Local Fashion, Global Impact at K-State

All funds support sustainable Fashion Studies projects at K-State.

The LOCAL FASHION, GLOBAL IMPACT project allows students to apply sustainable fashion, color, and construction practices while connecting them to the global supply chain.

All funds will go towards materials needed to sustain this project. The goal is to continue this project on an annual basis, ensuring that K-State students are educated on sustainable practices and that the women of Choa Cruz can benefit socially and economically from this partnership.

The LOCAL FASHION, GLOBAL IMPACT project began in January 2018 when the Fashion Studies students at K-State traveled to Guatemala and met women of the Choa Cruz weaving cooperative. Women in this community live on approximately $1 a day.

Purchasing fabric for one fashion studies project at K-State increases the monthly earning of a Choa Cruz weaver by 13%.

In the fall of 2018, fashion design students used the fabric from Choa Cruz to construct their first sewing project. The students were introduced to natural dye techniques and used leaves from the K-State tree walk to design prints for a wrap skirt.

In 2019, Emily Oertling was awarded a Green Action Fund grant to sustain the project -- thus removing all financial responsibilities from students and faculty, while ensuring an annual order of hand-loomed fabric from the women at the Choa Cruz cooperative.
This auction allows us to maintain our partnership and continue engaging students with fair trade artisans and sustainable practices.

For donation information email Sherry Haar haar@k-state.edu