Meet the 2024 Next Gen Assembly
Global Fashion Agenda’s Next Gen Assembly, supported by Fashion Values, empowers and elevates the voices of talented students and young professionals who aspire to accelerate impact and advocate for the next generation of fashion practitioners and professionals.
The 2024 cohort will be exploring the theme, ‘How Can Fashion Value Economies of Wellbeing?’ The theme will engage the Members with economic practices – from business models to success metrics – that embed climate, social, and racial justice into the fashion industry. Instead of a singular focus on financial growth, the theme reflects economics for good. Drawing from heterodox schools of thought such as feminist economics, deep ecology, or Indigenous economics, the theme asks: how can we develop fashion systems to support cultural diversity, ecological stability, and social prosperity?
These remarkable students and young professionals will be supported in developing advocacy and communications skills to foster their development as sustainability changemakers through a year-long Programme, during which they will:
Amongst other activities throughout the year.
Joy Obiageri Dimgbah, Fashion Research Fellow and Entrepreneurship Advocate, Council for International African Fashion Education
Dimgbah Joy Obiageri is a fashion entrepreneur and advocate, with over a year of practical experience in the industry. She participated in the Africa Young Fashion Leader Fellowship 2023, hosted by the Council for International and African Fashion Education (CIAFE) where she developed skills in fashion research, writing, and media. She holds a BSc in Computer Science from Institut régional Supérieur des Beaux-Arts de la Culture et de la Communication (Irsbaccom University) and a mini MBA certificate in Professional Executive Development in Entrepreneurship from the International School of Management, Lagos.
Obiageri’s expertise includes digital marketing, project management, and personal branding, which she incorporates into her work. As the creative director for The Next Fashion Scholar project, Dimgbah spearheaded a successful Black History Month campaign in 2023, highlighting the achievements of Nigerian fashion pioneers. She currently serves as an Editor for the Journal for African and Diaspora Fashion, a collaboration between CIAFE and STADIO School of Fashion to advance fashion discourse.
Her commitment ties in driving positive change and fostering inclusivity within the fashion ecosystem.
“If we prioritise the wellbeing of those who bring our designs to life, then every fashion creative will feel safe and supported”
Priydarshini Gouthi, Ventures Associate at Good Business Lab & Graduate, University of Michigan
Priydarshini Gouthi is a Ventures Associate at Good Business Lab – a research and innovation organisation – where she works to scale evidence-based worker wellbeing solutions to help meet social sustainability goals in the apparel and textile industry. Gouthi has previously worked in investment banking and is an alumnus of the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business where she majored in finance and psychology. An avid reader, Gouthi is always on the lookout for learning more about different ideas whether in fashion, business, or something else entirely like how AI and related innovations can be harnessed for impact.
“I aim to be an advocate for inclusive growth, for change that builds “with” the community. I seek to create and scale alternative business models that centre wellbeing and value creation for all rather than a select few, especially in the fashion industry, which is ubiquitous and inextricably woven through all of our lives.”
Maisie Porter, Ethical and Responsible Sourcing Assistant, JoJo Maman Bébé
Maisie Porter studied Geography at the University of Manchester and became engrossed by the fashion supply chains that cut across the world, and the systems that maintain them. Porter began exploring understandings of value within the fashion industry and how it perpetuates exploitative feedback cycles. Following graduation, Porter jumped right into the world of fashion sustainability and ethical trade, and since then has had the opportunity to witness the intricacies of the industry up close. Engaging with the garment supply chain and gaining practical experience has underscored Porter’s feelings of passion and urgency surrounding the way we must reimagine our approach to fashion.
“Through my participation in the Next Gen Assembly, I hope to centre the worker and their lived experience, for there can be no ‘sustainable’ fashion industry with the presence of exploitation in any capacity. I seek to use my position to address the systemic issues of inequality latent to the fashion industry through an empathetic perspective that prioritises social justice, wellbeing, and human rights.”
Hannah Lauren Riley, Graduate, MA Fashion Futures, London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London
Hannah Lauren Riley is a sustainability-focused fashion practitioner, designer, and researcher. Riley graduated with a Distinction in the MA Fashion Futures Course at the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, in 2024.
In Riley’s practice, she works with young people to interrogate fashion, exploring alternative and speculative fashion scenarios and engagement. Her designs, whether tangible fashion and textile explorations or playful fashion pedagogies, wish to provoke and inspire the wearer or player, challenging in them pre-conceived beliefs and evoke emotion when worn or played.
Riley graduated with a BA with First-Class Honours, in Fashion and Textiles Design from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), in 2020. She was awarded a sponsorship with Liberty of London for my Honours collection in 2020, was a nominee for the Australian Fashion Design Graduate of the Year Awards (GOYA) in 2021 and was a finalist for the Carla Zampatti Foundation Design Award in 2022.
“We can and must collaboratively dismantle and reform our fashion system into one built on joy, revitalisation, inclusion, and care. I believe in the power of play and education to concurrently aid in transformed post-fashion paradigms and transformed fashion learning experiences. I wholeheartedly advocate for a fashion system that values personal, planetary, and societal wellbeing, for all cultures and communities involved, including the more-than-human.”
Aerielle Rojas, Master’s Student, MA Sustainability in Fashion and Creative industries, Akademie Mode and Design
Aerielle Rojas is a researcher, advocate, and current Master’s student dedicated to innovating the fashion future. Her research interests include business model innovations, degrowth, and decoloniality. Rojas aims to continue thought-provoking conversation and data-driven research, challenging leaders and inviting all to the fashion table.
“More than shifting our values and data-based goal monitoring, I find what fashion needs for a sustainable future is the acknowledgement of those it’s exploited, and belief that it is possible. There is a lack of tangible vision of what collaboration, reduction, and innovation looks like on a global scale. Ultimately, we are all responsible for challenging and questioning our current reality for the better.”
Tanya Singh, Growth Associate, Good Business Lab
Tanya Singh is an economics graduate based in Bangalore, India, currently working as a Growth Associate at Good Business Lab. In her role, Singh focuses on scaling up worker wellbeing tools and raising awareness about solutions. This work has given Singh valuable insights into diverse perspectives and challenges within the realm of social sustainability. She is passionate about driving awareness around these complexities and advocating for the development of more nuanced solutions.
“I am committed to deepening my understanding of sustainability and broadening my influence to drive meaningful change. Through learning, networking, and embracing new perspectives, I aspire to drive sustainability impact within my organisation and broader communities.”
Ana Sofía Vargas, Fashion Sustainability Specialist & Graduate, MA Sustainable Fashion, Polimoda
Ana Sofía Vargas is a passionate advocate for sustainable fashion with a background in non-profit work and collaborative design with Indigenous communities in Mexico. A recent graduate of Polimoda’s Master’s programme in Sustainable Fashion, Vargas is dedicated to driving positive change within the fashion industry. With experience in marketing, social media, and project management, she is committed to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion while advancing sustainability initiatives. Vargas’s unique perspective and dedication reflect her belief in collaborative change in the future of the fashion industry.
“The true essence of fashion has shown us that alone we can only do little, but through collaboration we can achieve change.”
Harry Vine, Product Specialist, Alchemie Technology & Graduate, MSc Sustainable Engineering Management for International Development, Swansea University
Harry Vine is currently working in the textile technology sector to provide solutions for brands to reduce their Scope 3 emissions. Vine has an academic background in engineering and MSc focusing on engineering interventions in an international development context, carrying out community-driven development projects to prioritise positive socio-economic and environmental impact. Vine was drawn to working in the fashion sector due to the large scope for positive change globally.
“This industry presents a unique opportunity for significant and scalable change, directly affecting the everyday experiences of millions of people. I aspire to have a positive social and environmental impact in this sector throughout my career and I am excited about the Next Gen assembly as it is crucial to collaborate on and discuss solutions to the systemic issues that persist. It is a great opportunity to have our voices heard.”
We are pleased to introduce the inaugural edition of "The Policy Pulse" - a new format where we dive deep into discussions with some of the most relevant policymakers who are playing a key role in defining the future of the textile industry.
Learn more about members of Global Fashion Agenda’s Innovation Forum paving the way for industry-wide transformation across the five priorities of the GFA Monitor.
As we observe Earth Day on April 22, it is crucial to acknowledge the significant impact of the fashion industry on our planet.
