10 Sustainable Fashion Networking Communities & Events To Accelerate Your Career
By Jharna Pariani
If you’d like to connect with consciously-minded professionals to further your career, expand your knowledge, or build meaningful business partnerships, we’ve curated 10 sustainable fashion groups and events that are a great place to start.
Our membership community, the Conscious Fashion Collective Membership, is a global community for sustainable fashion professionals dedicated to helping you start or accelerate your impact-driven career.
We support sustainable fashion freelancers, industry professionals, and business owners on their journey to cultivating a career path of their dreams and driving more impact in fashion.
Inside the CFC Membership, you can expect to find a member job board with additional sustainable fashion industry job postings and an entire hub of time-saving resources including a directory to 200+ sustainable fashion organizations, a resume template, sustainable sourcing directory, industry events tracker and much more.
You'll also unlock a session library of 15+ previous workshops — including a conscious content workshop, career clarity workshop, freelancer workshop, and mindset workshop — and masterclasses — including expert Q&As on fashion policy, supply chain transparency, getting hired in fashion, starting a slow fashion brand, building a career in fashion sustainability, and decarbonizing fashion.
In addition, we host live virtual events 4 times per month, including Q&As with noteworthy guests who you can ask your own questions to, workshops to help you build career skills, live reviews (think resume reviews, website reviews, and social media reviews) and other community events.
And as a part of our community, you’ll gain access to our 1:1 member matching program which works as a useful intermediary to help you get professionally paired with fashion experts and conscious change-makers from our diverse global network.
You’ll also have the opportunity to be featured in our Sustainable Fashion Freelancer Directory or Business Directory, and get profiled in a Member Spotlight to help increase your professional visibility.
The CFC Membership is the ideal hub for professionals who wish to make the sustainable career switch, freelancers who’d like to grow their knowledge and clientbase, aspiring sustainable entrepreneurs seeking to amplify their biz and connect like-minded community, and students who are about to embark on their conscious fashion careers.
Location: Global (online)
How to Join: Become a part of the Conscious Fashion Collective Membership here
Fashion Revolution is the world’s largest fashion activism movement and almost always the first name to be dropped in a conversation surrounding sustainable fashion advocacy. With a global voluntary network spanning 97 countries across six continents and two regions, you too can be a part of the local chapter by finding your country and expressing interest in joining the team or volunteering for particular events or activities.
Local members include a coordinator, director, and a full team that you can connect with while also being apprised about the on-goings at organizations near you that are working to improve the conditions of garment workers and what you can do to help.
Location: Various countries across the globe
How to Join: Become a volunteer by finding your local Fashion Revolution chapter here
For proactive sustainable supporters, Remake’s Ambassador Program is the perfect place to be. It is a hands-on program where as an ambassador you’re expected to engage your neighborhood in conscious conversations about the ethics and the environmental impact of the fashion industry.
Once accepted, active members gain access to their Ambassador Directory which can be used to connect with Ambassadors in the area. With over 1437 ambassadors in 75 countries, Remake’s program makes for a wonderful networking platform where you’re bound to find an opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals who are actively making an impact.
Location: Ambassadors can apply from anywhere in the world
How to Join: Complete your application for the Remake Ambassador Program here
If you’re a sustainable fashion entrepreneur, you can stand to benefit quite a bit by joining this network. B Corp B Fashion is a LinkedIn group that aims at coalescing all fashion B-corps and fashion brands that want to become one.
The group promotes regenerative and sustainable fashion while sharing the best practices from consolidated realities, newcomers, and curious people from the fashion world who wish to know more about the B Corp world.
The group is updated weekly with interviews with fashion B-corps, insights into supply chain traceability for the transition to a regenerative business, and a constant exchange of opinions and best practices among the fashion community.
Location: Online
How to Join: Request to join the B Corp B Fashion group here
An initiative by Chicago Fair Trade, the Conscious Closet Club is a community of Chicago residents with a keen interest in ethical clothing and fashion. The club got its namesake from sustainability journalist, Elizabeth Cline’s book with the same title, who has headlined two events for the club while her book serves as inspiration for their content and events.
This club is a great community to join if you're based out of Chicago and hope to exchange ideas with like-minded individuals on all things relating to ethical and sustainable fashion.
Location: Chicago, IL
How to Join: Become a member of Chicago Fair Trade's Conscious Closet Club here
NYC Fair Trade Coalition is a group bringing together a fair-minded community of creative entrepreneurs and activists. Their members consist of a mix of ethical and sustainable businesses and retailers, as well as people who support fair trade principles.
From discounts to classes, sales, and networking, the NYC Fair Trade Coalition offers abundant resources to its members at an affordable price. Member testimonials claim that “there are folks from all walks of life and various industries that offer each other unwavering support,” while another says that they’ve found “plenty of freelance work and, frankly, a lot of friends through the coalition.”
Location: New York City
How to Join: Become a member of the NYC Fair Trade Coalition here
If you haven’t heard of The Sustainable Fashion Forum, chances are, you’ve probably come across an Instagram meme or two from the platform that is famous for fusing pop culture with hot takes on sustainable fashion.
The Sustainable Fashion Forum is a Black woman-owned media company and global community for conscious fashion enthusiasts and sustainability professionals of all industry levels. Known for their signature annual conference, the organization brings together small to large-sized brands, fashion insiders, and sustainability experts to collectively challenge the status quo.
The conference serves as a great medium for sustainable fashion networking opportunities for activists, enthusiasts, and entrepreneurs alike.
Location: Austin, TX (with the option to attend virtually from anywhere too!)
Date: April 17-19, 2024
How to Join: Get your tickets to the 2024 Sustainable Fashion Forum here
Global Fashion Summit is presented by Global Fashion Agenda. The forum has evolved into an unmissable date in the fashion calendar for those wishing to stay ahead on sustainability priorities, gain tangible updates on policy developments, explore new innovations, and reflect on sociocultural influences in the ever-changing fashion landscape.
Recognising that everyone is operating from a different baseline, Global Fashion Summit content will be tailored to suit the needs of those across a vast sector spectrum. Intersectional solutions and diverse knowledge inputs are needed to reach our vision of a Net Positive industry.
Location: Denmark
How to Join: Secure Your Tickets on their website
The Future Fabrics Expo was founded by The Sustainable Angle to effect positive change within the industry by connecting and promoting innovators and suppliers of sustainable materials with fashion brands.
The Expo showcases innovative and sustainable material solutions for the fashion industry, with over 5000 materials exhibited to professionals around the world on an annual basis.
If you’re a sustainable fashion entrepreneur or work in the industry, this expo is a great place to meet and network with fashion professionals in the textile space.
Location: London
How to Join: Sign up for The Sustainable Angle newsletter for updates on the expo
Textile Exchange is a global nonprofit driving a positive impact on climate change and nature across the fashion and textile industry. The platform is also known for its knowledgeable treasure trove of resources like information on sustainable material production, industry reports, and a materials directory.
Each year, Textile Exchange holds a conference bringing together leaders and experts from across the fashion, textile, and apparel industries. It provides a space to collaboratively explore challenges and solutions to overcome the climate crisis, making it a great space to meet industry professionals.
Location: Pasadena, CA
How to Join: Become a member or attend the conference as a non-member by signing up for their newsletter
About the Author:
Jharna Pariani is a fashion writer and creative strategist whose work is rooted in honesty and deep observation of the world around her. When she isn’t busy penning down her thoughts, she moonlights as a video editor creating fashion and food reels on Instagram for several brands and influencers.