The University of BorÅs and The Swedish School of Textiles
WAS honored to present Mr. Yvon Chouinard as keynote speaker of
The Design of Prosperity 09 Conference.

YVON CHOUINARD, The United States
The environmentalist legend, founder and owner of Patagonia, Inc. outdoor clothing and equipment company will discuss—on his first occasion in Sweden—his visionary commitment to “the sustainability thing” and its integration into Patagonia’s unsurpassed design solutions, product quality, and managerial philosophy.






The following distinguished experts presented their insights during the conference-day.
 

	JILL DUMAIN, The United States The director of environmental analysis at Patagonia, Inc. and current chair of the Organic Exchange, will add to the discussion her insights into how transparency is the route for communicating evolving and best practices for reducing environmental pressures throughout the value chain.			PETER WAEBER, Switzerland The CEO of Swiss-based bluesign technologies ag, will explore one of the most holistic and comprehensive environmental, health, and safety compliance tools available to the entire textile development, production, retail and post-consumer network.
	SIMONETTA CARBONARO, Italy/Germany Professor of Humanistic Marketing and Design Management at The Swedish School of Textiles will introduce the conference by presenting the results of her research in the area of consumer ethos and behaviors, and will delineate the directions consumer culture is taking in terms of new sustainable lifestyles.			CHRISTIAN VOTAVA, Germany Partner of REALISE strategic business consultants will present the model of prosperity developed as the platform of the research cooperation with the Centre of Excellence at The University of Borås and The Swedish School of Textiles. He will moderate the conference, stimulate the panel discussions and wrap-up the speakers’ and panelists’ insights into a final conclusion of the conference.

 

JOSEPHINE RYDBERGER-DUMONT, Sweden, former CEO of IKEA of Sweden
TAMARA ALBU, The United States, Director of Fashion Studies, Parsons The New School for Design
KARIN EKSTRÖM, Sweden, Professor in Marketing at the School of Business and Informatics, University of Borås
DAVID GOLDSMITH, The United States, Textile Designer, Educator, and Researcher at The Swedish School of Textiles

 

 

PROGRAM

08:00	Registration - Registration and Location Information (pdf) »
09:00	Welcome LENA NORDHOLM, Rector of the University College of Borås, Sweden CHRISTIAN VOTAVA, Partner of REALISE, Germany
09:30	Introductory Speech Authenticity and Responsibility: The Drivers of Sustainability “People today call for much more than just ecological, economic and socially sustainable products. They are looking for products that also can deliver a message for the ecology of their mind and of their spirit. Products that express their ethos through a powerful aesthetic impact. That means products that can reconcile us with a future we thought they had lost”. SIMONETTA CARBONARO, Professor of Design Management and Humanistic Marketing, Italy/Germany/Sweden The inspiring design management and humanistic marketing expert forecasts the directions consumer culture is moving in by analyzing broad socio-cultural patterns.
10:00	Keynote Speech Doing Business for The Next Hundred Years “What keeps me in business is the opportunity to change the way business can be done, to reduce environmental harm, and inspire other business people to do the same.” YVON CHOUINARD, Founder and owner of Patagonia, Inc., USA The environmentalist legend of the California-based outdoor apparel and adventure gear company, known for his unconventional wisdom and enlightened business strategies will speak about his vision of the future of business in the age of sustainability.
11:00	Coffee Break
11:15	Panel Discussion Distinguished international and Swedish experts will begin the Q&A with Yvon Chouinard which will then be followed by questions from the audience.
12:00	Lunch-Break
13:30	The Power of Transparency: Creating Value, Communicating, and Involving The Whole Supply Net “Sustainability is a process of collective learning, creating, and constructing new more flexible ways of knowing.” JILL DUMAIN, The United States. The Director of Environmental Analysis, Patagonia, Inc., and current chair of the Organic Exchange, she lead the Common Threads Garment Recycling Program. With The Footprint Chronicles website, she is proving how customers reward honest communication about evolving ecological practices.
14:20	Using bluesign™ technologies ag to Use and Produce Less “It is fundamental to properly manage the whole manufacturing process to include the use of smart process controls and end-of-pipe solutions that fully protect the environment and people in--and out--of the supply chain by integrating processes that need fewer resources, cause less waste, reduce emissions and post no health hazards. ” PETER WAEBER, Switzerland CEO of bluesign™ technologies ag, one of the most holistic, reliable, one-label environmental, health, and safety compliance tools at the disposal of the textile and apparel industry for mitigating the total impact on the environment of their supply and value chain.
15:10	Coffee Break
15:25	The Invisible Hand of Culture “To induce people to act in a sustainable way, we need a much stronger concept than just sustainability. The endeavor towards sustainability is a cultural process. It is the ‘invisible hand’ of culture that is generating a new understanding of prosperity and new models of societal and economical development.” CHRISTIAN VOTAVA, Germany, Partner of REALISE strategic consultants, renowned international business consultant, expert in strategy, value-added marketing and market research methodologies for saturated markets.
16:00	Panel Discussion and Conference-day Wrap-Up The panelists will consider the day’s work and take questions from the audience.
17:00	Conclusion
	The program is subject to change. *Please note that we regret that it is not possible for the conference to provide coffee, refreshments, or lunch.