Next Gen Assembly
GFA Academy’s Next Gen Assembly convenes talented students and young professionals in an impactful advocacy programme, enabling the next generation to gain access to the industry, have their voices heard and ideas nurtured.
The 2025 Next Gen Assembly is led by Global Fashion Agenda and the Centre for Sustainable Fashion’s Fashion Values programme.
Next Gen Assembly 2025
The selected members of the Next Gen Assembly will be supported in developing advocacy and communication skills to foster their development as sustainability changemakers. This will be achieved through a year-long collaborative programme with a series of online workshops, courses, and by playing an integral role at the Global Fashion Summit: Copenhagen Edition 2025.
Nature is the life force that provides us with the air, water, soil and all other life forms that, together, make up the elements in the garments we’re all clothed in. The relationship between fashion and nature is dependent on how these elements are valued in emotional, cultural, political, social and economic, as well as aesthetic and technical, ways. This year’s Assembly will advocate for the ways that fashion can be transformed to protect, restore and regenerate natural life on our planet under this year’s focus:
How Can Fashion Value The Rights of Nature?
Deadline for applications is 24 January 2025.
Apply via the application form below and send it to academy@globalfashionagenda.org
Who We Are Looking For
The Next Gen Assembly is a globally representative group that explores multiple and diverse approaches to creating a more prosperous fashion system. The Next Gen Assembly is inclusive of professions, perspectives, and practices across disciplines such as fashion design, technology, communication, supply chains, human rights, environmental stewardship, and business.
Assembly members should be:
- Between 18-30 years old.
- Students: Must be actively studying and have completed at least the first five semesters at Bachelor’s level (EQF level 6) or be enrolled in studies at Master’s level (EQF level 7).
- Professionals: Must have graduated within two (2) years prior to taking part in the Next Gen Assembly programme.
- Committed to undertaking Centre for Sustainable Fashion (CSF)’s Fashion Values: Nature curriculum.
- Aligned to at least one of the five Fashion CEO Agenda priorities.
In Partnership With
Meet our 2025 Ambassador
Programme Activities
Next Gen Assembly will complete the Fashion Values: Nature course, participate in a series of online workshops, deliver a Masterclass event, and play an integral role at the Global Fashion Summit. The chosen candidates can expect to interact with content from industry leaders, policymakers, changemakers and thinkers.
- In the weeks preceding the Summit, the Next Gen Assembly will focus on community building and sharing aspirations, to co-create goals and methodologies for achieving change. This will lead to an exploration of how to be successful advocates for the fashion community and thoroughly prepare them for their roles at Global Fashion Summit 2025 in Copenhagen, Denmark.
- At the Summit, each individual will be assigned an on-site industry buddy and be meaningfully involved in activities and networking opportunities throughout the event.
- Following the Summit, the Next Gen Assembly will continue to work together, advocating for a prosperous fashion system, responding to opportunities to amplify Next Gen voices and contributing to changemaking activities.
Meet The Next Gen Assembly 2024 Members
-
“When you give us the opportunity not just to be observers but to participate actively in the conversations and create something, you are pushing us to develop and evolve as storytellers, creators or speakers, and that is essential.” Next Gen Assembly Member 2023
-
“Next Gen Assembly was absolutely a life changing event. The entire experience helped in re-shaping my perspective on the fashion industry.” Next Gen Assembly Member 2023
-
“My biggest highlight of the Next Gen Assembly was the industry roundtable. Before, I couldn’t imagine a place where you had some of the biggest names in the industry sit next to you and think of you as not just someone who’s really young, just starting out, but as someone who’s an equal voice, and who has something to say.” Next Gen Assembly Member 2024
-
“What I’ve learned through Next Gen Assembly in terms of community has changed my perspective. I want to go back and do that same community for people back home. When we have a space to fully share our ideas and experiences, we have the feeling that we’re not alone on this journey.” Next Gen Assembly Member 2024
- It is required that the Applicant can travel to Copenhagen to take part in Next Gen Assembly related activities during Global Fashion Summit in June 2025. The Applicant commits to be available on all days of 3-6 June 2025. The organisers recommend the participant arrive the day before or at the latest on the morning of 3 June. The organisers recommend the participant leave no earlier than 6 June. GFA’s travel partner will help coordinate the flights. Related mandatory activities include, but are not limited to:
-
- Attending Summit briefing and debriefing on 3 and 6 June
- Attending Global Fashion Summit on 4-5 June
- GFA commits to provide the Applicant with funding to cover travel and accommodation during the stay of 2-6 June
- The agreement does not cover the following expenses, to be covered by the Applicant separately: 1) Food and drink during the stay, 2) transportation to and from the airport and the different venues, and 3) potential visa costs related to travelling to Denmark.
- Lunch will be served during Global Fashion Summit on 4-5 June
- Applicants must complete the mandatory work prior to the Global Fashion Summit event, such as attending online workshops, reading items on the recommended reading lists, completing the Fashion Values: Nature curriculum, participating in an online masterclass event, and any other assignments given by the organising team.
Hannah Lauren Riley
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. She graduated with a Distinction in the MA Fashion Futures Course at the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, in 2024. Riley is fascinated by clothing's ability to tell stories and aim to explore how these stories can connect us to our personal fashion practices and the wider story of Fashion to foster sustainable fashion engagement. Her work exudes joy and imagination while being underpinned by meaningful messages that challenge prevailing paradigms and engage audiences in provocative ways. 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 her 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.
Tanya Singh
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, she focuses on scaling up our worker wellbeing tools and raising awareness about our 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.
Priydarshini Gouthi
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 organization, 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. She enjoys exploring new cafes, conversations and cups of coffee.
Maisie Porter
Maisie Porter
Ethical and Responsible Sourcing Assistant, JoJo Maman Bébé
During Maisie Porter's time studying Geography at the University of Manchester, she 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, she jumped right into the world of fashion sustainability and ethical trade, and since then she 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 her feelings of passion and urgency surrounding the way we must reimagine our approach to fashion.
Harry Vine
Harry Vine
Graduate of MSc Sustainable Engineering Management for International Development
Harry Wine is currently working in the textile technology sector to provide solutions for brands to reduce their Scope 3 emissions. He has an academic background in engineering and MSc focussing on engineering interventions in an international development context, carrying out community-driven development projects to prioritise positive socio-economic and environmental impact. Wine was drawn to working in the fashion sector due to the large scope for positive change globally.
Joy Obiageri Dimgbah
Joy Obiageri Dimgbah
Fashion Research Fellow and Entrepreneurship Advocate, Council for International African Fashion Education
Joy Obiageri Dimgbah 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 (AYFL) 2023, hosted by the Council for International and African Fashion Education (CIAFE) where she developed skills in fashion research, writing, and media. Dimgbah 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 certi2cate in Professional Executive Development in Entrepreneurship from the International School of Management (ISM) Lagos. Her expertise includes digital marketing, project management, and personal branding, which she incorporates into her work. As the creative director for The Next Fashion Scholar (TNFS) 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(JADF), 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
Ana Sofía Vargas
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 nonprofit 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.
Aerielle Rojas
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.
2024 Ambassador
Aishwarya Sharma recognised as India’s first fashion activist, is a climate advocate and a passionate women’s rights advocate based out of New Delhi, India. A Global Goals ambassador with the Togetherband and UN Foundation, she advocates for Goal 5: Gender Equality & Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities. She is India head for Global Peace by ACCORD headquartered in South Africa and also serves as a goodwill ambassador for Youth of India, commanding a substantial following of 3,50,000 plus readers globally. She has been representing Indian youth at the prestigious Global summits including COP27, COP28, BRICS and many more.
Sharma is recognised internationally for amplifying marginalised voices in the fashion industry by constantly holding the makers of fashion accountable. A key figure in PUMA serving as their Global South Voice while helping the brand communicate its sustainability efforts to the public. She significant contributes to responsible practices and global fashion activism while also serving the role of Sustainability Advisor at Fort Fashion Council (world’s first innovative, sustainable and technological non profit fashion organisation & fashion council, in-fact, the largest in the Middle East and innovative merges globally and engages the fashion industry to act for sustainable future to save our planet) headquartered in Dubai, UAE.
Testimonials from Previous Members
Hear From The Next Gen Assembly
Interwoven: Fashion Storytelling in the time of a Climate Crisis
The 2023 Next Gen Assembly cohort came together from across the globe and disciplines to reflect on what change within the fashion industry can look like.
Next Gen Manifesto
2023 Next Gen Assembly Members Manifesto covering storytelling for a transformative change in the fashion system.
Terms & Conditions
Next Gen Assembly 2025
Upon successful submission of your application, you acknowledge and accept the requirements associated with participation in the programme. Before applying, please thoroughly review the terms, as they delineate crucial dates that require mandatory attendance and furnish pertinent information regarding your involvement in the programme.
