April 17, 2006 Source: :
http://www.news.utoronto.ca/bin6/060417-2224.asp Fashionably green Victoria University students model environmentally friendly fashions
Apr 17/06
by Michelle MacArthur Last Tuesday, Victoria University students proved that environmental consciousness can also be stylish at Elemental, a fashion show topping off Victoria’s Environmental Day. The first event of its kind at Vic, Elemental took place at the Cat’s Eye Lounge on the Victoria University campus and was co-produced by student representatives from the Victoria University Environmental Society (VUES), the Victoria University Student Administrative Council (VUSAC) and Rowell Jackman Hall Residence. Featuring clothing made of hemp, bamboo, organic cotton, wool and
recycled materials, the fashion show highlighted studentmade original works as well as clothing borrowed from local retailers. Underlying the entertaining show was a more serious goal. "The purpose is to raise awareness of people’s ecological footprints and how what we’re doing today is not sustainable. Part of what’s not sustainable is, for instance, the clothes that we’re buying, the way we grow our cotton, what our clothes are made of," says Sarah Bingham, a third-year sociology student who is a member of the environmental living-learning community housed at Rowell Jackman Hall. "To make one cotton T-shirt takes 7,000 litres of water," adds Lauryn Drainie, a Vic One student and member of VUES. True to its title, Elemental was divided into four themes: earth, wind, fire and water. Each themed section was introduced by multimedia clips depicting the destruction and regrowth of the environment and featured Vic students
walking the fashion runway. Exhibiting a diverse array of styles, from haute couture to workout wear, the show also set out to dispel myths about ecologically friendly fashion. "There’s always an interpretation of hemp clothing being just sweat pants — only for
‘hippies’— so we’re trying to show that you don’t have to look like a bum to be environmentally conscious. You can look good!" says Greg Beres, a member of VUSAC and a second-year international relations student. After the event, select designs were auctioned off, with all proceeds benefiting the Toronto Environmental Alliance, a local organization that works to promote a greener Toronto. "We picked an NGO that is small and local to Toronto so that the donation that we make is actually useful in trying to help the Toronto community," Beres says. With its successful blending of awareness raising and entertainment, and with talk of making Environment Day an annual event at Vic, Elemental may be back again next year. "If this is a big hit then maybe we can continue the fashion show aspect of it. I think it’s a great idea," Beres says.
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