This week we look at the role of biotech in the beauty industry. It promises the ability to program and design molecules that can be less toxic, more sustainable, and customizable in everything from moisturizer to perfume. Our guest this episode is Dr. Sunil Chandran, chief science officer and head of R&D at Amyris, a company using the tools of synthetic biology to build molecules for beauty products. We ask Sunil about that pivot, dig in on business models for biotech in the beauty...

We wanted a minute of Gisele Fetterman’s time to hear about her advocacy work, how she champions thrifting and vintage, and what she learned from last year’s bruising campaign on behalf of her husband, Senator John Fetterman. But we got so much more!  Gisele gave us the inside scoop on the culture of Capitol Hill, her work on behalf of those in need in Pennsylvania, and the racism she’s experienced as a Brazilian-born activist who married into U.S. politics (let’s just say she’s been...

This week, we’ve decided the best way to understand claims of sustainable textiles and leather is to step outside the fashion universe and go straight to someone who lives at the source: in food, agriculture and climate. Tamar Haspel is the host of our sister podcast here at Post Script Media, Climavores, and is one of the more delightful people you’ll ever hear on the subjects of how our food system and our personal choices within it just evolve in the face of climate change. She’ll help us...

Happy New Year! We’re back with our review of 2022, and predictions for 2023. But first, we have to say goodbye to Dame Vivienne Westwood, and take a few more shots at Balenciaga for what can only be described as a rather cowardly approach to repairing their brand.  There was a lot to like about climate and sustainability progress in 2022, and we’re coming into this year hopeful we’ll see more of it in action, not just words. We talk about climate bills, progress at COPs, taking on...

It’s the end of the year, and our listeners have been asking questions: What does it mean that menswear is often made with better materials than womenswear? How do we kick the overconsumption habit when it’s so baked into our culture? And is underwear compostable? Lizzo blows up Twitter wanting to know.  Have a question for Christina, Rachel and Shilla? Give us a call at (508) 622-5361.‬ We might feature your voicemail in an upcoming episode. Resources:   New York Times on the 30 x 30...

This week, Charles Conn, Chair of the Board of Directors at Patagonia joins us to share his story of how the company made the landmark decision to “make Earth its only shareholder.” This was news not just in the apparel industry, but everywhere. Patagonia had been private its entire existence, and as its founder Yvon Chouinard looked to step away, he opted for something entirely unique: give all the company to a 501(c)(4) and a perpetual purpose trust designed to put the profits to work...

We want your feedback! Fill out our listener survey for a chance to win a $100 Patagonia gift card. This week, we’re setting our news feeds aside and spending our time with Natalia Modenova of DressX, a multi-brand retailer and innovator for Web3. If you’ve followed digital fashion at all lately, you’ve definitely heard of DressX. Since 2019 they’ve been in every conversation about what fashion in the metaverse could be. They’ve created a retail ecosystem for digital fashion that works as...

We want your feedback! Fill out our listener survey for a chance to win a $100 Patagonia gift card. First, we have to talk about Balenciaga. If you type “Balenciaga child porn” into Google right now, you get 2.6 million hits. That is not good and they have only themselves to blame for an ad campaign that posed toddlers with bondage-themed plushie bear handbags and booze glasses, like they’d walked in on the tail end of of a sex-fueled all-nighter. For the time being, the CEO, Cedric Charbis,...

We want your feedback! Fill out our listener survey for a chance to win a $100 Patagonia gift card. Join us on November 30 for a live, virtual episode of Climavores. Come ask a question about food, nutrition, and eating for the climate. We’re checking back in on the metaverse this week with Vogue Business’ senior innovation editor Maghan McDowell. For many, the hype surrounding NFTs, Web3, and the metaverse is beginning to feel overblown. Crypto is still firmly in its winter, and the stock...

It’s COP27 week, so we look at how well the fashion industry is doing keeping its promise to dramatically reduce emissions. A recent report from Stand.earth gives most major brands a failing grade and shows how much work they still have to do to clean up their supply chains. We also look at how some luxury brands are embracing the digital ID as a way to show where their materials are sourced and improve resale value.  Then, we take a walk outside the world of fashion and find the scourge of...

This week, we’re talking about microplastics and what they’re doing to the environment and our bodies. We’ve heard plenty about the giant plastic trash island out in the Pacific and beaches across the globe littered with plastic bottles and bags. But we’re talking about plastic microfibers, the ones that make up the majority of apparel produced today. These nearly invisible fibers have been found at nearly every depth of the ocean, and they’re showing up in the food chain and our bodies. They...

This week, we’re talking with Bayard Winthrop, CEO of American Giant. Bayard’s journey as the founder of an apparel company obsessively committed to sourcing domestically has resonated with the industry and with us. We talk with him about his journey over the past 11 years, what he’s learned about sustainability in this market, and where he sees opportunities for further impact.  And, as always, we look at the week’s news. Everyone is dumping Kanye and we love it. But we also want to talk...

It was a busy news week in sustainable fashion, and Shein once again sucked all the oxygen out of the room. From being fined for a data breach to suffering a damaging investigation into its treatment of workers to announcing a peer-to-peer resale platform powered by Treet, the fast fashion powerhouse popped up everywhere.  We talk with Jake Disraeli, the co-founder and CEO of Treet, about its work powering the Shein resale marketplace called Shein Exchange, and how it works with brands. Then...

We don’t always talk about haute couture; this week we’re taking a look at the new deal between Classic Fashion and Walmart, which will exclusively supply Walmart with cut-and-sewn apparel from a new production facility outside of Los Angeles. It’s a positive sign in a market that has spent too much energy offshoring garment work. We also take yet another look at Shein; not at its fast-fashion practices, but its value. Where not long ago it was raising capital at a valuation of $100 billion,...

Don’t miss our live episode of Climavores in New York City on October 20! Sign up here for a night of live audio and networking with top voices in climate journalism. This week we’re responding to listener questions, and the first ones are from men: how is sustainable fashion different in men’s and women’s apparel? How has men’s fashion evolved over the years, and is it more or less sustainable today than decades ago? And what about wool? Is something as innocuous seeming as a natural textile...

This week, Secondhand September takes us all the way to the top of the fashion resale market: ultra-luxury. And we have questions. Is it a sustainability play? Is it an investment market akin to fine art? How do you police fraud?  We talk with Sarah Davis, founder and president of Fashionphile, a re-commerce platform for high-end accessories to get her take. With more than 20 years in the luxury resale business, Sarah helps us understand what’s working and what’s needed to keep this market...

Secondhand September is going strong here on Hot Buttons. And this week, we’re talking with social media activist and slow-fashion advocate, Venetia La Manna. She’s a prominent voice of the slow fashion movement, and has lots to say about how we interact with fashion, whether celebrity partnerships with fast fashion brands can ever have a sustainable impact, and where she likes to shop for resale.  First, we’ll kick the show off by talking about Patagonia. The founder has given the company...

Don’t miss our live episode of Climavores in New York City on October 20! Sign up here for a night of live audio and networking with top voices in climate journalism.  It’s Secondhand September, and we’re here to dive in. All this month we’re talking with experts and offering up some of our own insights into how the resale market is evolving. This week, we talk with Andy Ruben, founder of Trove, a re-commerce platform for brands to enter the resale market on their own terms. Trove is one of a...

In this episode, we’re loving on fashion weeks. And not just the Fab Four of New York, London, Paris and Milan. Before these even kick off, Copenhagen fashion week had everyone talking earlier this summer. The combination of Scandinavian designers, a focus on sustainability, and a mix of digital and live events made it a contender to join the big European weeks forever.  We’ll preview the upcoming fashion weeks – where sustainability may have an impact, which designers to watch, and whether...

Gen Z is driving the fast fashion machine. Seventy-two percent of college students say they have shopped fast fashion in the past year, and 40% say they scroll fast fashion sites and apps at least once a day. For many, it’s an addiction. But this generation of 20-somethings is also more concerned about sustainability, climate change, and workers’ rights than any other. So how do they reconcile the two?  In this episode, Christina, Shilla and Rachel look at the problem of fast fashion...

In this episode, we’re talking about the policies behind sustainable fashion with fashion law expert Betina Baumgarten. Betina’s career has included years as a civil litigation attorney, a fashion stylist, a specialist in fashion law, and now a consultant to companies looking to advance their sustainability goals with real action. She’s also a tireless advocate for policy change in the industry and has authored important journal articles on critical topics in fashion law.  We cover a lot in...

One way to curb overproduction of clothing is to keep the clothes we have longer. It’s an old-fashioned solution but a simple one: instead of tossing worn and torn clothes in the trash, repair them. Major outdoor apparel brands have embraced repairs as a way to stay close to their customers, and luxury brands have long offered repairs as a service to their clients. But with fast fashion jumping in on the trend, is this just sustainable theater or can it move the culture toward caring for...

This week, we’re talking about returns. The more we shop, the more we return. And the more we shop online, the worse it gets. Retailers have embraced easy, free returns as a way to grab market share, but it’s coming at a cost to the companies and the planet. We’ll look at just how bad the data is, talk about what can be done to manage returns, and hopefully find some companies who are getting it right. This won’t be the only time we talk about returns, but we’re starting out today with a look...

This week, we take our first look at the beauty industry – skin care, cosmetics, hair care, and wellness supplements – and find it wanting.  Kim Kardashian’s line of skincare, SKKN, got off to a bumpy start with lots of social media backlash around its packaging. And many others make claims around sustainable ingredients that don’t hold up to scrutiny.  Then, Gucci has an environmental impact report out, and has partnered with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation to embrace circularity in its...