Sandy Lam supports the launch of Redress’ sustainable fashion design competition, The EcoChic Design Award Hong Kong 2012 

Emerging Hong Kong fashion designers are challenged to combine style with sustainability to break the boundaries of fashion 

The fashion industry is well loved for its creativity and expression. But it is one of the world’s most polluting industries.

Eighty to 90 per cent of the environmental and economical cost of a garment throughout its entire life cycle is determined at the fashion design stage. Hong Kong boasts a creative pool of emerging fashion designers who have the power to make tomorrow’s fashion more environmentally sustainable.

It is time to re-design fashion so that it is sustainable from the source.

In an effort to inspire, educate and enable Hong Kong’s emerging fashion designers, local NGO Redress is launching their second annual EcoChic Design Award Hong Kong competition, with the support of Create Hong Kong, to promote environmental sustainability in the fashion industry. As Asia’s first sustainable fashion design competition, the EcoChic Design Award challenges emerging fashion designers to create mass marketable clothing with minimal textile waste.

More broadly, the competition raises industry and consumer awareness about Hong Kong’s high textile waste rates. Daily in 2010, 234 tonnes of textiles are discarded into Hong Kong landfills according to Hong Kong’s Environmental Protection Department.

Sandy Lam, a keen supporter of this year’s competition, will share her thoughts on local fashion designers’ opportunities to put Hong Kong on the sustainable fashion map of the world.

Redress is pleased to announce that Barney Cheng will be one of their five leading fashion industry expert judges.

We cordially invite you to attend a press event to hear about:

• The prizes; to design a sustainable capsule collection for Esprit; visit London Fashion Week to be inspired by leading British sustainable fashion designers in partnership with the British Council; and a visit to Shanghai Fashion Week
• The expert fashion industry judges including Barney Cheng
• The competition seminars, exhibitions and grand final fashion show at HKTDC Fashion Week

Key speakers and guests at the press event include:

• Sandy Lam, EcoChic Design Award supporter
• Jerry Liu, Create Hong Kong
• Janko Lam Chun Kuk, EcoChic Design Award Hong Kong 2011 Winner
• Margaret Kutt, Manager for Sustainable Projects, Esprit
• Christina Dean, Founder of Redress
• Anderson Lee, Executive Director of the Sustainable Fashion Business Consortium

Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide

Mandy Suen at mandy.suen@ogilvy.com or +852 2884 8534

Jemini Patel at jemini.patel@ogilvy.com or +852 2884 8233

For more information about Redress and the EcoChic Design Award, please visit: www.redress.com.hk and www.ecochicdesignaward.com

Download the press invite here.