When Michelle Alleyne boards her flight to Copenhagen this June, she’s not just attending another industry summit. She’s stepping into a room where the future of fashion will be debated, defended—and if she has anything to say about it, redesigned.
The Global Fashion Summit: Copenhagen Edition, presented by the Global Fashion Agenda, has become one of the industry’s most anticipated annual gatherings. This year’s themes—policy alignment, circular design, material innovation, and equitable value chains—speak to a sector attempting to rethink its legacy while racing against its own excess. For Alleyne, a fashion strategist, educator, and the host of The Ethical Stitch podcast, the question isn’t whether the industry knows what must change—it’s whether those in power are finally ready to act.
“I’m hoping we leave with bold, actionable solutions,” Alleyne says. “Not just talk.”
It’s her first time attending the summit, but Alleyne’s impact reaches far beyond event stages. With a résumé that stretches from boardroom consulting to classroom leadership, she has become one of the rare figures capable of translating strategy into humanity—and vice versa. In her view, sustainability is not a trend or an initiative. It’s a system, and that system needs rewiring.
“Consumers are still the missing piece,” she explains. “We need to meet them where they are—repair bars at retail, QR codes that tell the full story, pop-ups that make sustainability feel aspirational again. Let’s use the same marketing we’ve used to sell fast fashion to now sell a slower, smarter future.”
Alleyne is especially drawn to the summit’s focus on policy—a space she once found distant from her more creative roots.
“It used to be the part of sustainability that made me feel out of place,” she admits. “Now I see how important it is. If you want real traction, speak the language of legislation—and show them the savings. Because at the end of the day, money talks.”
For her, true sustainability is less about fabrics and more about frameworks. She calls it “a mindset.” And in a landscape increasingly dominated by metrics, certifications, and carbon audits, Alleyne insists that empathy and equity can’t be treated as afterthoughts.
“Sustainability starts with care,” she says. “When we lead with responsibility—for people and the planet—everything else falls into place. It’s not just kind. It’s strategic.”
Through her podcast The Ethical Stitch, Alleyne has been lifting the veil on greenwashing, fast fashion fatigue, and the hard truths many in the industry would prefer stay backstage. She sees media—especially independent platforms like hers—not as spectators, but as catalysts.
“We’re the fourth estate. We shine the light,” she says. “The podcast gives people the patterns to stitch up real change.”
What she hopes to bring home from Copenhagen isn’t another round of headlines or hashtags. It’s a plan. A blueprint. Something tangible.
“We don’t need more agreement—we have that. We need action. We need a roadmap we can start implementing the moment we land.”
Looking ahead, Alleyne envisions a world where sustainability isn’t even a standalone term.
“My hope is that one day it’s just how we do things,” she reflects. “It’s no longer a niche idea or a checkbox on a brand deck. It’s part of the fabric. Seamless, natural, assumed.”
As the summit approaches, the fashion world will once again gather under the banner of transformation. But Michelle Alleyne is showing up with more than a seat at the table. She’s showing up with a voice—and a challenge. To stop talking. And start stitching.
To follow along as the conversation unfolds in Copenhagen and beyond, find Michelle Alleyne on Instagram at @michellealleyneofficial and @theethicalstitch. This is more than a summit. It’s a movement—and she’s just getting started.
Matthew Waters is a writer and cultural strategist covering sustainability and ethics.