The Fashion Institute of Technology hosted a workshop with Julie Gilhart, the main buyer for Barneys, an upscale fashion retailer with locations in NY and cities around the world. Having been inspired by the film, An Inconvenient Truth, she wanted to help the fashion industry lessen its impacts on the planet. She spoke of their efforts to include high quality and stylish designs from global handcrafters. Barneys looks for what is sustainable, in both the materials & dyes themselves being earth-friendly, but also the conditions of the designers and workers involved . Her slide show talked about several bag and clothing lines made by designers and women’s co-ops in Africa, an Earth Day project where customers brought back used jeans in exchange for a discounted new pair, and the concept of “upcycling” of fabrics. For example, a nephew of Ralph Lauren is making jackets out of army bags. She predicts a trend that in the next few years we will see customers demanding much more accountability and interest in knowing where & how our clothing is made.