The world’s largest fashion design competition for sustainable fashion offers funding of HK$80,000 (US$10,000). VF’s Timberland(r), unveils its debut collection with the Redress Design Award 2020 winner
Redress, a leading Hong Kong-based environmental NGO, has a banner month. It unveils plans to host the Redress Design Award 2022, which is the largest sustainable fashion design competition in the world, and Lead Sponsor Create Hong Kong (CreateHK), of the Government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The 12th cycle is of the Redress Design Award, which invites aspiring designers to compete for HK$80,000 (US$10,000), in development funding. Also, there’s an exciting collaboration with VF Corporation, a global leader and manufacturer of lifestyle apparel, footwear, and accessories. Timberland(r) is simultaneously launching the long-awaited sustainable Lunar New Year line, which was created in collaboration with Le Ngoc Ha Thu, a Vietnamese designer who won the Redress Design Award 2020 Menswear Category.
Online applications for the Redress Design Award 2022 will open on January 6, 2022, and submissions must be received by the deadline of March 16, 2022. The winner of this year’s Redress Design Award 2022 will have the chance to work with Timberland(r), and be mentored on a unique design project. Additional prizes and a development fund of HK$80,000 (US$10,000), will be awarded to the winning designer. The development funds will be awarded to the winner, as well as other prizes for runners-up. Redress founder Christina Dean says that this is an outstanding opportunity for The Redress Design Award winner 2022 to work with Timberland, one the most respected companies in sustainability. The fashion industry is crying out for innovation that will help it become a pioneer and polluter. This can be done by the next generation designers.
Jersey Yuen, Assistant Head of CreateHK spoke at the Media Launch of the Redress Design Award 20,22 on 5 January 2022. She welcomed the return of the Redress Design Award, and encouraged designers to participate in the competition.
The Redress Design Award’s key component will be to educate emerging designers about how to incorporate circularity into fashion design and fashion. A EU 2018 Science Hub Report found that over 80 percent of products’ environmental impact can be locked in the design stage. This important statistic is what the judges will be looking at this year. longevity. Recyclability.
Redress has updated and expanded its Redress Academy platform, previously known as LEARN. This platform provides free resources to designers interested in sustainable and circular fashion. Redress Academy offers videos, case studies, and guides on everything from design to production, marketing and sourcing. All of this is with circularity in mind. The Pathway Course is an essential component. It offers practical tips and features industry experts. Participants can also receive a certificate after completing the course. Participants in the Redress Design Award this year will have access to the course until 16 March 2022. Morgane Parizot (Redress Education Director) says, “We designed the course with the understanding fashion can be ever-changing with sustainability at its heart.” The course will give participants a deeper understanding of circular fashion design strategies, techniques, and will help them to stay ahead of the competition as well as the rapidly-changing fashion industry.
Timberland(r), has simultaneously released their Lunar New Year collection. A collaboration with Ngoc Ha Thu Le (Redress Design Award 2020 Menswear Winner). The collection will be sold in retail stores around the world. Marco Pavoncelli (Senior Director, Timberland(r), APAC) says, “It’s thrilling working with a designer talent like Thu, who’s approach to sustainability marries progressive designing with innovative techniques.” This is why we teamed up with Redress for the Redress Design Awards Prize Partner, for the third year in a row to attract the best up-and-coming fashion designers from around the world who are promoting sustainability through circularity in fashion.
Thu’s crowning jewel is the 3-in-1 parka with accompanying backpack. This allows for endless combinations to suit different activities and living situations. Thu says that the insights and experience she gained from Timberland were invaluable. It has helped her see sustainability more realistically in the industry. Thu hopes her debut collection will inspire others, especially after last year’s Redress Design Award attracted entries from a record number of countries. “The Redress Design Award has been a rewarding experience that has helped me kickstart my design career.”
