Renowned designers to showcase ethical designs at EcoChic Asia (Hong Kong)

Green2greener’s unprecedented 'EcoChic Asia' eco and ethical fashion show takes place on 6th October 2010 to demonstrate Asia's innovation in the development of sustainable fashion, in collaboration with Interstoff Asia Essential.

EcoChic Asia Fashion Show Details
Show time: 1230pm, Wednesday 6th October, 2010.
Location: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hall 1C

EcoChic Asia will feature 29 fashion and accessory designers from 14 Asian countries who have strong design and/or production roots in Asia, including India’s Manish Arora, Turkey’s Bora Aksu, Hong Kong’s Johanna Ho, China’s Stella Chen and Mary Ma and Japan’s Suzuki Takayuki.

EcoChic Asia will be in two parts: part one will feature 13 established ready-to-wear ethical labels, whose design and manufacturing takes into consideration certain environmental and social standards; part two will feature 13 eco-couture garments created for Green2greener using sustainable textiles.

Dr Christina Dean, Founder of Green2greener and EcoChic, says: “EcoChic Asia delivers a strong message that Asia is responding to environmental and social concerns in the fashion industry. We’re seeing innovation and dedication amongst Asian designers to create garments that minimize the negative impacts on the environment and maximise benefits to communities. These designers are influencing manufacturing trends from their countries, and it’s a honour to showcase their creativity as well as their cultural heritage at this unprecedented fashion show”.

EcoChic Asia contributing designers are highlighting various ways to improve environmental and social conditions in the fashion industry. Some garments were made using eco-textiles, such as organic cotton, bamboo, hemp or organic silk, some designers utilize fair working conditions and others are focussed on the revival of artisanal techniques.

The shift towards more sustainable design and manufacturing is urgently needed. Currently, the fashion industry is second only to agriculture in terms of the consumption of water worldwide while the production of cotton alone is responsible for the use of 25 percent of the world’s pesticide use. China’s the textile industry is one of China’s largest polluting sectors and according to the World Bank China is now home to 16 of the world's 20 most polluted cities.

Statistics show that consumers are increasingly willing to support eco and ethical fashion and products. The UK Co-operative Bank’s ‘Ethical Consumerism’ report, published in December 2009, showed that spending on ethical goods, including eco-fashion and other products such as household appliances and food, increased threefold in the past decade and that spending based on ethical considerations increased to £36bn in 2008 compared with £13.5bn in 1999. Meanwhile in China, a 2009 survey by Landor and Cohn found that 73% of respondents stated that environmental concerns influenced theirpurchasing and that they expected to spend more money on green products in 2011.

In the leadup to ‘EcoChic Asia’, contributing
Jujube Li, designer:
“Fashion can affect change in our attitudes and in our perspectives. I made the choice to affect change through fashion because I believe that making permanent change in habit requires permanent change in perspective.”

Johanna Ho, designer:“As a designer, I believe that fashion should be more than about looking and feeling good - it should also be about doing good. I hope to use my fashion designs to show that design and sustainability can work together.”

Bora Aksu, designer:
“Fashion is a unique and international language. I believe that being part of this EcoChic project stretches the limits of my ability to communicate at a much deeper level. I truly hope that by creating this couture dress with such depth - in the sense of its fabric and its hidden beauty - that it will raise the awareness about sustainability in high-end fashion, which is so needed.”

Selphie Bong, designer:
“Working on this organic cotton eco-couture dress has really inspired me about how designers can bring about lasting change in the fashion industry. As responsible citizens, it is our duty to use our talents, in this case for fashion designers their creativity, to offer meaningful solutions to improve the state of the environment."

Anita Dongre, founder ‘Grassroots’:
"The fashion industry is today in an influential position to change itself as well as lead the entire green movement in all aspects of living.”

EcoChic Asia contributing designers:

Eco-Couture Designers

• Bora Aksu (Turkey/ UK)
• Cecilia Yau (HK)
• Cocoon (China)
• Disaya Sorakraikitikul (Thailand)
• Dorian Ho (HK)
• Lie Sang Bong (Korea)
• Lu Kun (China)
• Lucy Shih (HK)
• Manish Arora (India)
• Mary Ma (China)
• Oliver Tolentino (Philippines)
• Selphie Bong (Indonesia)
• Ziad Ghanem (Lebanon)

Ready-to-Wear/ Accessory Designers

• Ado Clothing (India)
• Bahar Shahpar (Iran/ UK)
• Boa (Turkey)
• Goodearth Sustain (India)
• Grassroot (India)
• Johanna Ho (HK)
• John Hardy (Bali, HK)*
• Jujube (Singapore)
• Kumvana Gomani (Bangalore/ Sweden)*
• Meiling Chen (Taiwan)
• Mika Machida (Japan)
• Niin (HK)*
• OrangOrgang (Indonesia)
• Stella Chen (China)
• Suzuki Takayuki (Japan)
• Transit Design (India)

EcoChic Asia is presented by Green2greener in collaborating with Interstoff Asia Essential and in tandem with the 26th International World Apparel Convention.

One of Green2greener’s main educational initiatives is the high-profile touring eco-fashion show, exhibition and seminar series, called ‘EcoChic’. To date, Green2greener has organized EcoChic Hong Kong, EcoChic Shanghai, EcoChic Jakarta, EcoChic Geneva, which was co-hosted by theUnited Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), EcoChic Singapore and various exhibitions in Milan, Paris and Hong Kong.