DCU Business School Social Innovation Hackathons: Day 2 Fast Fashion

DCU Business School Social Innovation Hackathons: Day 2 Fast Fashion

Day two of the DCU Business School Hack4Change series kicked off on Tuesday morning with the theme of Fast Fashion. “Fast fashion” is a term used to describe inexpensive clothing designs that move quickly from the catwalk to stores to meet new trends. This movement is deemed one of the main contributors to the climate crisis, responsible for high carbon emissions, water pollution, and large amounts of landfill waste. According to new research from the European Environment Agency, textiles represent the fourth largest cause of environmental pressure behind food, housing and transport. The UN cautioned that the textile sector is currently responsible for 8-10% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions and estimates that by 2050 fashion could be responsible for a quarter of all carbon emissions.

Guided by a team of experienced mentors, almost 130 DCU business school students worked in teams to conceive, design, and pitch ideas to aid sustainability in the fashion industry. Following the welcome address from Executive Dean Prof Anne Sinnott, an introduction to fast fashion was provided by student (and co-founder of DCUs Swap Shop Orla O’Leary, accompanied by visual storyteller David Rooney. A brilliant round of ‘lightning talks’ were led by experts in the fast fashion area including Sinead O’Keeffe, Padraig Reidy, Anna Duke, Liliana Barck, Vikki Brennan, and Aoibheann McGarry.

DCU Business School’s Hack4Change series is backed by Dublin City Council. Other sponsors and support include Irish Life Health, Deloitte, Jameson Graduate Programme, National Transport Authority, Simventure, Melissa Curry, PwC, Responsible Innovation Summit, and the Rapid Foundation.