Soft Power - local wool initiatives for a new industrial revolution

While sustainable fashion has gained popularity, sustainable upholstery has yet to receive the same level of attention. The furniture industry has long relied on conventional fabrics which have a significant impact on the environment, while half or more of Swedish and British wool is discarded. This talk pays tribute to the new locally wool upholstery fabric by VERK, designed by Ingegerd Raman and highlights successful British examples that combine innovation, sustainability and tradition in order to push the envelope for a new industrial revolution, from large scale to small scale, from global to local and make the furniture industry a part of a sustainable future. Swedish design meets British initiatives in a conversation that combines the artistic process from one of Sweden's most significant designers of all times and the need for local small scale industries for a large-scale development for a more sustainable furniture industry. Join us for a conversation on possibilities and share ideas and examples for around the globe on how we can create local initiatives together on the international design stage. Participants: Keynote by the world-renowned Swedish designer Ingegerd Råman, panel discussion with Simon Anund, VERK, Mathilda Tham, Earth Logic, Deborah Barker, South West England Fibreshed. More speakers will join the panel and colleagues and peers in the room are welcome to stay afterwards to continue the conversation. Ingegerd Råman is a world renowned Swedish designer with a focus on glass and ceramics but has also created jewelery and has worked with architecture and interior design. Her works can be found at V&A, Riihimäki, Finland and the National Museum in Sweden to name a few. Fibershed is a non-profit organization that develops regional fiber systems that build ecosystem and community health. The work expands opportunities to implement climate benefitting agriculture, rebuild regional manufacturing, and connect end-users to the source of our fiber through education. VERK is a Swedish furniture company with a clear focus on sustainability without compromising on style, comfort or design. Verk works exclusively with Swedish raw materials and produce all furniture locally in Sweden. The brand new wool fabric is theirs and Ingegerd Råman´s first textile. Earth Logic is a collaboration between Kate Fletcher and Mathilda Tham and is focused on systemic change in fashion, and beyond. New work includes ‘Earth Logic Gardening’ which uses the metaphor of gardening to help move ideas to action and ‘Earth Logic Local Fashion Government’ examining how to organize, regulate and care for fashion provision and expression within the communities in which we live.