Here is a hot topic which could be debated and blogged well after the Global Fashion Summit has taken place in Denmark on May 3rd.

Read the following article (courtesy of Fashion United, Spanish edition, which popped up in my inbox) and then reflect on the highly relevant question posed by a reader from Argentina.

Fashion industry to sign code of ethics in Copenhagen

Princess Mary of Denmark

On May 3rd Copenhagen will host the world summit on sustainable fashion where both important people and brands from the sector on a global level, together with politicians and representatives from the United Nations, will sign the first code of conduct dedicated exclusively to fashion.

The “ethical code of conduct” will be based on the 10 Principles of the UN Global Pact. Those who sign it commit themselves to support the respect for Human Rights, promote technology that does not harm the environment and renounce the use of materials of an animal origin.

This is the first sector initiative of the Global Pact of the United Nations promoted by the Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical (NICE).

Some 900 key people of the industry from around the world will participate with representatives from Inditex, Cortefiel and Mango. Princess Mary of Denmark, patroness of the world summit, will have the task of opening the conference.

Among the personalities who will address the conference are Rossella Ravagli, director of the area of social responsibility of Gucci; Helena Helmersson of H&M; Rick Ridgeway of Patagonia and Sustainable Apparel Coalition; Holly Dublín of PPR and the Belgian designer Bruno Pieters of Honest By.

Together with representatives of the fashion industry, main line politicians will debate on the subject of sustainable fashion and include Connie Hedegaard, European Commissioner for the Environment, and Ole Sohn, Danish Minister for the Economy and Development.

The Fashion Summit in Copenhagen is the largest and most important conference in the world dealing with sustainable fashion. It takes place every two years and looks for solution to face up to the challenges facing the planet. In comparative terms the fashion industry is one of the most polluting.

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A question from a reader in Argentina:

The use of material of animal origin refers to wild animal skins and fur or to leather?

What powerful interests have succeeded in not including petroleum derivatives, such as synthetic materials, which are contaminating products in themselves and which affect the environment during their manufacture and later on when they are discarded?