Sustainability

Dr. Richard Blackburn

• Dr. Richard Blackburn is an Associate Professor at the University of Leeds. He has won several awards and honors including Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Dyers of The City of London, Freedom of The City of London, Silver Medal of the Society of Dyers and Colourists, Fellowship of the Society, and the Centenary Medal from the Society of Dyers and Colourists.
• He is a fellow of The Society of Dyers and Colourists , fellow of The Royal Society of Arts, a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, a member of the American Chemical Society, a member of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists, and a member of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists.
• He has written multiple books relating to sustainability in the apparel industry and several other publications in journals and other publications.
• He holds a BSc (Hons) in Colour Chemistry & Dyeing and a PhD in Colour Chemistry from the University of Leeds.
• His email address is R.S.Blackburn@leeds.ac.uk. He can be contacted on his phone at +44 (0) 113 343 3757.
• He is based at the University of Leeds in Leeds, UK.

Karin Ekberg

• Karin Ekberg is the co-founder and CEO of Leadership & Sustainability, which "delivers a broad and deep spectrum of Consulting, Empowerment, Sustainable Business Models and Software & Tools in the sustainability area."
• Karin has also worked at Adidas Group as the Head of Environmental Services for 5 years. She has also worked at ASSA ABLOY, a supplier of intelligent security solutions, for 6 years as the Director Sustainability.
• She held the role of Chair of the Board of Directors at the Sustainable Apparel Coalition in 2012-13. She also participated in the set up of Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC).
• She has also arranged workshops and spoken at conferences. She holds a Masters of Science degree in Chemical Engineering and a Diploma in environmental management from the University of Zurich. She received the Higg Index Verification Leadership Award in 2019.
• She can be reached via email at karin.ekberg@leadership-sustainability.com or via phone at +49 (151) 461 70 184.
• She is based in Bavaria, Germany.

Charles Dickinson

• Charles Dickinson is the Environmental Sustainability Controller at Primark. He has more than 20 years of experience working with apparel, as well as footwear, brands worldwide in the field of environment and sustainability.
• Charles has been a Board Member of Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC). He is now the Chair of the Board of Directors at ZDHC.
• Prior to his 5-year ongoing tenure at Primark, he was serving as SVP - Head of Global Quality Management & Sustainability at ESPRIT for 3 years. He has also worked as Sustainability Manager at C&A for 29 years.
• He can be reached via email at charlesbdickinson@gmail.com.

Mindful Consumerism

Naomi Yamakawa

•  Naomi Yamakawa is a partner with McKinsey and company in Tokyo. She leads the consumer insights section at McKinsey for the Asia-Pacific region.
• She has worked with multiple clients including an international apparel company. She is also part of a not-for-profit organization that works for the welfare of the people of Japan since the 2011 tsunami.
• She has published several articles through McKinsey. She worked at the Oisix Corporation in the past and holds a BA, Political Science degree from the Keio University.
• She has been working with McKinsey for the past 14 years.

Jacinta FitzGerald

• Jacinta has an overall work experience of more than 20 years in the fashion and textile space.
• She currently serves as a Board Member at Mindful Fashion New Zealand. She is also an Advisory Board Member at Nisa Women. She has been working for the past 5 years at MAKE.GOOD as a Strategist, Product and Sustainability.
• She studied at the Auckland University of Technology for Fashion/Apparel Design and holds a Bachelor of Design, Fashion from Otago Polytechnic. She has also studied from the London College of Fashion, GHG Management Institute, and the University of Cambridge.
• She can be reached via email at jacinta@makegood.world and via phone at +64 21 244 0838.

Lisa Kjerulf

• Lisa is the Head of Emerging Business Programs at the Australian Fashion Council. She has a combined work experience of close to 15 years.
• She has worked at Adidas and other renowned organizations. She holds a Bachelors degree in International Business from Linfield University. She also holds a Masters of Fashion Entrepreneurship from RMIT University, among other forms of education.
• She can be reached via email at lisa.kjerulf@yahoo.com.

Health and Wellness

Lucy Arnold

• Lucy Arnold is the managing director of Lucy Locket Loves.
• She was featured on the Forbes 30 under 30 Europe - E-commerce in 2020. She has also won the young entrepreneur award of 2019 by Pitman Training and was also the finalist for the young entrepreneur award of 2019 by Natwest Great British entrepreneur award.
• She has also won the highly commended apparel brand of 2019 by Women’s Running Magazine. She has a business of her own as well by the name of Painted Teapot. She holds a diploma from the Fashion Retail Academy in fashion merchandising.
• She has earned a certification of master personal trainer and nutrition coach from EIF.

Carl Williams

• Carl is the co-founder of Lom Barkley Clothing LTD and founder director of Synergy Health and Wellness, also been the business development manager for Creative Fitness marketing.
• He has college degree in sports coaching and rugby studies and holds a BSc (Hons) degree from Gloucestershire University.

Katie Cutting

• Katie is the co-founder of ArtyWren, a startup for childrenswear. She has also worked with Arbonne International, a firm in the health and wellness space, as an Independent Consultant.
• She has about 10 years of professional work experience and has studied from Bath College and Oldfield Girls' School.

Research Strategy