Fair Trade Materials in Luxury ClothingHow Ethically Sourced Materials Can Enter High Fashion

The Material: Malagasy Wild SilkContent: Non-Spun Silk - Origin: Makira & Masoala Protected AreasThickness: 0.1 mm - Width: 1 meter - Backing: None - Care: Hand WashDurability: UV-resistant, color fast - Color Ways: Gold, Earth & SandEnvironmental Impact: Reforestation of areas surrounding protected rainforests in MadagascarSustainability: Biodegradable, Compostable, RenewableContent: Wild, no-kill silk cocoons with silk & polyester threadPattern: No repeat, natural variations inherent

The Principals: What is Fair TradeCREATE OPPORTUNITY for artisans and farmers in the Global South who live in poverty and lack access to long term, well paying jobs. Fair Trade Federation (FTF) members act on the interest of these producers to improve their quality of life.

DEVELOP TRANSPARANT & ACCOUNTABLE RELATIONSHIPS with artisans and farmers, to ensure that they have long-term jobs. Fair trade buyers and fair trade producers are honest with each other and work together to solve problems.

BUILD CAPACITY of farmers, artisans and their communities. FTF members invest time and resources to help producers build their businesses and improve their communities.

PROMOTE FAIR TRADE by raising awareness about fair trade, educating customers and producers, and inspiring other businesses to adopt fair trade practices.

PAY PROMPTLY & FAIRLY and discuss prices openly and honestly, so that producers understand their costs and earn a fair wage. FTF members also offer advance payment to help cover the cost of production.

SUPPORT SAFE & EMPOWERING WORKING CONDITIONS that are healthy and free of discrimination. In these workplaces, producers and employees have a voice in the decisions that affect them most.

ENSURE THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN by never using exploitative child labor. FTF members support children’s right to security education and play and respect the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

CULTIVATE ENVIRONMENTAL SEWARDSHIP by encouraging responsible use of resources and eco-friendly means of production. FTF members reduce, reuse, reclaim and recycle materials whenever possible.

RESPECT CULTURAL IDENTITY of farmer and artisan communities. Fair trade products and production methods reflect the history and traditions of artisans and farmers in the Gobal South.

www.fairtradeprincipals.org www.fairtradefederation.org

The Source: SEPALI MadagascarCPALI in an international NGO dedicated to a community centered approach to conservation. Instead of building boundaries, CPALI focuses on people and strengthens the resisting relationship between local people and the environment through the development of sustainable livelihoods.

CPALI works closely with a Malagasy NGO, the Association of Wild Silk Producers, or SEPALI Madagascar, on the borders of the largest remaining rain forested area in the country. Over 1% of the world’s biodiversity is represented within this region. CPALI works with a network of subsistence farmers to cultivate native resources and secure a market for them.

Farmers working with our project experience the value of conservation directly, not through tourism, but through tangible products from the land they steward. Farmers living on the borders of the Makira and Masoala Protected Areas are now planting native trees in former clear-cut zones, intercropping them with edible plants, raising native silkworms to produce silk, learning how to use spent larvae as a protein source, and investigating the production of edible mushrooms. The result is a native ecosystem of production from which the farmers can improve their own lives with their own resources.

Dr. Catharine CraigCPALI Founder, Director

www.fairtradedecor.com

Abstract: New York Style Can Make a Bigger Impression on the World

The majority of fair trade products fit into a specific, bohemian aesthetic. While the designer market has been inspired by bohemian styles before, fair trade goods are mostly found in the mass market. While fighting directly against unethically produced apparel, fair traders miss an opportunity for skilled artisans around the world to join a higher echelon of craftsmanship: that of their European counterparts. Fair trade has the potential to make a stylistic impact on fashion equal to its socio-economic impacts.

Fair trade products are becoming increasingly indistinguishable from non-fair trade goods in terms of quality if not yet style. Similarly, multicultural inspiration is often found on Western runways. Designer companies regularly look to India for embroidery, and South Asia is perhaps the largest source of fair trade products in the world. Designers like Dries Van Norten include Indian embroidery in each collection, in order to regularly support artisan groups. While India is a growing resource for the designer market, that growth has not expanded beyond embroidery in a significant way because of fair trade’s limited quantity, higher cost and handmade nature.

The appeal of fair trade in the designer market is not its ability to integrate completely into contemporary design or supply chains, but rather to bring indigenous design into conversation with the West. Contemporary points of view combined with fair trade artisanal works can create designer clothing that has real impact on the greater world. Fair Trade fits a market moving away from trends toward individuality. While working within FIT’s fashion design curriculum, this garment attempts to demonstrate the aesthetic appeal and prac-tical potential of fair trade goods in the western market.

Nicholas Jude Paganelli - Fashion Design AAS Class of 2016

www.cpali.org www.wildsilkmarkets.com