Founder, JRAT and Wardrobe Therapy

Born into a fashion family, Janelle Abbott’s parents owned a Seattle clothing factory, where Abbott developed an early respect for the labor behind every stitch. After graduating from Parsons, she rejected corporate fashion, choosing a radically sustainable, zero-waste path. Through her label JRAT and her Wardrobe Therapy project, Abbott transforms discarded materials into rhythmic, layered, unapologetic garments. Her work merges activism, art, and performance—a form of labor solidarity. She exposes fast fashion’s farce through garment reclamation, reminding us that all garments are human artifacts.

Founder/Designer, Kozaburo

Kozaburo Akasaka is the founder and creative director of Kozaburo, a New York-based fashion label rooted in Japanese craftsmanship and a deep respect for materiality. Known for his sculptural silhouettes and thoughtful approach to construction, the designer brings a quiet yet powerful perspective to sustainability through his PRM line—a project dedicated to upcycling and reimagining deadstock and archive pieces. His work bridges heritage techniques with a forward-looking design ethos, challenging the industry to find beauty and meaning in imperfection.

Executive Director for Miami and New York, CraftChangeHaiti; Fashion Design faculty, FIT

Born in Petite Riviere de l'Artibonite, Haiti, Juanita Alcena always had an interest in fashion, but as a girl made do with whatever resources she could find. Her imagination helped her create her own toys: a dollhouse made of cardboard, mango-seed dolls with clothes crafted from paper. Repurposing and upcycling were integral parts of her everyday life. Her family never discarded clothes; instead, they reimagined them, which sparked Alcena’s desire to study fashion design. 

As a designer and instructor, she has always been involved in her community, volunteering at women’s shelters and teaching sewing skills. When Alcena first met her friend Tracey Tsai, founder of CraftChangeHaiti—a nonprofit organization that empowers seamstresses in Haiti—she joined the foundation’s work. She now serves as its executive director for Miami and New York. The foundation uses fashion to empower women toward financial freedom and tackles the problem of plastic waste. 

Growing up in Haiti, Alcena never encountered plastic; now, the resourceful Haiti she knew is struggling with plastic polluting the air, land, and water. In Haiti, there is no clean water supply, so people buy clean water in plastic pouches that are discarded. Alcena’s mission is to help Haiti and teach women there and around the world how to repurpose waste materials into new, useful products.

Fashion Designer, Patternmaker

Anita Alikaj-Jones is currently enrolled in the Nordstrom / FIT Custom Alterations and Tailoring Techniques Certificate Program. She is a fashion designer who has spent the last decade constructing authentic custom pieces for a discrete private audience on a part-time basis. She is continually experimenting on her distinctive style—where sophistication meets functionality—through innovative designs, patternmaking, and made-to-measure dresses, skirts, trousers, and blouses. Alikaj-Jones was born in Albania and moved to Milan when she was 14 years old. She studied fashion design and graduated from Instituto Di Moda Burgo and Ente Cattolica Formazione Professionale. She held various sales positions in Milan at Tom Ford, Pollini, and Bernini. She relocated to Manhattan after meeting her husband in 2009, and has been living on the Upper East Side for 17 years. Alikaj-Jones holds a Patternmaking Certificate from FIT and has collaborated with several accomplished patternmakers. She continues to take supplemental classes, learning new techniques and best practices. A proud mother of two boys, ages 13 and 10, she is fluent in Albanian, Italian, and English.

Associate Director of Strategy and Insights at Nuuly

Sarah Allibhoy is associate director of strategy and insights at Nuuly, URBN’s fashion rental subscription service. She leads sustainability strategy for the brand, whose mission is to extend the life of clothes, leveraging data and insights to help Nuuly’s teams make decisions that keep garments in circulation longer and demonstrate that clothing rental is gentler on the planet. Allibhoy holds an MBA from MIT Sloan with a certificate in sustainability. She has spent her career at the intersection of business strategy and environmental impact, including early work scaling a sustainability-focused venture in East Africa.

Designer, Frederick Anderson Collection

Frederick Anderson is an American designer and philanthropist who began his fashion career two decades ago as a founding partner of Anderson Hannant, where he designed and produced the Douglas Hannant collection into a celebrated name among celebrities and socialites. Driven by an accurate appreciation for design detail and storytelling, Anderson launched his eponymous collection in fall 2017 to immediate critical acclaim. A longstanding member of the prestigious CFDA Fashion Calendar, he was honored in 2022 with the Fashion Group International’s Rising Star Award for Womenswear. In April 2024, he opened his first flagship boutique in Manhattan’s NoMad neighborhood, and in December of that same year, presented a destination show in San Juan, Puerto Rico. A committed humanitarian, Anderson founded the Blue Jacket Fashion Show in 2016—an annual awareness campaign and runway event dedicated to prostate cancer education. Opening New York Fashion Week’s fall season each year, the show has grown into one of the most recognized advocacy efforts on the American fashion calendar. In 2025, Anderson was featured as a subject on the PBS series Human Footprint, which profiles individuals leaving a meaningful mark on the world, a distinction that speaks as much to his character as to his craft. His collections remain a fixture among fashion editors and celebrity tastemakers, cementing Frederick Anderson as a designer whose influence extends far beyond the clothes he creates.

Associate Research Scientist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art 

Julia Bakker-Arkema is an associate research scientist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She specializes in volatile chemical emissions and air quality. Her research priorities lie in understanding the chemical processes that occur in museum environments through air sampling, materials testing, environmental monitoring, and casework studies. Bakker-Arkema is passionate about integrating sustainable, evidence-based, creative, and collaborative preventive conservation solutions into collections care. She holds a PhD in chemistry from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

CEO, Mulberry Group

Since September 2024, Andrea Baldo has been Chief Executive Officer of iconic British lifestyle brand Mulberry. He previously served as CEO of the progressive luxury brand Ganni for five years. Before joining Ganni, Baldo was CEO of the Italian leather goods brand Coccinelle and also held the position of general manager at luxury fashion houses Marni and Maison Martin Margiela. Additionally, he has held several top management positions at Diesel. Baldo began his career in strategic management consulting and entered the fashion industry while consulting at Bain & Company in 2000. He earned a degree in economics with honors from the University of Verona and is a graduate of the General Management Program at Harvard Business School. Baldo is also a Fellow of Strategic Management at IESE Business School, where he coteaches the MBA course Strategic Management in the Fashion and Luxury Goods Industry. He also writes business cases and technical notes on the luxury industry.

Founder of Rentrayage

After graduating from UCLA and completing internships at Chanel and Nylon magazine, Erin Beatty entered the Retail Management Program at the GAP under Mickey Drexler. Encouraged by her mentor and GAP's Creative Director Pina Ferlisi, Beatty then enrolled in the design associate degree program at Parson, later interning at Donna Karan Collection, before following Pina to Generra as a designer. In 2008, Beatty co-founded the label Suno with Max Osterweis. Suno’s inaugural collection was produced in Kenya from vintage Kanga fabrics—an early signal of her commitment to intentional sourcing. Known for high-end tailoring and dynamic prints, Suno was carried by more than 80 prestigious retailers worldwide. A finalist for the Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund in both 2012 and 2013, Suno won the CFDA Swarovski Award for Womenswear in 2013. The same year, Beatty was named creative director of ready-to-wear at Tory Burch. In 2014, Suno was named a finalist in the inaugural LVMH Prize.

Fed up with the waste she’d witnessed during her 20 years in fashion, Beatty launched, in 2019, a sustainable clothing and home decor brand, Rentrayage—from the old French term meaning “to mend, to reweave across the cut.” The label is a deliberate rethinking of how clothing is made. Feeling uninspired by conventional sustainable fabric offerings, Beatty turned to vintage garments, transforming old clothes into unexpected new concepts. Rentrayage also works with deadstock fabrics, materials discarded by other designers and factories. Smart, irreverent, and deeply considered, Rentrayage reflects Beatty's belief that conscious living is not a trend, but a way of life.

Founder and CEO, Laws of Motion

Carly Bigi is the founder and CEO of Laws of Motion, the AI sizing technology solving the $1 trillion e-commerce return crisis for apparel brands, such as Alice+Olivia, Simkhai, and A.L.C., by guiding customers to order their best-fitting size. Laws of Motion’s technology was incubated in its own size- and shape-inclusive direct-to-consumer women’s wear brand, which has a 1% return rate and zero-waste manufacturing process. Laws of Motion has been featured as Time magazine’s invention of the year, Fast Company’s world changing idea, and Glossy’s most disruptive startup. Bigi attended Vanderbilt University and Columbia Business School, where she is an adjunct lecturer in entrepreneurial strategy. Passionate about growth, Bigi is a limited partner in early-stage venture funds and startup advisor. She splits time between New York City and Los Angeles.

Innovator, Entrepreneur, Founder and CEO of SPIN360

In 2009, Frederico Brugnoli founded Spin 360, a consulting firm specializing in sustainable innovation and development across multiple industries. Brugnoli works with his teams to develop an integrated approach toward innovative sustainability, encouraging collaboration between large corporations and small- and medium-sized businesses. For nearly two decades, the company has been actively engaged in the leather industry, offering specialized services in life-cycle assessment and corporate carbon-footprint analysis for leather stakeholders, while driving innovative projects within the sector. Spin 360’s core values of sustainability, progress, innovation, and network guide their approach to creating long-term, positive change for businesses and industries.

The United Nations Industrial Development Agency (UNIDO) commissioned Spin 360, under the leadership of Brugnoli, to establish harmonized leather life-cycle guidelines, addressing the urgent need for global action to standardize the requirements and methodologies used to calculate the environmental footprint of leather on a global scale. 

Brugnoli studied environmental sciences at the State University of Milan, where he graduated with honours in 1997. And in 2022, the University of Northampton awarded him an honorary doctorate in fashion sustainability.

Ann Cantrell is an entrepreneur and academic who has owned a modern general store in Brooklyn for more than 18 years and has taught full time at FIT for 15-plus years in the Fashion Business Management program. Prior to teaching and entrepreneurship, Cantrell worked for over a decade in the fashion industry—at Brooks Brothers, Ralph Lauren, and Coach—primarily in product development. A passionate advocate for small independent businesses, she has been featured by the American Express Small Business Saturday program and quoted in media outlets such as The New York Times, USA Today, Forbes, BBC World News, NBC, MSNBC, ABC News, and the Associated Press.

Cantrell holds an MBA with a concentration in sustainability and champions the triple bottom line—balancing environmental and economic sustainability. At FIT, she was honored with the President’s Sustainability Council’s Changemakers Award for her long-term contributions to advancing sustainability on campus. Her latest paper on FLOW Fashion will appear as a chapter in the De Gruyter Handbook of Fashion Supply Chains and Operations (2026), and she is currently revising the fourth edition of Fashion Entrepreneurship: Retail Business Planning (Bloomsbury, 2027).

Founder and CEO of Upcyclers

Gia Carrascoso brings over 30 years of fashion, media, and marketing experience. Throughout her career, she has designed collections, produced runway shows, published fashion magazines, run a fashion blog, and covered Hollywood red carpet fashion. She has worked as a VP of marketing in the tech industry, leading community growth and brand partnerships. Carrascoso’s work has always centered on creativity with purpose, producing, for example, fundraising runway shows for breast cancer survivors and for medical and surgical missions. Her designs have been worn by boldface names—such as by Maye Musk, Jeannie Mai, Vivica A. Fox, Lyndie Greenwood, and Goapele—and featured in fashion magazines and a music video. 

In 2023, after launching a fully upcycled fashion line and seeing how fragmented the ecosystem was, with no infrastructure to help upcyclers build, sell, and scale, Carrascoso founded Upcyclers, a visual-first platform and marketplace for the next generation of sustainable creators. Upcyclers is an integrated ecosystem that brings together inspiration, sourcing, creation, and commerce with upcycled products, secondhand materials, AI tools, shoppable video, and a learning community. Upcyclers won first prize in the Founders Live Pitch Contest at Stanford University in November 2025, earning $1 million in software and business credits.

Environmental Activist

At just 19 years old, Nalleli Cobo led a grassroots campaign resulting in the permanent closure of a hazardous oil-drilling site in her community. This site, infamous for its toxic emissions, had inflicted severe health issues on Cobo and her neighbors. Growing up in South Los Angeles, Cobo became an activist at age 9, spurred by the foul odors emanating from the oil well across the street from her home. Enduring headaches, nosebleeds, and heart palpitations due to the pollution, she began attending meetings and rallies alongside her mother, delivering her first public speech on the matter before she was 10 years old. Her oratory skills and unwavering dedication positioned her as a leading voice advocating for a ban on oil extraction in L.A. In March 2020, her work culminated in the permanent shutdown of the AllenCo Energy drilling site and led to criminal charges against AllenCo Energy executives for environmental violations.

As her activism gained momentum, Cobo co-founded initiatives like People Not Pozos and the South Central Youth Leadership Coalition, despite personal adversity and a cancer diagnosis at age 19. Cobo has received numerous accolades for her work, including the 2022 Goldman Environmental Prize and inclusion on the 2022 Time100 Next list of future leaders.

Founder and CEO, Coeur

Deanna Crevecoeur is the founder and CEO of Coeur, a purpose-driven company aiming to disrupt the luxury leather goods industry. Coeur offers handbags crafted of farm-traceable leather, exclusively sourced as a byproduct of American farms practicing regenerative agriculture. Coeur partners with American businesses across sourcing, leather production, tanning, and product manufacturing to ensure a transparent, streamlined, and entirely domestic leather supply chain. Crevecoeur graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Production Management and a minor in Ethics and Sustainability. She was a top 3 finalist in the Fashion Institute of Technology’s PETE Prize for Entrepreneurs in 2025. She has 10-plus years of experience in design, production, and operations management.

Sustainability and Social Impact Specialist, Steve Madden

Madeleine Danzberger is a sustainability and social impact specialist at Steve Madden, working across product circularity, corporate philanthropy, ESG reporting, and community partnerships. She is passionate about finding unrealized value across the product life cycle and building the systems that make a more responsible fashion industry operational, not aspirational.

Director, Senior Producer at Day’s Edge Productions

Nate Dappen is a biologist-turned-filmmaker based in San Diego. He studied evolutionary biology at the University of Miami, earning his PhD in 2012. That same year, He co-founded Day’s Edge Productions with Neil Losin; they specialize in documentaries about science, nature, and society. Together with Princeton biologist and host, Shane Campbell-Staton, Dappen and Losin co-created and directed the Emmy-nominated PBS science series, Human Footprint, now in its second season. Dappen’s work centers on humanity’s complex relationship with and global impact on the natural world—a relationship in which human culture and technology conspire with our basic biological needs to become the most powerful ecological and evolutionary force on the planet.

Founder, Dana Davis Consulting

Dana Davis is a distinguished authority in sustainable fashion with more than two decades of industry experience and a proven track record of building transformative sustainability strategies. In 2024, Davis founded Dana Davis Consulting, a strategic advisory practice helping fashion brands, innovators, and investors build and execute sustainability and commercialization strategies. Her firm bridges the gap between vision and implementation, guiding companies as they scale responsibly, bring innovations to market, and integrate sustainability across their business operations.

Previously, for over 15 years, Davis played a key role in shaping the sustainability and circularity strategy at Mara Hoffman, positioning the brand as an industry model for responsible design and regenerative business practices. Davis’ expertise spans material innovation, supply chain stewardship, circular design, and strategic growth. 

A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, she brings a unique blend of creative vision, technical knowledge, and systems thinking. Davis is a trusted advisor and thought leader committed to driving systemic change and building a sustainable, regenerative future for fashion. She co-chairs the Custom Collaborative board, founded Women in Sustainable Business, and co-founded NY Workforce Development Coalition, initiatives dedicated to collaboration, equity, and building a resilient future workforce.

Founder and President, Fashionphile

Sarah Davis is the founder and president of Fashionphile. She was named one of Forbes Magazine’s “Ten Female Entrepreneurs to Watch,” and Entrepreneur Magazine called Fashionphile one of the 100 “Smartest, Most Innovative, Hands Down Brilliant Companies on Our Radar.” Fashionphile was bootstrapped from 1999 until 2019, when Neiman Marcus joined as their first investor. It is the largest online platform for buying and selling ultra-luxury handbags and accessories, and their hybrid flagship/ authentication centers and circular stores are popular with the luxury customer. In 2023, Fashionphile became a certified B- Corporation. Davis graduated from Brigham Young University and has a juris doctorate from The University of Maryland School of Law. She enjoys cycling, good books and exploring new places with her husband and four kids.

Director of Sustainability and Impact at Faherty Brand

Lisa Diegel is currently the director of sustainability and impact at Faherty Brand, a certified B Corporation, where she drives purpose-driven strategies across the business, from sourcing and circularity initiatives to industry partnerships and impact reporting. With a background that includes roles at Aritzia, Ralph Lauren, LVMH, and VF Corporation, Diegel brings expertise in environmental, social, and governance criteria (ESG); compliance; and responsible sourcing. A proud citizen of the Nisga’a Nation, Diegel’s First Nations heritage and passion for environmental stewardship shape her commitment to equitable and regenerative practices in fashion.

Fashion Designer,  Andrea Diodati
Assistant Professor, Fashion Design, FIT

Andrea Diodati is an award-winning fashion designer and entrepreneur. After seeing the wasteful nature of her wholesale fashion line, Diodati created a direct-to-consumer brand that used 3D modeling to facilitate customer collaboration. Clients could codesign custom-made dresses that were crafted in New York City using deadstock fabric. Diodati’s industry experience includes designing runway for Anna Sui as well as freelancing for Kate Spade and Alice + Olivia. Presently, Diodati is exploring how digital fashion can replace single-use garment consumption.

Product and Marketing Director, New York Fashion Innovation Center

Susan Easton is a creative leader working at the intersection of design, sustainability, and supply chains. She is the product and marketing director at the New York Fashion Innovation Center (NYFIC), where she helps connect farmers, manufacturers, researchers, and designers to build a more local and transparent textile ecosystem in New York State. Easton is the founder of From the Road, a luxury textile brand collaborating with artisans worldwide to create handcrafted pieces rooted in traditional techniques. Her work explores the relationship between people, materials, processes, and place, and how these shape more inclusive approaches to design and production. She regularly speaks on sustainability and design, working with designers, brands, and institutions to deepen understanding of material journeys from source to finished product and to support more responsible systems.

Program Strategies Manager, Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA)

Emilyn Edillon is a program strategies manager at the CFDA, where she leads cross-functional initiatives supporting designers, manufacturers, and the broader U.S. fashion ecosystem. Since 2019, she has worked on key programs, including the Fashion Manufacturing Initiative (FMI) and NY Forward through New York City and State partnerships and the Swarovski Foundation Re:Generation Innovation Fund supporting sustainability and material innovation; as well as the CFDA x Genesis House AAPI Design + Innovation Grant and CFDA’s A Common Thread initiative in partnership with Vogue. Prior to CFDA, Edillon worked for almost a decade across the luxury fabric and wholesale sectors, including five years representing mills from Asia and Europe on both the West and East Coasts. Her experience across the product lifecycle—from raw materials to finished goods—brings a strong behind-the-scenes and manufacturer perspective to her work, grounded in empathy and insight.

Executive Director, FIT DTech Lab

Michael Ferraro serves as the executive director of the Design and Technology Lab (DTech) at FIT, where he oversees industry partnerships and collaborative programs for the college. The DTech Lab is a vital part of the FIT Center for Innovation, a bridge between academia and industry. Its mission is to advance the business objectives of industry partners by leveraging emerging technologies and innovative creative direction. Ferraro is a creative technologist, researcher, artist, and educator whose career spans computer animation, software development, virtual reality media production, fashion, retail, fine art, entertainment, and higher education. Before joining FIT, he spent 12 years at Lehman College/CUNY as an associate professor in the digital media program of the art department. In 2015, he collaborated with students to win a NY Emmy for Graphics and Animation Supervision for a series of PSAs titled “Best of the Bronx.” Before his tenure at Lehman, Ferraro founded Possible Worlds, an innovative real-time animation studio that worked with clients such as Warner Bros., MTV, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network. In the 1990s, Ferraro created large-scale virtual worlds shown in contemporary art centers around the world. In the mid-1980s, he co-founded Blue Sky Studios and served as system architect of the Academy Award-winning CGI Studio Renderer and production animation system. He created his first computer-generated image in 1969 and continues to produce them today.

Founder and CEO of Laero

Noemi Florea is founder and CEO of the industrial design agency Laero and the inventor of Cycleau, a compact system that turns gray water (household waste water containing no serious contaminants) into drinking water. Using a four-stage treatment process, Cycleau removes 200-plus contaminants, reduces building water footprints by up to 80%, and lowers energy demand by more than a third—all at a fraction of the cost of conventional systems. Cycleau has been piloted in projects ranging from a public bottle-filling station in the U.S. to schools along the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border. By capturing and recycling gray water close to where it is consumed, the Cycleau system reduces pollution, conserves resources, and supports safe, affordable water access.

Florea is an internationally esteemed climate innovator, recognized by institutions such as the U.N. Environment Programme, UNICEF, and MIT Solve. Florea has also won prizes from the Swarovski Foundation, HP Inc., Halcyon Incubator, and the Trust for Governors Island.

Co-Founder and CEO, Evrnu

Stacy Flynn is co-founder and CEO of Evrnu, a B-Corp building regenerative textile infrastructure for the global fashion industry. She led the development of NUCYCL, a patented technology that converts cotton textile waste into high-performance, multirecyclable fibers—positioning Evrnu at the forefront of circular materials innovation. With over $30 million raised and $500 million-plus in offtake commitments, the company’s first commercial facility is underway in South Carolina. Flynn is focused on scaling circular manufacturing systems that align profitability with regeneration. Flynn is a TEDx speaker, systems thinker, and builder of the next era of materials.

Program leader in fashion business, Istituto Marangoni London
Author; Contributor, Vogue Italia

Sennait Ghebreab is program leader of the fashion business BA (honors) at Istituto Marangoni London, bringing a globally informed perspective to fashion education with a focus on sustainability, cross-cultural branding, and academic innovation. She leads the strategic development and delivery of international curricula, workshops, and research-based projects, bridging industry relevance with responsible leadership. Her industry experience includes roles at Burberry, working with international buyers across EMEA markets, and collaborations with Matthew Williamson, Pringle of Scotland, and Joseph. Sennait is also a fashion journalist and intercultural communicator, contributing to Vogue Italia since 2022 on fashion, sustainability, African fashion weeks, and cultural identity. Her interview with Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on citizenship reform was widely noted.

Ghebreab has lectured as a visiting professor in Italy, France, the U.S., Thailand, China, and Taiwan, underscoring her commitment to global academic outreach. Her achievements include a 2022 Positive Leadership Award (U.K.), 2021 Talented Young Italian Award under 40, and membership on the board of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the U.K., promoting international collaborations in fashion and entrepreneurship. Her 2023 book, Responsible Fashion Business in Practice (Routledge), presents a model for ethical branding and sustainable retail.

Merging Eritrean roots with Italian heritage and international experience, Ghebreab exemplifies intercultural leadership, championing sustainability, inclusion, and social responsibility across academia, journalism, and institutional work.

Program Manager at The Footwear Collective

Morgan Ginn is the program manager at The Footwear Collective (TFC), a nonprofit uniting the footwear industry to accelerate circularity. At TFC, she oversees member engagement and drives collaborative projects that advance circular solutions across the value chain. She brings experience in textile circularity and sustainability strategy, including work with Accelerating Circularity to develop pathways for nonreusable textiles. Ginn’s work is rooted in a commitment to building systems that reduce environmental impact and create more resilient, responsible industry practices. She holds a master’s degree in sustainable fashion from Glasgow Caledonian University (GCNYC).

Designer and Founder, YESAET

YESAET is Style × Positive Impact. Founded by designer Hiywet “Mimi” Girma, Yesaet is a contemporary women’s wear brand rooted in African artisanal heritage and New York craftsmanship. Yesaet collaborates with women-led artisanal cooperatives in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Burkina Faso—handcrafting ancient textile traditions into exclusive, responsibly made designs. Girma brings over 25 years of fashion design experience, including roles at Armani Exchange, BCBG Max Azria, and Vivienne Tam. Born in Ethiopia, raised in Côte d’Ivoire, educated in the UK, and an FIT Alumn, Girma’s multicultural origins and life in New York shaped a design eye around textile, form, style, and innovation. In Amharic, the word yesaet means “all that is female,” translating into “a woman’s work,” As a brand, Yesaet’s sustainable practices and priorities are designed capture and reflect a woman’s resolve and power to create positive impact in her community and at large, connecting past, present, and future toward a healthier world. Yesaet is located in DUMBO, Brooklyn, where Girma resides with her family.

Strategy Consultant, CG Consulting
Adjunct Instructor, Fashion Institute of Technology

Caroline Gordon has been an adjunct professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology since 2018, teaching in both the Schools of Business and Technology and Art and Design. She is also an active member of the FIT Sustainability Council and a co-chair of the college’s annual Sustainability Conference. Gordon has worked in the fashion industry in New York City for 20 years across multiple American brands, including Ralph Lauren, Ann Taylor, and Hill House Home. She has experience in women’s wear and children’s wear, with a focus on buying, planning, and wholesale sales.

In addition to teaching at FIT, Gordon runs a consulting company, CG Consulting, helping small and sustainable companies scale their business. With inside relationships around the industry and experience in sales and buying, CG consulting has helped numerous clients from around the country reach their annual goals and shape the foundation of their company for growth. Gordon is a graduate of University of Pennsylvania, serving as co-chair for her graduating class at the Penn Fund. Gordon is also an active member of the Jay H. Baker Retail Initiative at the Wharton School, aimed at mentoring students and networking retail professionals.

Founder and CEO, Keel Labs

​​Aleks Gosiewski is the co-founder and CEO of Keel Labs, where she leads the commercialization of Kelsun, a seaweed-based fiber. An alum of the Fashion Institute of Technology with a background in fashion design and business, she brings a systems-driven approach to building sustainable materials companies. Her pioneering work at the nexus of science and design earned her a spot on Forbes 30 Under 30.

Marcie Greene is an assistant professor in FIT’s Fashion Business Management program. With over 20 years of experience in fashion merchandising and a strong commitment to sustainability, Greene actively shapes the next generation of environmentally conscious industry leaders by teaching sustainability and developing core business curricula. She holds a BFA from the University of Michigan and MA in management in sustainable fashion from the the Sustainable Business Management School (SUMAS). In addition to her teaching, Greene serves on FIT’s Sustainability Council and has been honored with the President’s Award for Faculty Excellence.

CEO and Founder of Mycorrhiza Fashion, Materials Science Researcher

Engineering at the convergence of design, biology, and materials science, Mya Love Griesbaum is redefining the future of fabric. While conducting research on mycoremediation at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA), Griesbaum was inspired by fungi’s regenerative power and ability to digest synthetic pollutants. Griesbaum also had a growing interest in fashion but didn’t want to contribute to its seismic industrial pollution. Consequently, she found a way to align her interests: A series of experiments with bacterial cellulose, algae, and fungi ultimately catalyzed her biotech startup, Mycorrhiza Fashion, which uses fungi to transform synthetic fashion waste into sustainable textiles with the mission of fostering a radical symbiosis between people, the planet, and our clothes. This vision has been honed through research at Georgia Tech’s Materials Science and Engineering Department and accelerated by mentorship from Nanyang Technological University of Singapore. Currently, Griesbaum is cultivating a global network of innovators to prove that we can fashionably combat the climate crisis and grow a sustainable future.

Chair, FIT Foundation Board of Directors; Partner, Hand Baldachin & Associates LLP

Douglas Hand is a founding partner of Hand Baldachin & Associates and serves as chair of the FIT Foundation Board. His legal practice focuses on fashion and lifestyle brands, representing premium forward-thinking labels such as Stella McCartney, Everlane, and Zadig & Voltaire. A preeminent specialist in the legal frameworks surrounding the supply chain, Hand advises clients on compliance with environmental and social impact standards, as well as the transition toward circular economy models and closed-loop systems. He is the vice chair of Goodwill NY/NJH, a founding board member of Closely Crafted, and serves on the CFDA’s business advisory committee. Hand is an adjunct professor of fashion law at NYU and Cardozo School of Law, where his curriculum addresses the evolution of ESG and sustainability disclosure in the global market. A major voice in the industry dialogue, he is the author of two books, including The Laws of Style (American Bar Association), and hosts a podcast and YouTube series of the same name. His work and insights have been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and WWD.

Founder, Made By Masters

Angela Hartwick is building the authentication infrastructure that makes human mastery scalable for luxury fashion, enabling transparent, verifiable partnerships between artisan masters and global brands. Made By Masters provides binary certification for handloom weaving, natural dyes, and artisan techniques—addressing regulatory requirements (EU Digital Product Passport, AI Act) while creating cultural datasets for ethical AI training. Hartwick’s work draws on decades of deep engagement with traditional textiles and natural systems: early career as a costume designer and stylist specializing in Middle Eastern and South Asian cultures, two decades of documentary filmmaking across global communities, and lived experience building off-grid infrastructure in the Canadian wilderness. This intersection of fashion design expertise, cultural knowledge, and natural systems understanding informs her approach to translating ancient technology for contemporary markets—proving craft and nature are efficient infrastructure. Her fashion label Hartwick Atelier is the embodiment of this work.

Executive Director of FIT’s Center for Continuing and Professional Studies

Jacqueline Jenkins joined FIT in 2018 as the acting executive director of strategic planning and innovation. In this capacity, she engaged more than 535 FIT community members in strategic dialogue, served as a member of the FIT President’s Cabinet, and led the development of the Center for Innovative Research at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. 

Jenkins now serves as executive director of FIT’s Center for Continuing and Professional Studies (CCPS), a role she assumed in 2020. Under her leadership, the center achieved a 58% revenue increase through strategically revised programming for seniors, nontraditional students, international learners, and professionals seeking career advancement. Jenkins secured a State University of New York (SUNY) grant to provide scholarships to 220-plus underemployed adult learners and, in 2025, launched a workforce development partnership with Nordstrom Inc., establishing a direct pipeline for skilled sewing professionals to employment opportunities. In recognition of her numerous accomplishments and leadership potential, she was selected for the prestigious SUNY Fellows Program, designed to prepare a cohort of future SUNY presidents. Prior to FIT, Jenkins was dean of graduate studies at LIM College and program executive at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She is co-author of the textbook Fashion Supply Chain Management (Fairchild).

She began her career at First National Bank of Boston (now State Street Bank), moved to senior roles at Ann Taylor, and then served as COO at Milligan & Company and CFO at Black Cyberspace Inc., where she secured $1 million in early-stage financing. Jenkins is currently a doctoral candidate in global leadership and change at Pepperdine University. She holds a BA in economics from Spelman College and an MBA in finance from Wharton. A 35-year member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., she also serves as a board advisor to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.

Founding member, Lonely Whale

Emy Kane is a fractional chief of staff and impact strategist: She helps brands, sustainability leaders, and philanthropic principals turn vision into action. A founding leader and former executive director of Lonely Whale, she helped develop and launch the viral #StopSucking plastic straw campaign and led multiyear partnerships with companies such as Tom Ford Beauty, Tommy Hilfiger, and Bacardi Limited. Kane’s work bridges strategy, culture, and execution, translating complex environmental and social issues into campaigns that resonate widely. She has collaborated with global talent—Shawn Mendes, Jason Momoa, Adrian Grenier, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Amanda Gorman, to name a few—and now guides impact strategy and partnerships that help bold ideas reach new audiences and move them to action. Kane’s work and thought leadership have been featured at Global Citizen and SXSW, with media coverage in the Los Angeles Times and The Economist Impact.

SVP of Program Strategies, Education, and Sustainability Initiatives at Council of Fashion Designers of America

Sara Kozlowski is senior vice president of program strategies, education, and sustainability initiatives at the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), where she has led programming across education, professional development, and sustainability since September 2014. Her fashion career spans three chapters: from designer to educator to holistic industry leader. A sustainable design strategist with over two decades of integrated practice, she holds a BFA from Parsons School of Design and a dMBA in design strategy (sustainable systems) from California College of the Arts.

Global Beauty Product Developer, Co-Founder FIT Hives

Sarah Langenbach, Cosmetics and Fragrance Marketing BS ’17, is an FIT Alumna and co-founder of FIT Hives, an educational initiative raising awareness about the vital role of bees and bee-derived ingredients in the fashion and beauty industries. This initiative led to the installation of rooftop honey bee hives at FIT, which are present to this day. Langenbach, a certified master beekeeper through Cornell University, has remained actively involved in managing FIT’s beehives for the past nine years. She is a global beauty product developer with extensive experience in skincare and color cosmetics, having worked with industry leaders such as L’Oréal, Estée Lauder and Glossier.

Executive Director, Genspace

Casey Lardner is the executive director of Genspace, the world’s first community biology lab. She holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and has over a decade of experience in science storytelling and informal science education. Much of her research used molecular neuroscience techniques in mice and wild urban rats to model and understand the human brain. She remains enamored with all brains and minds—whether they belong to mice, pizza rats, people, or other living things.

Founder and CEO, Biofabricate

Suzanne Lee, founder and CEO of Biofabricate, is a fashion designer turned biomaterial pioneer working at the intersection of design, biology, and sustainability for over two decades. She is the founder of Biofabricate, an international platform advancing the development and adoption of biomaterials in consumer industries. She previously served as chief creative officer at Modern Meadow, building the first ever lab-based design team working on multiple biofabricated approaches to producing leather alternatives. In 2002, Lee coined the term Biocouture, now trademarked, after growing garments from microbes—work that ignited a global movement in biologically derived textiles and materials. Her pioneering projects, which include the first biofabricated garment acquired by the Museum of Modern Art, have been exhibited globally and named among Time’s best innovations. A TED senior fellow and Launch Material Innovator (an initiative of NASA, Nike, USAID, and the U.S. State Department), Lee is the author of Fashioning the Future: Tomorrow’s Wardrobe (Thames Hudson) and a recognized thought leader advising brands, startups, and institutions on the future of bioinnovation.

Percy K. and Vida L.W. Hudson Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Professor of Dental and Craniofacial Engineering (in Dental Medicine), Senior Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs and Advancement, Columbia University

Among her roles at Columbia University, professor Helen H. Lu serves as the director of the Biomaterials and Interface Tissue Engineering Laboratory. She is a leader in regenerative materials research and innovation for health and beyond health. From the sustainable fabrication of biomedical devices (by establishing eco-manufacturing with benign chemicals to expedite FDA approval) to harnessing cells’ ability to make materials, Lu’s group and collaborators have developed a biomaterial platform informed by a green chemistry framework. This breakthrough shows industries how to explore sustainable manufacturing to engineer regenerative materials.

Professor Lu has published over 100 original research articles and invited reviews in biomaterials and tissue engineering. She is the inventor and co-inventor of more than 30 patents and patent applications in biomaterials, and her research has led to several start-ups for medical devices and sustainable textiles. Her accolades include the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) and the Wallace Coulter Foundation Career Award. She is an elected Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), a Fellow of Biomaterials Science and Engineering (FBSE), and more recently, a member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). She was honored as a Provost Leadership Fellow and named a Provost’s Senior Faculty Teaching Scholar at Columbia. She serves on the editorial boards of leading journals, including Journal of Biomedical Material Research Part A, Journal of Orthopaedic Research, Regenerative Biomaterials, Regenerative Engineering, and more. 

Lu received her undergraduate and graduate degrees in bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania.

Founder of Kara Mac Shoes 

Kara Mac (Schwartz) is the founder and inventor of Kara Mac Shoes, the world’s first footwear line with instant heel-to-toe customization. Through a patented interchangeable system of heel covers, toe clips, and straps, one pair of shoes can transform into multiple looks, extending the life of a single pair while reducing unnecessary consumption. A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, Mac began her career as an apparel designer specializing in knitwear for brands including Ralph Lauren and Talbots. As a daily train commuter into New York City, she often carried multiple pairs of shoes for different occasions, an experience that sparked the idea for a more versatile, sustainable approach to footwear. Since launching Kara Mac Shoes in 2015, she has continued to evolve the concept with a focus on environmentally conscious design. Her newest capsule collection introduces chromium-free leather and wooden heels, part of a long-term vision to create footwear that biodegrades significantly faster than traditional leather shoes while maintaining premium craftsmanship and style.

Curator of Education and Research at The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (MFIT)

Melissa Marra-Alvarez is a curator, author, and educator. Currently, she is curator of education and research at MFIT, where she has curated and co-curated several exhibitions, including ¡Moda Hoy! Latin American and Latinx Fashion Design (2023), Food and Fashion (2023), Minimalism/Maximalism (2019), Force of Nature (2017), and Fashion & Politics (2009). She approaches the study of fashion as a cultural phenomenon, with particular interest in sustainability, New York fashion, and how clothing can embody societal values and be a tool for negotiating social roles. Prior to joining MFIT, Marra-Alvarez worked as a fashion archivist. She holds an MA in Museum Studies: Fashion and Textile History from The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT).

Founder and CEO of Soapply

Mera McGrew is the founder and CEO of Soapply, a sustainable luxury personal care company turning everyday rituals into acts of good, starting with the soap next to your sink. Soapply's commitment to high-performing, better-for-you ingredients, sustainable packaging, and global impact earned them the Good Housekeeping Sustainable Innovation Award for personal care and recognition as the soap of the future at U.N. Climate Week. Soapply has been featured in major publications such as Vogue, The New York Times, Food & Wine, and Forbes, and has landed on retail shelves across the country. 

At this panel, get a behind-the-scenes glimpse as McGrew talks about new innovation on the horizon that has been nine years in the making. Learn how Soapply is using marine bioactives derived from kelp in new products that outperform anything on the market and have the potential to pull the entire personal care industry forward. Get the “not-so-dirty” details on what it takes to innovate within a saturated marketplace, the true cost of investing in ingredients that are better for you and the planet, and the important details that land PR, retail placement, and outside investment today. 

To learn more about Soapply or to purchase their products, visit soapplybox.com or explore their products at select value-aligned retailers.

National Geographic Explorer, Expedition Scientist, Inventor, Author

Rachael Zoe Miller is a National Geographic Explorer and an expedition scientist, inventor, and author working to protect the ocean. She is the founder of Rozalia Project for a Clean Ocean, a nonprofit addressing marine debris; co-inventor of the Cora Ball, the world’s first microfiber-catching laundry ball; and author of Decision-Making in the Age of Plastics. Miller leads expeditions whose results are published in peer-reviewed journals and education programs that inspire audiences of all ages. She is a visiting scientist with National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions, investigating microplastic and microfiber in polar oceans and co-chairs the plastics public-engagement working group for the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research. She has presented at myriad events worldwide, including TedX, World Ocean Forum, and the National Geographic Explorers Festival. She captained the 60-foot sailing research vessel, American Promise, trained Navy SEALS to use underwater robots, and mentors young scientists. She lives in Vermont and loves human- and wind-powered snow and water sports.

VP of Sustainable Product Development at Steve Madden

With 38 years of shoe design experience—at Sigerson Morrison, Steve Madden, Vince Camuto, and Tory Burch—Miranda Morrison is passionate about the challenge of improving the global footprint of the footwear industry. She is a keen student of next-gen material developments and is privileged to have designed and produced shoes in Peru, Spain, Italy, China, Mexico, Brazil, Morocco, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, and the USA. Currently, Morrison is in a hybrid role, designing shoes, packaging, and hardware, as well as figuring out ways to make Steve Madden a more circular and eco-minded entity. She has been a member of The Footwear Collective since 2024.

Assistant Conservator, The Museum at FIT

Callie O’Connor is the assistant conservator at The Museum at FIT (MFIT). She received her MA in Fashion and Textile Studies, specializing in textile conservation, at FIT’s School of Graduate Studies. She is currently the chair of the Textile Specialty Group of the American Institute for Conservation and has served as adjunct faculty in FIT’s Fashion and Textile Studies Program. She has previously worked at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and the Museum of the City of New York.

President and Co-Founder, Hudson Valley Textile Project

Gail D. Parrinello is the president and co-founder of the Hudson Valley Textile Project (HVTP), an organization dedicated to strengthening the farm-to-fiber industry in the region. Raised on a farm in Central New York, Parrinello brings a lifelong, personal connection to the land. Through her work with HVTP, she collaborates with farms, mills, makers, and designers across the Hudson Valley, championing locally sourced and sustainably produced textiles. In doing this work, she discovered needle felting as a creative and practical way to give lower-value wool a new life. She now incorporates the technique into her own line of felt products. Parrinello’s passion for fiber and community began over 20 years ago when she opened a yarn shop as a retirement project—a venture that only deepened her commitment to the craft. Today, her shop reflects her evolving focus on local yarns, supporting the regional farmers and producers who make the yarns possible.

Extension Specialist, New York Sea Grant

Catherine Prunella, extension specialist at New York Sea Grant, engages NYC communities on water-quality issues, such as plastic pollution. She grew up near the estuaries of Queens and majored in environmental studies at Hunter College, City University of New York. She earned an MS in marine science from the University of South Florida and was an analyst at the National Science Foundation from 2021 to 2023. Prunella still lives in Queens, riding her bicycle and drinking NYC tap water.

Director of Sustainability, Centric Brands

Hanna Reichel is currently the director of sustainability at Centric Brands, where she is responsible for driving circularity, traceability, and climate action across the company’s portfolio of owned and licensed brands. Reichel has developed and implemented sustainability strategies for leading fashion and outdoor brands and retailers, focused on risk management, regulatory compliance, and stakeholder engagement. Her approach centers on connecting the dots between partners and possibilities to address complex challenges throughout the value chain and product lifecycle. Reichel holds a BS in urban and regional studies from Cornell University, where her research focused on the role of food systems in sustainable development and climate resiliency.

Executive Director, NYC Fair Trade Coalition 

Andrea Reyes is a researcher, educator, and community organizer whose work explores sustainability, systems thinking, and leadership within the fashion industry. She currently teaches at Parsons School of Design and Kent State University and is a doctoral candidate at Pace University. She is the founder of A. Bernadette and executive director of the NYC Fair Trade Coalition, as well as the founder of the Sustainable Fashion Community Center in New York City. Reyes is the co-author of Apparel Costing and creator of the Guided By series of magazines. She studied Global Fashion Management at FIT.

Founder and CEO, Alternew

Nancy Rhodes is a fashion and sustainability leader with nearly 20 years of experience across design, retail, and circular innovation. Currently, Rhodes is the founder and CEO of Alternew, an AI-powered platform helping brands and consumers navigate fashion care and repair through trusted service providers, personalized guidance, and actionable data. Early in her career, Rhodes spent 17 years designing footwear for brands such as Kenneth Cole and Beyoncé’s House of Deréon, with products sold in premium and mass-market retailers. That experience gave her a firsthand view into how fashion is made, sold, and scaled, and where value breaks down after the point of sale. Through years of working across global supply chains, Rhodes saw how little infrastructure exists to support care, repair, and fit, despite their impact on returns, loyalty, and product longevity. That gap then became the focus of her work, which continues today at Alternew. Rhodes holds a master’s degree in sustainability from IE New York College (IENYC) and has been named a top retail expert by RETHINK Retail. She has shared insights on circularity and supply chains with Bloomberg TV, Vogue Business, and Sourcing Journal.

Executive Vice President of Donated Goods Retail, Goodwill NYNJ

Samantha Rich is a retail executive whose career spans luxury fashion and mission-driven commerce. As executive vice president of Donated Goods Retail at Goodwill NYNJ, she oversees one of the region’s largest secondhand retail networks, diverting millions of pounds of goods from landfill annually while generating workforce development funding for underserved communities. Her eight-year progression through the organization reflects a deep commitment to building retail systems that create both economic and environmental value.

Before Goodwill, Samantha spent over a decade at Burberry in various roles across retail and wholesale and spent her tenure at AllSaints driving the East Coast mainline stores and wholesale concession businesses. She brings a practitioner’s perspective on what circularity looks like at scale and how retail organizations build the operational infrastructure to make sustainability work in practice.

Sustainable Transformation Specialist, Reframe Partners

Devon Rufo is a sustainability operator working across product, supply chain, and commercialization, helping companies move sustainability out of strategy decks and into real decisions. Across fashion, footwear, beauty, and consumer packaged goods (CPG), they partner with teams to embed sustainability into how products are designed, developed, and brought to market—using life-cycle assessment (LCA), footprinting, and circularity principles to drive feasible, scalable impact. Rufo is a founding partner of Reframe Partners and a strategic advisor to The Footwear Collective. They’ve supported product and supply chain transformation efforts for brands including Disney, Lululemon, Victoria’s Secret, Ralph Lauren, and Levi’s, among others, and are an alum of SUNY Fashion Institute of Technology and Columbia University."

Co-founder and CEO, Beni

Kate Sanner is the co-fouder and CEO of Beni, an AI-powered search and discovery platform transforming how people find and buy secondhand fashion. With over a decade of experience in brand building and product innovation, Sanner is focused on making shopping more intentional and building a world with less waste and more style.

Eric and Jane Nord Chief Conservator, Cleveland Museum of Art

Sarah Scaturro is the Eric and Jane Nord Chief Conservator at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Previously, she was the head of the conservation laboratory in the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the textile conservator and assistant curator of fashion at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. Scaturro has curated eight exhibitions on fashion and textile history at institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Most recently, she cocurated the 2025–2026 exhibition American Printed Silks, 1927–1947 at the Cleveland Museum of Art. She has an MA from the Fashion Institute of Technology’s Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice program and an MPhil and a PhD from Bard Graduate Center in decorative arts, design history, and material culture. Her work, which focuses on the intersection of fashion, textiles, and conservation, has been covered by numerous media outlets, including Vogue, The New York Times, The Guardian, Dressed: The History of Fashion podcast, and many more. Scaturro is a professional associate of the American Institute for Conservation and an elected fellow of the International Institute for Conservation. She serves as an associate editor of the Journal of the American Institute for Conservation and a trustee of the Association of Dress Historians.

Professor of Materials Science, Science and Mathematics, Fashion Institute of Technology
National Geographic Explorer
Research Scientist, Columbia Nano Initiative (CNI), Columbia Center for Integrated Science and Engineering (CISE), Columbia University

Theanne N. Schiros’ work bridges advanced material development and sustainability, from renewable energy technology to regenerative textiles. Professor Schiros teaches materials science in the Department of Science and Math at SUNY Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). In addition, Schiros is a National Geographic Society Explorer, a research scientist at Columbia University, and co-director of the Gotham Foundry Materials Innovation Hub powered by NYCEDC. Deeply engaged in both research and democratizing science access, Schiros has co-founded biomaterials startups (e.g., Keel Labs, Werewool) with students and faculty collaborators and is a consortium member of the New York Fashion Innovation Center (NYFIC).

Cultural and Dress Historian

Cultural and dress historian Kate Sekules researches and teaches mending as an academic and practical discipline. She is completing her doctoral dissertation, “A History and Theory of Mending,” at Bard Graduate Center (BCG). Sekules is an assistant professor of fashion history at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and teaches “Mending Fashion” at Parsons School of Design and BGC. She has presented research at over two dozen symposia internationally, and she lectures at institutions academic and corporate: from Columbia University to JP Morgan Chase. She runs repair clinics, including Dr. Mend’s clothes surgeries, the social media community #MendMarch, and Darn It! at the Textile Arts Center (cohost). Her mending work has been featured in exhibitions (Winterthur, RISD, Manchester Museums, Cornell Biennial) and media (the New York Times, Le Monde, NHK-Japan). Sekules holds an MA in costume studies from New York University, with a thesis uncovering the practice and contexts of stocking darning in NYC, 1870–1900, and is the author of MEND! A Refashioning Manual and Manifesto (Penguin, 2020).

Product Development Specialist 

Michele Sparrow, Textile Development and Marketing BS ’20, is an FIT alumna currently working in fashion as a product development specialist. Since 2017, Sparrow helped continue the mission of FIT Hives, an initiative dedicated to educating the FIT community about the critical role bees play in our ecosystem. Through organizing and hosting a multitude of campus events, she expanded opportunities for students and faculty to learn about pollinators and how to support both honeybees and native bee populations. With more than nine years of beekeeping experience, Sparrow continues to support the growth and impact of FIT Hives, contributing to its mission of education and advocacy for bees. Sparrow currently works on the Product Development Team at Naadam.

Sustainability Strategist, Creative Director

Marina Testino is a sustainability strategist and creative director. With nearly a decade of experience at the intersection of fashion, art, education, and conscious consumerism, she currently serves on the Advisory Council at The Climate Museum; and she is director of strategic partnerships at Earth Partner and the sustainability editor at Beyond Noise. Additionally, Testino is known for her artivism (via @MarinaTestino), using creative expression to advocate for positive change: In her campaign #OneDressToImpress, she took a stand against overconsumption and the stigma of “outfit repeating” by wearing the same suit for 60 days.

Supermodel, Actress, Entrepreneur, Activist, FIT Sustainability Ambassador

In her decades-spanning career, Amber Valletta has been the face of numerous luxury brands and the muse of renowned photographers; and she has graced hundreds of magazine covers. Valletta has also found success as an actor, entrepreneur, and activist, though she hopes her most significant contributions to the world are yet to come.

Valletta began championing ethical and sustainable fashion long before the concept was mainstream. Her accomplishments in this area include founding Master & Muse, an online platform offering stylish, socially responsible fashion by top design talents. She also co-founded a film production company, A Squared Films LLC, producing numerous films embracing progressive social and environmental themes.

Valletta partnered with Karl Lagerfeld on sustainable capsule collections and became the label’s sustainability ambassador in 2021. In that same period, British Vogue named her their first contributing sustainability editor; and FIT appointed her sustainability ambassador, a role that allows Valletta to work closely with up-and-coming industry prospects. Most recently, in September 2025, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) designated Valletta a Goodwill Ambassador (Global). She has served as a speaker, host, and panel moderator at key international meetings, such as the Copenhagen Fashion Summit and the U.N.’s annual World Ocean Day conference.

FIT Faculty Member

Anastasia White is an FIT adjunct professor who teaches garment construction, patternmaking, and swimwear design. Prior to joining FIT, White invested more than 20 years in the private-label sector, managing the development of women’s sportswear for leading retailers, including Macy’s, Lord & Taylor, and Neiman Marcus. Inspired by global travel, wellness, and sustainability, she founded an eco-conscious swimwear brand, crescent bleu, focused on ethical sourcing and responsible design. White enjoys student mentorship and is excited by the future landscape of fashion.

Senior Executive Director of the Social Justice Center at FIT

Constance C.R. White is senior executive director of FIT’s Social Justice Center (SJC) and an award-winning journalist and author with an expertise in the areas of style, media, and Black culture. White is the author of How To Slay: Kings and Queens of Black Style (Rizzoli) and the editor of Essence: A Salute to Michelle Obama (Time Inc. Books). White also co-created and hosted a special 13-episode podcast for Univision called How To Slay (available on most platforms). Her passion for discovery and telling creators’ stories led her to decades of philanthropic work championing marginalized groups in fashion and to eBay where for seven years she created content, partnerships, and live events and advised on fashion and media strategy. A former New York Times style reporter, White began her fashion career at WWD, covering agenda-setting creators like Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, Donna Kara,n and Spike Lee. White holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and has taught at CUNY Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism. In 2024, she was tapped to join FIT’s Social Justice Center.

General Partner at SOSV

Deborah Zajac is a general partner at SOSV, an early-stage deep tech venture capital firm backing founders who are reinventing how the world makes, moves, and wears things. She invests early in science-based teams poised to transform industries at a systems level. Over the past 20-plus years, Zajac has invested in and scaled startups at SOSV, Touchdown Ventures, and GE Ventures. She first entered the startup world during the dot‑com era and spun startups out of GE’s research labs. She continues to work closely with emerging founders, including students and first‑time entrepreneurs, who are driven to build a more sustainable and creative future.