About the webinar:

There is a great deal of diversity of environmental initiatives in the garment sector, including differences in their focus, the actors involved, who the beneficiaries are, the longevity of the activities and how they define and measure success. For many stakeholders in Asia the number and diversity of initiatives is confusing.

This webinar presents recent analysis mapping these current initiatives. We find three different operating models for these initiatives each with different areas of focus, definitions of success, longevity and impact for firms in Asia, especially SMEs and MSMEs. This analysis shows opportunities and gaps for these initiatives in supporting enhanced environmental sustainability in the sector, particularly for smaller enterprises.

The technical webinar will bring together experts in the field to discuss preliminary findings and emerging themes. The webinar is a consultation dialogue with the taskforce members of the Textile Eco-innovation Research Network (TERN) of the Decent Work in the Garment Sector Supply Chains in Asia project (ILOSida).

Objectives:

The Just Transition in the Textile and Garment Section (TAGS) Discussion series contributes towards two projects of the ILO: (i) the Decent Work in Garment Supply Chains in Asia (funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency-Sida) ; and (ii) the UN Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) funded Initiative.
 

• Gather actionable data on the impact of COVID-19 on the sector;
• Offer a forum for identifying and prioritising actions and interventions for recovery and re-structuring in the sector;
• Develop a process for stakeholder engagement and capacity building for a Just Transition in the sector with constituents and stakeholders.

Speakers:

Dr Samantha Sharpe is a Research Director at the Institute for Sustainable Futures. She is a highly experienced social scientist and policy analyst. Her research focuses on the intersect of the 'world of work' and climate change. This includes research understanding the process of business and industrial transition to sustainability, at the firm, sector, and labour market levels, as well as industrial and occupational change associated with the green economy.

Fiona Berry is a Senior Research Consultant at the Institute for Sustainable Futures. Fiona is a social scientist specialising in corporate sustainability strategy, greenhouse gas accounting and reporting, and the identification of carbon accounting and mitigation opportunities. Fiona has been invited to form and facilitate a Business Advisory Panel for the City of San Francisco’s Climate Action Plan, assisted ClimateWorks and the Carbon Disclosure Project with carbon mitigation and reporting endeavours.

Agenda:

• Welcome and opening
• Presentation by Dr Samantha Sharpe, Research Director, Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF), University of Technology Sydney, Australia and Fiona Berry, Senior Research Consultant, ISF/UTS
• Kick-off discussion by TERN members
• Open floor - Q&A
• Closing remarks