Panel Talk: Is the Future of Fashion Upcycled?

This panel brings together the creative disruptors, sustainability pioneers, and industry reformers who are challenging the fashion status quo. With fast fashion under increasing scrutiny for its environmental toll, the conversation turns to upcycling, not as a trend, but as a transformative future for fashion.

 

Together, the panel will explore:

• What upcycling really means in the context of fashion’s climate impact
• Whether the industry can scale upcycling without compromising creativity or ethics
• How platforms like Alterist and grassroots collectives like UIIBA Club are democratising access to upcycled fashion
• What legacy brands and emerging designers can learn from each other
• How storytelling, community, and collaboration are vital to shifting culture and consumption

Expect a lively, informed debate from voices across the spectrum, each using upcycling not just as a technique, but as a tool for industry-wide change.

All proceeds from tickets will be donated to The Or Foundation, who do incredible work around fashion waste and environmental justice.

Panelists:

Orsola de Castro

Author, Activist, Founder of Fashion Revolution

Orsola is widely regarded as one of the original voices in sustainable fashion. She began her journey in 1997 with her upcycling label From Somewhere, pioneering the use of pre-consumer textile waste long before it became mainstream. She co-founded Fashion Revolution following the Rana Plaza disaster, sparking a global movement asking brands “Who Made My Clothes?”. Through activism, mentoring, and her book Loved Clothes Last, Orsola continues to champion transparency, upcycling, and fashion as a vehicle for social and environmental change.

Stuart Trevor

Founder of All Saints & STUART TREVOR

Stuart Trevor made his name revolutionising menswear with the founding of All Saints in the 90s, designing some of the most iconic silhouettes still on the high street today. But in recent years, he’s flipped the narrative, refusing to create another clothing brand and instead launching STUART TREVOR, a concept brand that makes no new clothes. Built around repurposing and customising vintage garments, his ethos is rooted in the belief that scarcity drives creativity, and that fashion’s future must be circular.

Chloe, UIIBA Club

Founder of UIIBA Club

Chloe founded UIIBA Club as a creative response to fashion waste, turning clothing care into culture. From upcycling workshops and clothes swaps to fashion shows and club nights, UIIBA uses fashion as a tool for self-expression and sustainability. With a focus on community and accessibility, Chloe is nurturing a grassroots movement that puts creativity and conscious consumption at the heart of getting dressed

Ed Sonnex

Founder & Creative Director, Slow Projects

Ed is the founder of Slow Projects, a North London-based creative studio reworking the future of fashion through repair, reuse, and storytelling. After a career in branding and advertising, Ed shifted his focus to challenge the waste-driven culture of fashion. Through workshops and upcycled collections, Slow Projects works with brands like Nike, Umbro, and Camper to turn their material waste, offcuts, unsellable stock, and mistakes, into new products and experiences. With a philosophy rooted in imperfection and impact, Ed is building a movement that proves fashion’s future doesn’t have to be fast, it can be thoughtful, hands-on, and built to last.

Hannah Standen

Activist, Co-founder & CEO of Alterist Marketplace

Hannah is the co-founder of Alterist, a platform and movement championing upcycled fashion. After years of campaigning and raising awareness about the fashion industry’s unsustainable practices, Hannah and her co-founder Martina Sorghi launched Alterist to spotlight and support a new generation of upcycle designers. The platform offers limited-edition, circular fashion collections, and works directly with brands to reimagine their waste through creative collaborations. Through creativity, design and storytelling, Hannah sees upcycling as a way to transform fashion culture and drive long-term, meaningful change within the industry.

After working in the fashion industry for over 30 years, Gemma started The Elephant in me Wardrobe in 2020 to challenge overconsumption and throwaway fashion. The conversations started there led her to quit her job, complete an MA in Fashion Futures and start a PHD. Her research explores whether the exponentially growing secondhand market really can reduce fashion’s environmental impact. Committed to sharing what she’s learning, Gemma writes, lectures, upcycles and mends for friends, advocates for radical consumerism and asks if fashion’s future is being pieced together from old clothes?

About The Or Foundation

The Or Foundation fights fashion waste and injustice. Working in Ghana since 2011, they clean up clothing waste, protect human rights, and build a fairer, more sustainable fashion system. Operating at the intersection of environmental justice, education, and fashion development, their goal is to turn fashion from a source of harm into a force for recovery and change.