Leadership Awards

Amber Valletta

Actor, Model and Entrepreneur

Amber Valletta is the founder of Master & Muse, an online store for eco-friendly fashion brands operated by Yoox.

She is committed to advancing smarter consumption and environmental awareness through exciting entrepreneurial endeavours and brand partnerships. Amber serves as an adviser to One x One, The Conscious Design Initiative in partnership with the U.N. She is also a board member of the FIT Foundation and is a FIT Sustainability Education Ambassador.

Giorgio Belloli

Chief Commercial and Sustainability Officer, Farfetch

Giorgio Belloli is responsible for the commercial strategy and development of Farfetch. A member of the Farfetch Executive Board, Giorgio is an experienced player in the luxury fashion industry. He has developed and executed business strategies for luxury brands such as Miu Miu, Helmut Lang and Prada Linea Rossa, and held senior positions at Hussein Chalayan and Alexander McQueen.

Caroline Rush

Chief Executive, British Fashion Council

Caroline Rush is the Chief Executive of the British Fashion Council. She has 20 years of experience in Marketing and PR across both consumer and corporate communications. Caroline is championing sustainability and emerging UK talent through the British Fashion Council's 'Positive Fashion' campaign during London Fashion Weeks in partnership with Common Objective.

Dylan Jones OBE

Editor, British GQ

Journalist Dylan Jones is our leading menswear judge for the CO Leadership Awards. Through his roles as Editor-in-chief of British GQ, and as the Chair of London Fashion Week Men's, Jones' perspective on the best in menswear is second to none. He was previously an editor at i-D, The Face, Arena, The Observer and The Sunday Times; he has won Magazine Editor of the Year eleven times and is a New York Times best-selling author.

Clare Press

Founder, Wardrobe Crisis podcast and Author

Sydney based sustainable fashion journalist, Clare was the first ever VOGUE Sustainability Editor (for Vogue Australia, 2018-2020). She is the founder and presenter of the Wardrobe Crisis podcast. She has interviewed hundreds of fashion leaders and influencers, telling stories of positive change in the industry. Clare sits on the Australian advisory board of Fashion Revolution and is a Global Ambassador for the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Make Fashion Circular initiative.

Roland Mouret

Designer

Celebrating 20 years in design in 2017, Roland Mouret is best known for his iconic dresses and beautifully designed separates. His sharp tailoring and precise fit have earned him the title ‘Master of the Silhouette’, attributed to his ability to create a second-skin, or modern armour, to empower women. A founding partner of Common Objective, he is a strong supporter of sustainability, and believes in the power of creativity to find solutions.

Brigitte Stepputtis

Head of Couture, Vivienne Westwood

Brigitte Stepputtis is the head of couture at Vivienne Westwood with over twenty-five years of experience in the fashion industry. She joined the label in 1990 and has since contributed to the success and growth of the Vivienne Westwood brand with her expertise in design, tailoring and pattern cutting in combination with economic strategy and a commitment to sustainable design.

Orsola de Castro

Co-Founder, Fashion Revolution

Orsola de Castro is an internationally recognised opinion leader in sustainable fashion. She ran a pioneering upcycling label, From Somewhere, from 1997 until 2014 during which designer collaborations included collections for Jigsaw, Tesco, Speedo, and four best-selling capsule collections for Topshop. In 2013, with Carry Somers, she founded Fashion Revolution, a global campaign which reached 275 million people during its 2018 Fashion Revolution Week.

Hassan Pierre

CEO & Co-Founder, MAISON-DE-MODE

Hassan Pierre is an entrepreneur and co-founder of the hybrid luxury ethical fashion retailer, MAISON-DE-MODE. Pierre attended the prestigious, Parsons School of Design, and soon after launched the demi-couture label, Way It Should Be. He has extended his experience and voice to numerous panel discussions including the 2015 NGO Conference at the United Nations, was a judge for the Denim Challenge at the Copenhagen Fashion Summit in 2016, has participated in numerous CFDA discussions and spoke at SXSW in March 2018.

Safia Minney

Fair Fashion Leader

Safia Minney is an internationally recognised pioneer of sustainable fashion and a leader of the Fair Trade movement. Safia launched Global Village in 1991 in Japan out of which the fair trade fashion brand People Tree was born. Safia has also most recently led sustainable footwear brand Po-Zu as Managing Director through a period of growth as they collaborated with Star Wars™ to produce a range inspired by the legendary cult film series. Safia is also the author of Slave to Fashion raising awareness of modern slavery in the fashion industry.

Cora Hilts

Co-Founder & CEO, Réve En Vert

Cora Hilts, Co-Founder and CEO of luxury sustainable e-tailer Rêve En Vert (REV), began her illustrious career at Christian Louboutin and Stella McCartney where she gained her love for design and the creative industries. Rêve En Vert has established itself as the premier online e-tailer of honest sustainable luxury, fashion, beauty and lifestyle. As a Forbes 30 under 30 winner and a Vogue UK contributor, Cora hosts numerous sustainability talks at Soho House, and is known for her sustainable fashion, beauty and lifestyle advocacy.

Christopher Stopes

UK Representative, Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)

Christopher is an expert in the development of sustainable and organic farming, food and textiles. With 30 years’ experience, working with government, NGO and corporate clients, he has driven engagement with organic value chains. He works as both UK and EU representative for GOTS, promoting the organisation’s gold standard for organic textiles based on the use of organic fibre. He serves on the UK Sustainable Clothing Action Plan (SCAP) and was President (2009-18) of IFOAM EU Group, part of the global IFOAM-Organics International.

Ralph Goodstone

Founder, RG Sourcing Associates

Ralph Goodstone is a leading authority on International sourcing having had a long career working early on with Marks & Spencer and then a number of established brands on developing their supply base. He is the Vice-Chair of the Ethical Fashion Forum and a committed advocate of doing business better. As a consultant to the Fashion SVP Sourcing show he has championed the inclusion of sustainable exhibitors and seminars on thought leadership in business ethics.

Nikhil Hirdaramani

Director, Hirdaramani Industries

Nikhil Hirdaramani is a Director of the Hirdaramani Group, a 4^th generation family business with apparel manufacturing facilities across Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Vietnam. There, he oversees the Group’s sustainability initiatives such as their Sri Lanka facility, Mihila, the first ever carbon neutral facility in Asia. Nikhil is currently serving as Vice Chair of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition and has previously been the chairperson at the Sri Lanka Sustainability Forum.

Kerry Bannigan

Founder, Conscious Fashion Campaign

Kerry Bannigan is the Founder of the Conscious Fashion Campaign, an initiative supported by the United Nations Office for Partnerships, championing fashion innovators to drive awareness and advocacy to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Kerry’s diverse acumen and innovative vision has led her to execute government initiatives across the world, and her key industry insight has advised initiatives including It’s On US launched by Barack Obama and Joe Biden, Global Citizen and the Fashion is GREAT Istanbul campaign in partnership with the British Embassy, Harvey Nichols and UK Trade and Investment.

Jack Ostrowski

Founder & CEO, Yellow Octopus Fashion & reGAIN app

Jack Ostrowski is a serial entrepreneur in sustainable fashion. He is the founder and CEO of Yellow Octopus Fashion, founder and CEO of reGAIN app, and a major investor and board director of reflaunt.com. Jack not just believes in, but also implements 'commercial sustainability' successfully by building profitable business models focusing on sustainable fashion. He is the recipient of multiple business awards, including The Queens’ Award for Enterprise. His mantra is “less bullshit, more good shit”.

Jette Ladiges

Partnerships Manager, WFTO

Jette Ladiges heads up partnerships at World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) a global network of organisations representing the Fair Trade supply chain. Prior to WFTO, Jette was Craft Product Co-ordinator at Trade Aid, and Operational Co-ordinator at Dual Design. She is an expert in fair trade sourcing for fashion.

John Mowbray

Founder, Ecotextile News

John Mowbray launched Ecotextile News in 2006. He is a leading global expert on textiles and the environment, a board member of the European OutDoor Conservation Association, and the founder of the Planet Textiles Summit on sustainability.

Bettina Bär

Show Director Neonyt, Messe Frankfurt

Bettina Bär is responsible for the strategy, concept and organisation of Neonyt. She carries out her duties as Show Director in all fields related to a physical or digital presence of Neonyt as well as the international Neonyt conference Fashionsustain. In 2019, Neonyt became one of Messe Frankfurt’s 60 textile trades fairs worldwide that actively integrate the Sustainable Development Goals and incorporates them in various formats.