; Noel Kinder, chief sustainability officer, Nike; Óscar García Maceiras, ceo, Inditex; and many more.

This year’s Summit also presented an Innovation Forum, enabling small and large companies to meet with 26 sustainable solution providers, equipping them with the concrete tools to quickly turn words into meaningful actions. More than 350 facilitated business meetings between fashion companies and sustainable solution providers took place during the Summit.

"I am filled with a sense of hope following the Summit," said Federica Marchionni, ceo of Global Fashion Agenda. "This year we focused on turning the aspirational to the actual, championing evidence-based actions that can redesign our business models with net positive at the core, improve the livelihoods of the millions of garment workers and protect and enhance our precious ecosystems. The will and intentions are there, I now look forward to witnessing the shift to implementation to truly transform the industry."

For more information about the Global Fashion Summit visit www.globalfashionagenda.org.

Sustainable Brand Platform is a cloud-based platform designed for fashion companies to track, control and optimize sustainability performances. It is a project spinned-off by Idee Brand Platform at the end of 2020, with the idea of supporting the fashion industry with digital solutions to pursue sustainability goals. Sustainable Brand Platform enable fashion companies to take full control of their sustainability data, facilitating decision making and lowering company's costs and impact on the environment.
www.sustainablebrandplatform.com

Photo: Federica Marchionni, ceo of Global Fashion Agenda