UN Global Compact joins forces with fashion industry

Copenhagen: Facing potentially devastating impacts of climate change and with attention on corporate sustainability soaring to new heights, the world needs innovators that can lead the push toward more sustainable solutions. The fashion industry has the potential to be one such innovator, working proactively to address critical environmental, social and ethical challenges on a global scale. To accomplish this, the UN and NICE have agreed on the development of the first sector-specific initiative under the Global Compact.

“As an industry facing serious and widely publicised social and environmental challenges, the fashion and textile industry is uniquely positioned to launch a sectoral initiative under the umbrella of the UN Global Compact,” said Georg Kell, Executive Director of the UN Global Compact. "We are very excited about this effort and look forward to collaborating with NICE and its partners."

The strong coalition between the fashion industry (represented by the network organisation Danish Fashion Institute with its Nordic partners) and the UN will enable one of the world’s largest industries to move towards a more sustainable future.

Eva Kruse, Chairman of the Nordic Fashion Association and CEO of the Danish Fashion Institute, said: “We are very exited to be leading the process to develop a platform that can unite especially small and medium-sized fashion companies across borders globally to help tackle the challenges that our industry and planet faces. Fashion has historically had the capacity to affect the society as a whole, and therefore fashion is a great place to start building a new creative future aligned with the ecosystem, we are all a part of. We look very much forward to engaging leading experts and leaders of international fashion companies in the work of creating a meaningful and ambitious tool for the global fashion industry.”

The new UN Global Compact and NICE Fashion Code will be launched on 3 May 2012 in Copenhagen at the world’s largest summit on sustainability in fashion, the Copenhagen Fashion Summit, held under the patronage of Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mary of Denmark.

About NICE

The Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical (NICE) is a joint venture by the fashion industry in the Nordic countries – led by the Nordic Fashion Association and targeting the global fashion community. The main purpose of NICE is raising awareness and promoting responsible and sustainable business practices. As this involves a high level of new information and learning for the involved parties, it should be
emphasised that NICE is an educational process making knowledge, network and information available to the fashion industry.

About the Copenhagen Fashion Summit

The Copenhagen Fashion Summit is the world's largest and most important conference on sustainability and CSR in fashion. The Summit is hosted by the Danish Fashion Institute, and gathers fashion companies, experts, NGOs and politicians in Copenhagen to catalyse a discussion on the evolution of a successful fashion industry in a world where new business models are required to tackle the growing sustainability challenges facing the planet and our societies.

About the UN Global Compact

Launched in 2000, the United Nations Global Compact is a call to companies around the world to align their strategies and operations with ten universal principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and to take action in support of broader UN goals. With more than 6,800 corporate signatories in over 140 countries, it is the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative.

For more information please contact:

Jonas Eder-Hansen

Development Director - Danish Fashion Institute

+45 7020 3068

jonas@danishfashioninstitute.dk

Matthias Stausberg

Spokesperson - UN Global Compact

+1-917-367-3423

stausberg@un.org