Good afternoon,

I would have liked to have joined you earlier today, as I understand the program has been intense, informative, challenging, hopefully inspiring and perhaps even at little demanding.  It is important that we make demands, not only of ourselves but, of everyone that plays a role;

• Obviously, the Fashion Industry and Leaders within the industry
• Governments
• Consumers
• Multilateral institutions
• Other global industries
• Civil society
• Journalists/media
• Academics/Educational institutions
• Influencers

To create real and lasting change for our environment and society it will demand that we come together to design and develop a fashion industry that can overcome the challenges of today and rise to the opportunities of tomorrow.

• How do we improve the social and environmental performance and textile operations?
• How do we achieve supply chain simplification and transparency?
• How do we influence consumer behavior?
• How do we exploit new technology to achieve better systems to track materials?
• How do we implement industry standard indexes in a complex global production environment and how do we ensure compliance?
• How do we integrate new business models, like the circular economy, which I know has been discussed extensively during the day?

All these questions start with ‘How do we’, ‘we’ being the operative word.  I’m convinced that if we are to have any chance of succeeding in reinventing the fashion industry it will require collaboration never seen before; between all actors, at levels of the industry and beyond ….. joining together with a shared a mission. 

And this is why Copenhagen Fashion Summit is such an important event and platform for driving forward the industry’s commitment to change. It brings together industry leaders and it is very positive to hear so many commitments to change made from today’s speakers, panelists and discussion leaders.

The fashion industry is huge and continues to grow rapidly – according to current growth projections, it will double in the next 10 years, generating up to $5 trillion annually. It’s not just big in terms of revenue – it also employs 60 million people around the world.

And it is one of the world’s largest consumer industries, and consumption drives the global economy. It is an industry with great influence and importance and it is an engine for development.

However, the fashion industry is also one of the most resource-intensive industries in the world and leaves environmental, social and ethical footprints.

Sadly, in the past 50 years, 60% of the earth’s ecosystem has been depleted and natural-resource consumption is expected to rise by three to six times by 2050. As stated in the Pulse Report global, population is expected to reach over 8,5 billion people by 2030. The global middle class is expected to triple by 2030 and the current industry growth projections translate to even greater competition for cheap production.

With this in mind, how do we design a fashion industry for the future that respects and protects the environment and reduces existing inequalities?  A big question, so it’s just as well that we are many, reflected by the attendance here today, committed to finding the answer.

The third Fashion Summit was held on April 24 in 2014 marking the one year anniversary of the Rana Plaza tragedy in Bangladesh. A tragedy that brought the world’s attention to worker safety issues and the human costs of cheap, fast fashion.

It also nudged a further shift in the sustainability of the industry being primarily driven by economic interest to recognition of the environmental and social aspects as crucial factors in moving towards a more sustainable industry.

The Bangladeshi Ready Made Garment sector’s growth has been a key driver of development in the country. The downside of the growth in this sector was that neither factory owners nor the government paid sufficient attention to working conditions, safety and labour rights.

The Danish Minister for Development Corporation and I, visited Bangladesh just last month, and witnessed some of the changes that have and are taking place in the industry.  The textile and clothing industries provide the most important source of growth in Bangladesh’s rapidly growing economy.

Bangladesh is the second largest exporter of Ready-Made Garments next to China and annual exports account for over 80% of the nations export earnings.  The sector also employs around 4 million workers, of which an estimated 60% are women.

The garment sector has provided employment opportunities to women from the rural areas that previously did not have any opportunity to be part of the formal workforce.  This has given women the chance to be financially independent and have a voice in the family and local community because they can now contribute financially.  Studies have shown that women working in the sector have better opportunities to support their families, more choices for family planning and that they invest in their children’s education and postpone marriage.

Whilst in Bangladesh, I had the opportunity to visit one of the factories producing for international clients and export.  It is important to mention here that such factories are often a stark contrast to factories producing for the local market. 

I had a tour of the production facilities, child care and health care facilities and a chance to speak with some of the employees.  It appeared that structural, electrical, fire and the working environment safety measures were taken.

There existed employee welfare programs.  They prioritized sustainability and CSR-compliance.  Even though tangible improvements in many factories have been made, the progress relating to worker’s rights and practices remains a challenge; issues such as working hours, holidays, low wages, and the right to organize themselves in unions.

Although, there is still much progress to be made, growth in the RMG-sector (Ready Made Garment sector) has brought about and continues to bring with it new opportunities and new challenges.  From a development point of view, my visit only confirmed that it is in the best interests of Bangladesh and the international community that the industry in Bangladesh develops in a sustainable direction to the benefit of employees, producers and consumers.  And that will require governments, workers unions, factory owners, international buyers and other organizations to continue to identify and address the shortcomings of the sector.

The good news is that the fashion industry is characterized by speed, creativity and change and that by reinventing itself, the industry can both mitigate its negative impact and generate a high amount of value for society, while also protecting profitability. According to the Pulse of the Fashion Industry report, launched earlier today, it is estimated that the world economy would gain 160 billion euro annually if the fashion industry successfully addresses both the environmental and social issues.

Design is at the heart of the industry and according to Lewis Perkins, President of Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute (and I quote) “the industry is still designing products to be made with rapidly diminishing resources, in ways that are toxic to our water systems, and not mindful of the labour force that creates them…” His viewpoint is that reducing consumption isn’t a realistic ambition. Therefore, we need to design products that are less harmful to our environment and the labour force that creates them.

So, why is reducing consumption so unrealistic?  Because as stated earlier we are seeing a growing global population and a growing middle class and this growth will only drive a soaring demand for apparel.

And it is also extremely difficult to get people to change their behavior, even when we (the consumers) have the right intentions and rationally understand the need to change. There are however, new groups of consumers increasingly looking for products that make them look and feel good, and which are also good for the planet and society.

• The industry needs to try and better understand the behavioral drivers behind this change?
• How does the industry need to speak to consumers, is it to our emotions, our irrationality?
• Or is it the industry’s obligation to design better products so, consumer behavior that has proven so difficult to change, isn’t seen as a key driver in reinventing the industry?

Getting to where we need to be requires leadership. Bold leadership at all levels from governments to designers to producers.

• Strong leadership - globally, regionally and locally.
• Leadership that looks beyond the obvious, for example, to other large industries such as shipping for inspiration, learnings and of course, potential collaboration.
• Leaders that demand systematic change and transparency.
• Leaders that are willing to take to a stand, even if it means risking stability in the short-term - taking the responsibility to mitigate the negative impact based on a growth plan for the future, that exploits new opportunities and accelerates the positive impact they have in society.

A vast number of positive efforts are being made across the industry.  And this should be recognized, learnt from and applauded.  However, often these initiatives are based on current solutions and existing setup and whilst they bring about some change, it is only incremental and cannot drive the exponential change required.

And this is also where Leadership plays a decisive role;

• by consolidating and realigning efforts and resources to generate the greatest impact possible,
• by designing system wide action that involves a broad coalition of stakeholders,
• by establishing a regulatory framework for a global industry,
• by engaging and encouraging the gradual removal of unsustainable products and services from the market place and
• by driving large scale change across value chains, impact areas and geographies.

The Summit becoming a yearly event reflects the need to intensify all efforts, from all sectors within the industry.  And with the new Global Fashion Agenda we have a convening body on a global scale.

It is encouraging to see industry-wide support for this agenda, because only with a unified front and unified efforts do we have any chance of tackling the environmental and social challenges facing the fashion industry. I’m looking forward to following how your commitments are turned into concrete actions and how creative strategies are used to consolidate initiatives for wide-spread collective action and exponential change.

I’ve posed a lot of questions, and there are many more questions to be asked and answered, in order to accelerate the change the industry wants and the world needs.

Fashion reaches beyond clothing and into the way we choose to live our lives, help us to choose right.  You are all part of an industry that has inspired and led for generations, now be the inspiration and lead us to a clean future. 

Thank you.