Founder, JRAT and Wardrobe Therapy

Born into a fashion family, Janelle Abbott’s parents owned a Seattle clothing factory, where Abbott developed an early respect for the labor behind every stitch. After graduating from Parsons, she rejected corporate fashion, choosing a radically sustainable, zero-waste path. Through her label JRAT and her Wardrobe Therapy project, Abbott transforms discarded materials into rhythmic, layered, unapologetic garments. Her work merges activism, art, and performance—a form of labor solidarity. She exposes fast fashion’s farce through garment reclamation, reminding us that all garments are human artifacts.

Designer, Frederick Anderson Collection

Frederick Anderson is an American designer and philanthropist who began his fashion career two decades ago as a founding partner of Anderson Hannant, where he designed and produced the Douglas Hannant collection into a celebrated name among celebrities and socialites. Driven by an accurate appreciation for design detail and storytelling, Anderson launched his eponymous collection in fall 2017 to immediate critical acclaim. A longstanding member of the prestigious CFDA Fashion Calendar, he was honored in 2022 with the Fashion Group International’s Rising Star Award for Womenswear. In April 2024, he opened his first flagship boutique in Manhattan’s NoMad neighborhood, and in December of that same year, presented a destination show in San Juan, Puerto Rico. A committed humanitarian, Anderson founded the Blue Jacket Fashion Show in 2016—an annual awareness campaign and runway event dedicated to prostate cancer education. Opening New York Fashion Week’s fall season each year, the show has grown into one of the most recognized advocacy efforts on the American fashion calendar. In 2025, Anderson was featured as a subject on the PBS series Human Footprint, which profiles individuals leaving a meaningful mark on the world, a distinction that speaks as much to his character as to his craft. His collections remain a fixture among fashion editors and celebrity tastemakers, cementing Frederick Anderson as a designer whose influence extends far beyond the clothes he creates.

Associate Research Scientist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art 

Julia Bakker-Arkema is an associate research scientist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She specializes in volatile chemical emissions and air quality. Her research priorities lie in understanding the chemical processes that occur in museum environments through air sampling, materials testing, environmental monitoring, and casework studies. Bakker-Arkema is passionate about integrating sustainable, evidence-based, creative, and collaborative preventive conservation solutions into collections care. She holds a PhD in chemistry from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

CEO, Mulberry Group

Since September 2024, Andrea Baldo has been Chief Executive Officer of iconic British lifestyle brand Mulberry. He previously served as CEO of the progressive luxury brand Ganni for five years. Before joining Ganni, Baldo was CEO of the Italian leather goods brand Coccinelle and also held the position of general manager at luxury fashion houses Marni and Maison Martin Margiela. Additionally, he has held several top management positions at Diesel. Baldo began his career in strategic management consulting and entered the fashion industry while consulting at Bain & Company in 2000. He earned a degree in economics with honors from the University of Verona and is a graduate of the General Management Program at Harvard Business School. Baldo is also a Fellow of Strategic Management at IESE Business School, where he coteaches the MBA course Strategic Management in the Fashion and Luxury Goods Industry. He also writes business cases and technical notes on the luxury industry.

Founder of Rentrayage

After graduating from UCLA and completing internships at Chanel and Nylon magazine, Erin Beatty entered the Retail Management Program at the GAP under Mickey Drexler. Encouraged by her mentor and GAP's Creative Director Pina Ferlisi, Beatty then enrolled in the design associate degree program at Parson, later interning at Donna Karan Collection, before following Pina to Generra as a designer. In 2008, Beatty co-founded the label Suno with Max Osterweis. Suno’s inaugural collection was produced in Kenya from vintage Kanga fabrics—an early signal of her commitment to intentional sourcing. Known for high-end tailoring and dynamic prints, Suno was carried by more than 80 prestigious retailers worldwide. A finalist for the Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund in both 2012 and 2013, Suno won the CFDA Swarovski Award for Womenswear in 2013. The same year, Beatty was named creative director of ready-to-wear at Tory Burch. In 2014, Suno was named a finalist in the inaugural LVMH Prize.

Fed up with the waste she’d witnessed during her 20 years in fashion, Beatty launched, in 2019, a sustainable clothing and home decor brand, Rentrayage—from the old French term meaning “to mend, to reweave across the cut.” The label is a deliberate rethinking of how clothing is made. Feeling uninspired by conventional sustainable fabric offerings, Beatty turned to vintage garments, transforming old clothes into unexpected new concepts. Rentrayage also works with deadstock fabrics, materials discarded by other designers and factories. Smart, irreverent, and deeply considered, Rentrayage reflects Beatty's belief that conscious living is not a trend, but a way of life.

Innovator, Entrepreneur, Founder and CEO of SPIN360

In 2009, Frederico Brugnoli founded Spin 360, a consulting firm specializing in sustainable innovation and development across multiple industries. Brugnoli works with his teams to develop an integrated approach toward innovative sustainability, encouraging collaboration between large corporations and small- and medium-sized businesses. For nearly two decades, the company has been actively engaged in the leather industry, offering specialized services in life-cycle assessment and corporate carbon-footprint analysis for leather stakeholders, while driving innovative projects within the sector. Spin 360’s core values of sustainability, progress, innovation, and network guide their approach to creating long-term, positive change for businesses and industries.

The United Nations Industrial Development Agency (UNIDO) commissioned Spin 360, under the leadership of Brugnoli, to establish harmonized leather life-cycle guidelines, addressing the urgent need for global action to standardize the requirements and methodologies used to calculate the environmental footprint of leather on a global scale. 

Brugnoli studied environmental sciences at the State University of Milan, where he graduated with honours in 1997. And in 2022, the University of Northampton awarded him an honorary doctorate in fashion sustainability.

Ann Cantrell is an entrepreneur and academic who has owned a modern general store in Brooklyn for more than 18 years and has taught full time at FIT for 15-plus years in the Fashion Business Management program. Prior to teaching and entrepreneurship, Cantrell worked for over a decade in the fashion industry—at Brooks Brothers, Ralph Lauren, and Coach—primarily in product development. A passionate advocate for small independent businesses, she has been featured by the American Express Small Business Saturday program and quoted in media outlets such as The New York Times, USA Today, Forbes, BBC World News, NBC, MSNBC, ABC News, and the Associated Press.

Cantrell holds an MBA with a concentration in sustainability and champions the triple bottom line—balancing environmental and economic sustainability. At FIT, she was honored with the President’s Sustainability Council’s Changemakers Award for her long-term contributions to advancing sustainability on campus. Her latest paper on FLOW Fashion will appear as a chapter in the De Gruyter Handbook of Fashion Supply Chains and Operations (2026), and she is currently revising the fourth edition of Fashion Entrepreneurship: Retail Business Planning (Bloomsbury, 2027).

Founder and CEO of Upcyclers

Gia Carrascoso brings over 30 years of fashion, media, and marketing experience. Throughout her career, she has designed collections, produced runway shows, published fashion magazines, run a fashion blog, and covered Hollywood red carpet fashion. She has worked as a VP of marketing in the tech industry, leading community growth and brand partnerships. Carrascoso’s work has always centered on creativity with purpose, producing, for example, fundraising runway shows for breast cancer survivors and for medical and surgical missions. Her designs have been worn by boldface names—such as by Maye Musk, Jeannie Mai, Vivica A. Fox, Lyndie Greenwood, and Goapele—and featured in fashion magazines and a music video. 

In 2023, after launching a fully upcycled fashion line and seeing how fragmented the ecosystem was, with no infrastructure to help upcyclers build, sell, and scale, Carrascoso founded Upcyclers, a visual-first platform and marketplace for the next generation of sustainable creators. Upcyclers is an integrated ecosystem that brings together inspiration, sourcing, creation, and commerce with upcycled products, secondhand materials, AI tools, shoppable video, and a learning community. Upcyclers won first prize in the Founders Live Pitch Contest at Stanford University in November 2025, earning $1 million in software and business credits.

Environmental Activist

At just 19 years old, Nalleli Cobo led a grassroots campaign resulting in the permanent closure of a hazardous oil-drilling site in her community. This site, infamous for its toxic emissions, had inflicted severe health issues on Cobo and her neighbors. Growing up in South Los Angeles, Cobo became an activist at age 9, spurred by the foul odors emanating from the oil well across the street from her home. Enduring headaches, nosebleeds, and heart palpitations due to the pollution, she began attending meetings and rallies alongside her mother, delivering her first public speech on the matter before she was 10 years old. Her oratory skills and unwavering dedication positioned her as a leading voice advocating for a ban on oil extraction in L.A. In March 2020, her work culminated in the permanent shutdown of the AllenCo Energy drilling site and led to criminal charges against AllenCo Energy executives for environmental violations.

As her activism gained momentum, Cobo co-founded initiatives like People Not Pozos and the South Central Youth Leadership Coalition, despite personal adversity and a cancer diagnosis at age 19. Cobo has received numerous accolades for her work, including the 2022 Goldman Environmental Prize and inclusion on the 2022 Time100 Next list of future leaders.

Founder and CEO, Coeur

Deanna Crevecoeur is the founder and CEO of Coeur, a purpose-driven company aiming to disrupt the luxury leather goods industry. Coeur offers handbags crafted of farm-traceable leather, exclusively sourced as a byproduct of American farms practicing regenerative agriculture. Coeur partners with American businesses across sourcing, leather production, tanning, and product manufacturing to ensure a transparent, streamlined, and entirely domestic leather supply chain. Crevecoeur graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Production Management and a minor in Ethics and Sustainability. She was a top 3 finalist in the Fashion Institute of Technology’s PETE Prize for Entrepreneurs in 2025. She has 10-plus years of experience in design, production, and operations management.

Founder, Dana Davis Consulting

Dana Davis is a distinguished authority in sustainable fashion with more than two decades of industry experience and a proven track record of building transformative sustainability strategies. In 2024, Davis founded Dana Davis Consulting, a strategic advisory practice helping fashion brands, innovators, and investors build and execute sustainability and commercialization strategies. Her firm bridges the gap between vision and implementation, guiding companies as they scale responsibly, bring innovations to market, and integrate sustainability across their business operations.

Previously, for over 15 years, Davis played a key role in shaping the sustainability and circularity strategy at Mara Hoffman, positioning the brand as an industry model for responsible design and regenerative business practices. Davis’ expertise spans material innovation, supply chain stewardship, circular design, and strategic growth. 

A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, she brings a unique blend of creative vision, technical knowledge, and systems thinking. Davis is a trusted advisor and thought leader committed to driving systemic change and building a sustainable, regenerative future for fashion. She co-chairs the Custom Collaborative board, founded Women in Sustainable Business, and co-founded NY Workforce Development Coalition, initiatives dedicated to collaboration, equity, and building a resilient future workforce.

Director of Sustainability and Impact at Faherty Brand

Lisa Diegel is currently the director of sustainability and impact at Faherty Brand, a certified B Corporation, where she drives purpose-driven strategies across the business, from sourcing and circularity initiatives to industry partnerships and impact reporting. With a background that includes roles at Aritzia, Ralph Lauren, LVMH, and VF Corporation, Diegel brings expertise in environmental, social, and governance criteria (ESG); compliance; and responsible sourcing. A proud citizen of the Nisga’a Nation, Diegel’s First Nations heritage and passion for environmental stewardship shape her commitment to equitable and regenerative practices in fashion.

Fashion Designer,  Andrea Diodati
Assistant Professor, Fashion Design, FIT

Andrea Diodati is an award-winning fashion designer and entrepreneur. After seeing the wasteful nature of her wholesale fashion line, Diodati created a direct-to-consumer brand that used 3D modeling to facilitate customer collaboration. Clients could codesign custom-made dresses that were crafted in New York City using deadstock fabric. Diodati’s industry experience includes designing runway for Anna Sui as well as freelancing for Kate Spade and Alice + Olivia. Presently, Diodati is exploring how digital fashion can replace single-use garment consumption.

Executive Director, FIT DTech Lab

Michael Ferraro serves as the executive director of the Design and Technology Lab (DTech) at FIT, where he oversees industry partnerships and collaborative programs for the college. The DTech Lab is a vital part of the FIT Center for Innovation, a bridge between academia and industry. Its mission is to advance the business objectives of industry partners by leveraging emerging technologies and innovative creative direction. Ferraro is a creative technologist, researcher, artist, and educator whose career spans computer animation, software development, virtual reality media production, fashion, retail, fine art, entertainment, and higher education. Before joining FIT, he spent 12 years at Lehman College/CUNY as an associate professor in the digital media program of the art department. In 2015, he collaborated with students to win a NY Emmy for Graphics and Animation Supervision for a series of PSAs titled “Best of the Bronx.” Before his tenure at Lehman, Ferraro founded Possible Worlds, an innovative real-time animation studio that worked with clients such as Warner Bros., MTV, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network. In the 1990s, Ferraro created large-scale virtual worlds shown in contemporary art centers around the world. In the mid-1980s, he co-founded Blue Sky Studios and served as system architect of the Academy Award-winning CGI Studio Renderer and production animation system. He created his first computer-generated image in 1969 and continues to produce them today.

Founder and CEO of Laero

Noemi Florea is founder and CEO of the industrial design agency Laero and the inventor of Cycleau, a compact system that turns gray water (household waste water containing no serious contaminants) into drinking water. Using a four-stage treatment process, Cycleau removes 200-plus contaminants, reduces building water footprints by up to 80%, and lowers energy demand by more than a third—all at a fraction of the cost of conventional systems. Cycleau has been piloted in projects ranging from a public bottle-filling station in the U.S. to schools along the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border. By capturing and recycling gray water close to where it is consumed, the Cycleau system reduces pollution, conserves resources, and supports safe, affordable water access.

Florea is an internationally esteemed climate innovator, recognized by institutions such as the U.N. Environment Programme, UNICEF, and MIT Solve. Florea has also won prizes from the Swarovski Foundation, HP Inc., Halcyon Incubator, and the Trust for Governors Island.

Co-Founder and CEO, Evrnu

Stacy Flynn is co-founder and CEO of Evrnu, a B-Corp building regenerative textile infrastructure for the global fashion industry. She led the development of NUCYCL, a patented technology that converts cotton textile waste into high-performance, multirecyclable fibers—positioning Evrnu at the forefront of circular materials innovation. With over $30 million raised and $500 million-plus in offtake commitments, the company’s first commercial facility is underway in South Carolina. Flynn is focused on scaling circular manufacturing systems that align profitability with regeneration. Flynn is a TEDx speaker, systems thinker, and builder of the next era of materials.

Program leader in fashion business, Istituto Marangoni London
Author; Contributor, Vogue Italia

Sennait Ghebreab is program leader of the fashion business BA (honors) at Istituto Marangoni London, bringing a globally informed perspective to fashion education with a focus on sustainability, cross-cultural branding, and academic innovation. She leads the strategic development and delivery of international curricula, workshops, and research-based projects, bridging industry relevance with responsible leadership. Her industry experience includes roles at Burberry, working with international buyers across EMEA markets, and collaborations with Matthew Williamson, Pringle of Scotland, and Joseph. Sennait is also a fashion journalist and intercultural communicator, contributing to Vogue Italia since 2022 on fashion, sustainability, African fashion weeks, and cultural identity. Her interview with Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on citizenship reform was widely noted.

Ghebreab has lectured as a visiting professor in Italy, France, the U.S., Thailand, China, and Taiwan, underscoring her commitment to global academic outreach. Her achievements include a 2022 Positive Leadership Award (U.K.), 2021 Talented Young Italian Award under 40, and membership on the board of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the U.K., promoting international collaborations in fashion and entrepreneurship. Her 2023 book, Responsible Fashion Business in Practice (Routledge), presents a model for ethical branding and sustainable retail.

Merging Eritrean roots with Italian heritage and international experience, Ghebreab exemplifies intercultural leadership, championing sustainability, inclusion, and social responsibility across academia, journalism, and institutional work.

Strategy Consultant, CG Consulting
Adjunct Instructor, Fashion Institute of Technology

Caroline Gordon has been an adjunct professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology since 2018, teaching in both the Schools of Business and Technology and Art and Design. She is also an active member of the FIT Sustainability Council and a co-chair of the college’s annual Sustainability Conference. Gordon has worked in the fashion industry in New York City for 20 years across multiple American brands, including Ralph Lauren, Ann Taylor, and Hill House Home. She has experience in women’s wear and children’s wear, with a focus on buying, planning, and wholesale sales.

In addition to teaching at FIT, Gordon runs a consulting company, CG Consulting, helping small and sustainable companies scale their business. With inside relationships around the industry and experience in sales and buying, CG consulting has helped numerous clients from around the country reach their annual goals and shape the foundation of their company for growth. Gordon is a graduate of University of Pennsylvania, serving as co-chair for her graduating class at the Penn Fund. Gordon is also an active member of the Jay H. Baker Retail Initiative at the Wharton School, aimed at mentoring students and networking retail professionals.

Founder and CEO, Keel Labs

​​Aleks Gosiewski is the co-founder and CEO of Keel Labs, where she leads the commercialization of Kelsun, a seaweed-based fiber. An alum of the Fashion Institute of Technology with a background in fashion design and business, she brings a systems-driven approach to building sustainable materials companies. Her pioneering work at the nexus of science and design earned her a spot on Forbes 30 Under 30.

Marcie Greene is an assistant professor in FIT’s Fashion Business Management program. With over 20 years of experience in fashion merchandising and a strong commitment to sustainability, Greene actively shapes the next generation of environmentally conscious industry leaders by teaching sustainability and developing core business curricula. She holds a BFA from the University of Michigan and MA in management in sustainable fashion from the the Sustainable Business Management School (SUMAS). In addition to her teaching, Greene serves on FIT’s Sustainability Council and has been honored with the President’s Award for Faculty Excellence.

CEO and Founder of Mycorrhiza Fashion, Materials Science Researcher

Engineering at the convergence of design, biology, and materials science, Mya Love Griesbaum is redefining the future of fabric. While conducting research on mycoremediation at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA), Griesbaum was inspired by fungi’s regenerative power and ability to digest synthetic pollutants. Griesbaum also had a growing interest in fashion but didn’t want to contribute to its seismic industrial pollution. Consequently, she found a way to align her interests: A series of experiments with bacterial cellulose, algae, and fungi ultimately catalyzed her biotech startup, Mycorrhiza Fashion, which uses fungi to transform synthetic fashion waste into sustainable textiles with the mission of fostering a radical symbiosis between people, the planet, and our clothes. This vision has been honed through research at Georgia Tech’s Materials Science and Engineering Department and accelerated by mentorship from Nanyang Technological University of Singapore. Currently, Griesbaum is cultivating a global network of innovators to prove that we can fashionably combat the climate crisis and grow a sustainable future.

Founder, Made By Masters

Angela Hartwick is building the authentication infrastructure that makes human mastery scalable for luxury fashion, enabling transparent, verifiable partnerships between artisan masters and global brands. Made By Masters provides binary certification for handloom weaving, natural dyes, and artisan techniques—addressing regulatory requirements (EU Digital Product Passport, AI Act) while creating cultural datasets for ethical AI training. Hartwick’s work draws on decades of deep engagement with traditional textiles and natural systems: early career as a costume designer and stylist specializing in Middle Eastern and South Asian cultures, two decades of documentary filmmaking across global communities, and lived experience building off-grid infrastructure in the Canadian wilderness. This intersection of fashion design expertise, cultural knowledge, and natural systems understanding informs her approach to translating ancient technology for contemporary markets—proving craft and nature are efficient infrastructure. Her fashion label Hartwick Atelier is the embodiment of this work.

Strategic brand leader, founding member Lonely Whale

Emy Kane is a fractional chief of staff and impact strategist: She helps brands, sustainability leaders, and philanthropic principals turn vision into action. A founding leader and former executive director of Lonely Whale, she helped develop and launch the viral #StopSucking plastic straw campaign and led multiyear partnerships with companies such as Tom Ford Beauty, Tommy Hilfiger, and Bacardi Limited. Kane’s work bridges strategy, culture, and execution, translating complex environmental and social issues into campaigns that resonate widely. She has collaborated with global talent—Shawn Mendes, Jason Momoa, Adrian Grenier, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Amanda Gorman, to name a few—and now guides impact strategy and partnerships that help bold ideas reach new audiences and move them to action. Kane’s work and thought leadership have been featured at Global Citizen and SXSW, with media coverage in the Los Angeles Times and The Economist Impact.

Executive Director, Genspace

Casey Lardner is the executive director of Genspace, the world’s first community biology lab. She holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and has over a decade of experience in science storytelling and informal science education. Much of her research used molecular neuroscience techniques in mice and wild urban rats to model and understand the human brain. She remains enamored with all brains and minds—whether they belong to mice, pizza rats, people, or other living things.

Percy K. and Vida L.W. Hudson Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Professor of Dental and Craniofacial Engineering (in Dental Medicine), Senior Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs and Advancement, Columbia University

Among her roles at Columbia University, professor Helen H. Lu serves as the director of the Biomaterials and Interface Tissue Engineering Laboratory. She is a leader in regenerative materials research and innovation for health and beyond health. From the sustainable fabrication of biomedical devices (by establishing eco-manufacturing with benign chemicals to expedite FDA approval) to harnessing cells’ ability to make materials, Lu’s group and collaborators have developed a biomaterial platform informed by a green chemistry framework. This breakthrough shows industries how to explore sustainable manufacturing to engineer regenerative materials.

Professor Lu has published over 100 original research articles and invited reviews in biomaterials and tissue engineering. She is the inventor and co-inventor of more than 30 patents and patent applications in biomaterials, and her research has led to several start-ups for medical devices and sustainable textiles. Her accolades include the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) and the Wallace Coulter Foundation Career Award. She is an elected Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), a Fellow of Biomaterials Science and Engineering (FBSE), and more recently, a member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). She was honored as a Provost Leadership Fellow and named a Provost’s Senior Faculty Teaching Scholar at Columbia. She serves on the editorial boards of leading journals, including Journal of Biomedical Material Research Part A, Journal of Orthopaedic Research, Regenerative Biomaterials, Regenerative Engineering, and more. 

Lu received her undergraduate and graduate degrees in bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania.

Founder of Kara Mac Shoes 

Kara Mac (Schwartz) is the founder and inventor of Kara Mac Shoes, the world’s first footwear line with instant heel-to-toe customization. Through a patented interchangeable system of heel covers, toe clips, and straps, one pair of shoes can transform into multiple looks, extending the life of a single pair while reducing unnecessary consumption. A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, Mac began her career as an apparel designer specializing in knitwear for brands including Ralph Lauren and Talbots. As a daily train commuter into New York City, she often carried multiple pairs of shoes for different occasions, an experience that sparked the idea for a more versatile, sustainable approach to footwear. Since launching Kara Mac Shoes in 2015, she has continued to evolve the concept with a focus on environmentally conscious design. Her newest capsule collection introduces chromium-free leather and wooden heels, part of a long-term vision to create footwear that biodegrades significantly faster than traditional leather shoes while maintaining premium craftsmanship and style.

Curator of Education and Research at The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (MFIT)

Melissa Marra-Alvarez is a curator, author, and educator. Currently, she is curator of education and research at MFIT, where she has curated and co-curated several exhibitions, including ¡Moda Hoy! Latin American and Latinx Fashion Design (2023), Food and Fashion (2023), Minimalism/Maximalism (2019), Force of Nature (2017), and Fashion & Politics (2009). She approaches the study of fashion as a cultural phenomenon, with particular interest in sustainability, New York fashion, and how clothing can embody societal values and be a tool for negotiating social roles. Prior to joining MFIT, Marra-Alvarez worked as a fashion archivist. She holds an MA in Museum Studies: Fashion and Textile History from The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT).

VP of Sustainable Product Development at Steve Madden

With 38 years of shoe design experience—at Sigerson Morrison, Steve Madden, Vince Camuto, and Tory Burch—Miranda Morrison is passionate about the challenge of improving the global footprint of the footwear industry. She is a keen student of next-gen material developments and is privileged to have designed and produced shoes in Peru, Spain, Italy, China, Mexico, Brazil, Morocco, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, and the USA. Currently, Morrison is in a hybrid role, designing shoes, packaging, and hardware, as well as figuring out ways to make Steve Madden a more circular and eco-minded entity. She has been a member of The Footwear Collective since 2024.

Assistant Conservator, The Museum at FIT

Callie O’Connor is the assistant conservator at The Museum at FIT (MFIT). She received her MA in Fashion and Textile Studies, specializing in textile conservation, at FIT’s School of Graduate Studies. She is currently the chair of the Textile Specialty Group of the American Institute for Conservation and has served as adjunct faculty in FIT’s Fashion and Textile Studies Program. She has previously worked at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and the Museum of the City of New York.

Extension Specialist, New York Sea Grant

Catherine Prunella, extension specialist at New York Sea Grant, engages NYC communities on water-quality issues, such as plastic pollution. She grew up near the estuaries of Queens and majored in environmental studies at Hunter College, City University of New York. She earned an MS in marine science from the University of South Florida and was an analyst at the National Science Foundation from 2021 to 2023. Prunella still lives in Queens, riding her bicycle and drinking NYC tap water.

Founder and CEO, Alternew

Nancy Rhodes is a fashion and sustainability leader with nearly 20 years of experience across design, retail, and circular innovation. Currently, Rhodes is the founder and CEO of Alternew, an AI-powered platform helping brands and consumers navigate fashion care and repair through trusted service providers, personalized guidance, and actionable data. Early in her career, Rhodes spent 17 years designing footwear for brands such as Kenneth Cole and Beyoncé’s House of Deréon, with products sold in premium and mass-market retailers. That experience gave her a firsthand view into how fashion is made, sold, and scaled, and where value breaks down after the point of sale. Through years of working across global supply chains, Rhodes saw how little infrastructure exists to support care, repair, and fit, despite their impact on returns, loyalty, and product longevity. That gap then became the focus of her work, which continues today at Alternew. Rhodes holds a master’s degree in sustainability from IE New York College (IENYC) and has been named a top retail expert by RETHINK Retail. She has shared insights on circularity and supply chains with Bloomberg TV, Vogue Business, and Sourcing Journal.

Co-founder and CEO, Beni

Kate Sanner is the co-fouder and CEO of Beni, an AI-powered search and discovery platform transforming how people find and buy secondhand fashion. With over a decade of experience in brand building and product innovation, Sanner is focused on making shopping more intentional and building a world with less waste and more style.

Eric and Jane Nord Chief Conservator, Cleveland Museum of Art

Sarah Scaturro is the Eric and Jane Nord Chief Conservator at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Previously, she was the head of the conservation laboratory in the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the textile conservator and assistant curator of fashion at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. Scaturro has curated eight exhibitions on fashion and textile history at institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Most recently, she cocurated the 2025–2026 exhibition American Printed Silks, 1927–1947 at the Cleveland Museum of Art. She has an MA from the Fashion Institute of Technology’s Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice program and an MPhil and a PhD from Bard Graduate Center in decorative arts, design history, and material culture. Her work, which focuses on the intersection of fashion, textiles, and conservation, has been covered by numerous media outlets, including Vogue, The New York Times, The Guardian, Dressed: The History of Fashion podcast, and many more. Scaturro is a professional associate of the American Institute for Conservation and an elected fellow of the International Institute for Conservation. She serves as an associate editor of the Journal of the American Institute for Conservation and a trustee of the Association of Dress Historians.

Professor of Materials Science, Science and Mathematics, Fashion Institute of Technology
National Geographic Explorer
Research Scientist, Columbia Nano Initiative (CNI), Columbia Center for Integrated Science and Engineering (CISE), Columbia University

Theanne N. Schiros’ work bridges advanced material development and sustainability, from renewable energy technology to regenerative textiles. Professor Schiros teaches materials science in the Department of Science and Math at SUNY Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). In addition, Schiros is a National Geographic Society Explorer, a research scientist at Columbia University, and co-director of the Gotham Foundry Materials Innovation Hub powered by NYCEDC. Deeply engaged in both research and democratizing science access, Schiros has co-founded biomaterials startups (e.g., Keel Labs, Werewool) with students and faculty collaborators and is a consortium member of the New York Fashion Innovation Center (NYFIC).

Cultural and Dress Historian

Cultural and dress historian Kate Sekules researches and teaches mending as an academic and practical discipline. She is completing her doctoral dissertation, “A History and Theory of Mending,” at Bard Graduate Center (BCG). Sekules is an assistant professor of fashion history at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and teaches “Mending Fashion” at Parsons School of Design and BGC. She has presented research at over two dozen symposia internationally, and she lectures at institutions academic and corporate: from Columbia University to JP Morgan Chase. She runs repair clinics, including Dr. Mend’s clothes surgeries, the social media community #MendMarch, and Darn It! at the Textile Arts Center (cohost). Her mending work has been featured in exhibitions (Winterthur, RISD, Manchester Museums, Cornell Biennial) and media (the New York Times, Le Monde, NHK-Japan). Sekules holds an MA in costume studies from New York University, with a thesis uncovering the practice and contexts of stocking darning in NYC, 1870–1900, and is the author of MEND! A Refashioning Manual and Manifesto (Penguin, 2020).

Supermodel, Actress, Entrepreneur, Activist, FIT Sustainability Ambassador

In her decades-spanning career, Amber Valletta has been the face of numerous luxury brands and the muse of renowned photographers; and she has graced hundreds of magazine covers. Valletta has also found success as an actor, entrepreneur, and activist, though she hopes her most significant contributions to the world are yet to come.

Valletta began championing ethical and sustainable fashion long before the concept was mainstream. Her accomplishments in this area include founding Master & Muse, an online platform offering stylish, socially responsible fashion by top design talents. She also co-founded a film production company, A Squared Films LLC, producing numerous films embracing progressive social and environmental themes.

Valletta partnered with Karl Lagerfeld on sustainable capsule collections and became the label’s sustainability ambassador in 2021. In that same period, British Vogue named her their first contributing sustainability editor; and FIT appointed her sustainability ambassador, a role that allows Valletta to work closely with up-and-coming industry prospects. Most recently, in September 2025, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) designated Valletta a Goodwill Ambassador (Global). She has served as a speaker, host, and panel moderator at key international meetings, such as the Copenhagen Fashion Summit and the U.N.’s annual World Ocean Day conference.

FIT Faculty Member

Anastasia White is an FIT adjunct professor who teaches garment construction, patternmaking, and swimwear design. Prior to joining FIT, White invested more than 20 years in the private-label sector, managing the development of women’s sportswear for leading retailers, including Macy’s, Lord & Taylor, and Neiman Marcus. Inspired by global travel, wellness, and sustainability, she founded an eco-conscious swimwear brand, crescent bleu, focused on ethical sourcing and responsible design. White enjoys student mentorship and is excited by the future landscape of fashion.