The role of business in climate change

In October the FT Future Forum assembled a panel to discuss the role of business in tackling climate change. It featured Emmanuel Faber, chief executive officer of Danone, the food company, and Huw van Steenis, group managing director and chair of sustainable finance at UBS, the financial services group.

2020: a truly unimaginable year for biodiversity

The year 2020 was always destined to be a crucial one for biodiversity, with the Cop15 conference in Kunming, China scheduled for October, at which the international community was expected to agree a Paris-style agreement for nature. But the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic across the world forced biodiversity on to the agenda in a way previously unseen.

Gabriela Hearst: Sustainability is not a choice, it’s a necessity

Gabriela Hearst, the designer of her eponymous fashion label and new creative director of Chloé, sees what’s coming clearly, and that’s the climate crisis, which she says will lead to the extinction of our species if proper action isn’t taken.

Fashion sluggish on responsible viscose, report says

Global luxury brands are dragging their feet on making viscose less toxic, argues a new report out today. Published jointly by the Changing Markets Foundation, Clean Clothes Campaign, Ethical Consumer, WeMove.EU and Fashion Revolution, the report evaluated 100 brands and retailers for their commitments and progress on cleaner production of viscose and other man-made cellulosic materials like modal and rayon, which have been associated with toxic chemical pollution as well as deforestation.

Boosted by venture capital, leather alternatives gain steam

High-quality alternatives to animal hides from sustainable production technologies and materials are making headway. San Francisco-based startup MycoWorks announced a $45 million Series B financing in November to scale up its production of its biomaterial called Reishi, a sustainable leather alternative made from Fine Mycelium, which is derived from fungus.

Breathe new life into old clothes this Christmas with a luxury fashion refurb

he concept of “make do and mend”, which was popularised during wartime Britain, has gradually dissipated over the years, with many fashion fans finding it more convenient (and often more affordable) to cough up and buy new than to sew a few stitches or take an item to be refurbished.