Five amazing women leading the charge in the fight for sustainability

Living a more sustainable lifestyle is now more important than ever. Whether it's the food we eat, the clothes we wear or the way we shop, sustainability has become a guiding light in every decision we make. To celebrate women's equality day 2021 we wanted to share 5 amazing women who continue to lead the charge in the fight for a sustainable future and our planet.

Clare Press

We all know that fast fashion is one of the biggest culprits when it comes to global warming. One woman that knows this better than anyone is Clare Press. Clare is a force against fast fashion. She has dedicated her career to making fashion circular, an initiative that aims to eradicate the massive amount of waste produced by the industry.

On her podcast, 'Wardrobe Crisis', Clare discusses the ethics, environmental effects and social impact of the fashion industry. Now on its fifth season, the Wardrobe Crisis podcast has hosted a number of prominent industry insiders who have shared their perspective on the impact the fashion industry is having on the environment.

Alongside her Podcast, Clare is the Sustainability editor at Vogue Australia and a Global Ambassador for the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's Make Fashion Circular Initiative. Clare continues to dedicate herself to creating and encouraging a kinder, more sustainable fashion industry.

Between her work as a writer, editor, ambassador and podcast host, Clare has managed to publish two books: Wardrobe Crisis: How We Went from Sunday Best to Fast Fashion and Rise & Resist, How To Change The World.

Marci Zaroff

Marci Zaroff has dedicated her life to encouraging environmentally friendly fashion initiatives. In nineteen-ninety-five, way before the sustainable fashion movement we know today, Zaroff trademarked the word 'ECOfashion'. A leading figure in the sustainable fashion movement, Marci is still an active advocate for the ever-growing movement in 2021.

As the founder and CEO of ECOfashion, Zaroff encourages eco-friendly, conscious consumerism. Playfully titled, “greenhouse of brands”, Zaroff's ethical, environmentally-friendly empire includes brands MetaWear, Yes And, and Farm to Home.

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Celine Semaan

Celine Semaan is the founder of Slow Factory Foundation, an organisation dedicated to sustainable education. Working with global brands, nonprofits and academics, the Slow Factory Foundation educates and promotes social and environmental justice. One of Semaan and the brand's core missions is promoting circular fashion, whereby consumer habits and fashion practises give back to the earth, not strip it from its natural resources.

Separate from her work with the Slow Factory Foundation, Semaan is a respected designer and artist. Her work has been featured in the Museum of Modern Art, Cooper Hewitt and the de Young Museum.

Semaan is known for coining the term 'fashion activism', which is something she has dedicated her life and career to promoting and encouraging.

Dana Thomas

Dana Thomas is a well-known name in the fashion industry. The Parisian journalist has published several books exploring the history, legacies and insider experience of the industry.

In 2019 she utilised her knowledge of the industry and world-renowned name to pen 'Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes'. Fashionopolis explores the colossal impact the fashion industry is having on the world around us and promotes drastically reforming the way we shop, think and wear clothes.

Accompanying her best selling exposé, Thomas echoes this same sentiment in her massively popular TED Talks where she candidly addresses the importance of sustainable fashion and our future.

Greta Thunberg

A well-known name across the sustainability movement, Greta Thunberg has, in many ways, become the face of the movement. At only eighteen years old, this young activist doesn't shy away from confronting world leaders about their attitudes towards climate change.

Thunberg is front and centre of the sustainability movement. The youth activist began what has now become her life's dedication as part of the school climate strike movement after taking her own stand outside the Swedish parliament, calling for stronger action on climate change. Since then, Greta has addressed the United Nations on several occasions, has been featured on Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women and has achieved three nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize.

At only eighteen years old, Greta Thunberg has established herself as a dedicated and passionate leader, one who will stop at nothing to promote her message.

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The sustainability movement is constantly growing and evolving which is why these women continue to call for change, stopping at nothing to get their message heard. Their work is admirable and crucial. Whether it’s a TED talk on the detrimental effects of fast fashion on our oceans or an adrenaline-fueled protest against fossil fuels, the work of each of these women has shaped and continues to evolve the sustainability movement and how we choose to live our lives.