The finalists for the 2019 Redress Design Awards have been unveiled, with Australian designer Julia English, securing a spot in the top 10.
English was among 30 semi-finalists announced in April, who aim to transform fashion waste into garments. Using circular design strategies, the designers will showcase solutions for the approximate 92 million tons of textile waste produced by the fashion industry every year.
English is an RMIT graduate and is currently interning with sustainable fashion brands, A.BCH and Lois Hazel.
English said the future of fashion originates from thinking further about the beginning and end of product.
"I prefer the term fashion activist over sustainable designer - I use clothes as a medium to ask people about their own experience of fashion.
"Through addressing the space between purchase and end of life I believe we can comprehensively address what the future of fashion will be," she said.
The finalists now have 11 weeks to bring their concepts to life, with the winners presented at Hong Kong fashion show, Centrestage.
Founder and board chair of Redress Christina Dean, said that while sustainable attitudes and actions have increased, the textile waste is not reducing fast enough.
"Despite an increase in awareness and some action across the industry, the catastrophic levels of waste are not diminishing fast enough.
"However, we are incredibly excited about the energy this next generation of Redress Design Award Finalists are charged with and their potential to drive a positive shift from linear to circular models of production.
"Each year the applicants’ creativity and thirst for knowledge increases, demonstrating higher levels of transformative thinking which is essential to solve this challenge," she said.
The finalists will travel to Hong Kong in late August to participate in challenges and activities which further test their creativity and sustainable design thinking.
The winner will be announced on September 05.