IntroI am a British fashion design graduate who has been working in fair trade and organic cotton in West Africa since 2007. I use this website to share my experiences with those who are interested in similar issues, and to make professional contacts. A more detailed record of my participation in a fair trade organic cotton processing project in Senegal can be found on my blog at http://lizcooper.blogspot.com. On this site you will find pages on my experience with organic cotton and fair trade fashion/arts and crafts, my work in Senegal, some selected portfolio images, and my CV, as well as some links to relevant sites. If you wish to contact me by email, you will find an email link in the top right corner.
Why am I interested in organic cotton and fair trade? From very early on during my degree course in fashion design (2002-2006), I began to realise the importance and potential of a set of ideas now called 'ethical fashion'. I suppose I am part of a new generation of graduates who prioritise reducing the negative impact of their career on people and on the environment. I have been determined to follow my dreams and work in creative roles related to my design skills, but feel there are ways to do things differently, and that now is the time to do so. I therefore explored through my studies ethical alternatives to conventional practices in the fashion industry, a subject which is now well documented elsewhere on the web. I became interested in sustainable fabrics, which led to the creation of a graduate collection of women’s wear in organic cotton cloths. I tailored my university work placements to my ethical business interests (see CV page). I chose to research and discuss 'ethical consumerism' in my degree dissertation (available as a pdf on my CV page). On graduation, I straightaway organised a work placement with an NGO in Senegal which raises awareness on the dangers of pesticides for health and the environment, and promote alternatives such as organic agriculture (including cotton). I then found work with an IFAT certified fair trade crafts company in Senegal, motivated to understand what people in developing countries really think of the fair trade, and keen to witness the impacts of this alternative way of trading myself. I have since then been working on a fair trade organic cotton project with an international NGO in Senegal, developing ranges of ethical Senegalese products for local and international sale. I am interested in working in other parts of the world in the future in order to increase my knowledge in these areas and experience ethical production and fair trade in another context. Image: a warm welcome to a Mandinka village near Koussanar, Tambacounda region, Senegal. |
