Stefania Corti
I am an Italian fashion designer living and working in Los Angeles, California. I am interested in learning about sustainability so I can hopefully make a positive impact in my industry.
Location Los Angeles, California
Activity
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Project Management is a systematic tool used to aid a group to design, implement, and test a process with the ultimate goal to successfully complete a project according to time, quality and cost parameters.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Musk seems to not care much about stakeholders' opinions. His risk taking has made him rich but people are starting to be annoyed by his over-the-top egotistical approach to business.
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Drivers for the alliance: acquire a specialized partner to control the supply chain more directly and increase production, given the higher demand for electric vehicles (consumers are becoming more concerned with climate change; fuel prices are skyrocketing).
Main risks to manage: a higher production of batteries might cause climate activists to question... -
Stefania Corti made a comment
I don't think a controlling PM is necessarily bad, as long as they are inclusive. It's important that all participants are integrated in the process of identifying and managing risks, in a process of continuous improvement similar to the Kaizen method.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
This system can be useful in everyday life too.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Yes, it is possible for some aspects of the projects but not the ones that might compromise quality, safety and health of the stakeholders.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I have worked in projects where participants kept changing continuously because they kept being reshuffled to new projects where their contribution was felt to be more important. Usually the person was not replaced but their absence contributed to disruption of the project's schedule.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I think the non linear models are applied to engineering and similar fields. Am I wrong?
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I was involved in projects where the objectives were defined but:
1. no project manager was assigned
2. communication between project participants was not structured, therefore no-one knew when tasks were completed
3. costs were not clearly identified
4. a timeline was not defined -
Stefania Corti made a comment
Planning a dinner party requires project management.
In my line of work (freelance designer) every new client entails a new project.
Contractors work on projects, similarly. -
Stefania Corti made a comment
I wish they updated the definition of project manager as Project Leader, as we know not all managers are good leaders, and a project - given its limited lifespan - more than anything needs a good leader.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I am a freelance fashion designer, and as such I work with different clients all the time. All of my clients have a unique vision for the collection they want to bring to market and I act as a hired designer as well as project manager for each project. Besides brand communication related to style and target market, I am provided with a calendar (deliverables...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I like the APM definition slightly better than the other two, simply out of elimination:
PMI isolates a product or service as the goal. The goal in my view could be something else related to problem solving. It also uses the term "create". I think a project could involve dissolution of something.
I also don't like the third definition because it fails to... -
Stefania Corti made a comment
I think we all worked on projects, and I am sure we also have been project managers at various stages of our careers without even internalizing that we were involved in project management. I am excited to learn efficient ways to be a project manager from this course and hopefully apply them, in real life scenarios.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I am a fashion designer with an MBA and several certificates in sustainability. I am hoping to step away from design and work in project management projects in my industry.
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@JamesCannings Duh, of course I needed to divide, not multiply. Thank you for your explanations on everything.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Hello, electricity is billed in kilowatt hours (kWh) and natural gas in therms. How do I convert therms to kwh so I can enter the amount in the excel sheet?
Is it 1 therms= 29.3001 kwh?
If this is correct, in Los Angeles the average cost per therm of natural gas is $1.705. If I multiply this by 29.3 to convert to kwh I get $49.96. It's a much higher figure... -
I am still confused. This piece makes it a little clearer but I guess we have to keep going in the course to have more clarity.
https://www.scope5.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Scope5_Scope2-Market-based-Accounting.pdf -
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Stefania Corti made a comment
As a fashion designer, I always try to promote a zero waste approach towards design/pattern making/cutting. The amount of money saved is impressive, not to mention also improvement on brand equity in the eyes of the consumers, which also in turn translates to extra revenue.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Upcycling has been defined as turning an object or a material into something new that possesses greater value than the original object/material was worth at the end of its life (example: use discarded wooden crates to make upscale furniture). This is opposed to downcycling, which is the process of transforming a used object into a new object with lesser value...
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Actually all those points are related to what I discussed. Trash management is strictly related to production, consumption and disposal, with effects on land and aquifers, animal and human communities, as well as climate change.
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I live in Santa Monica, California, considered one of the top 10 sustainable cities in the world. Much is done for water conservation, reduction in gas emissions, helping businesses become green certified, follow LEED principles in construction, etc. However, the one thing that keeps being difficult to achieve is a proper waste collection. The city provides...
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I believe these are some of the environmental challenges we face:
• finiteness of natural resources, coupled with unsustainable methods of production and agriculture
• GHG emissions causing air pollution, medical conditions and disruptive anthropogenic climate changes
• toxic and chemical leachates contaminating our fresh water sources and our soil, leading... -
Stefania Corti made a comment
I am an apparel designer, from Italy, but living in California. I have an MBA and I am getting another academic credential in sustainability and resource management. I volunteer for a sustainable organization that promotes sustainable production and development through the whole local supply chain.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Why don't you tell us what the idea or product you have in mind is? We are using the social agenda, and we are focusing on wellbeing as an issue, but for what product/service?
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Stefania Corti replied to Vesna McMaster
@VesnaMcMaster I completely agree. Actually I watched some videos on youtube to understand the concept better, and they do say that human-centered design actually is focused on interacting with real people and communities to empathize and understand their problems and needs. It's a co-design process, so to speak. They don't say to imagine or fabricate personas.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
This is amazing, I will start using it when I design, but as others have noticed it's too limited. Also missing is the place of final destination. Manufacturing ok, but what if I am shipping from China to US or UK or whatever? Transportation impact is also a huge component.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I think that the best solution (not to discredit the others) is to reduce production (and hence consumption). This is doable, but fast fashion companies are not about to bow out and exit the market so easily. There is no place for fast fashion in a sustainable world, as much as I like the idea of cheap clothing alternatives for the less fortunate....
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Stefania Corti replied to Elisa Lapi
same here, I am from Empoli, in the heart of the leather industry, and my entire family was involved in tanning, cutting, pattern making, sewing, etc, for generations (well, not anymore, since the Chinese took over, destroying local jobs and long traditions, and contributing to unfair and unethical labor practices)
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the question wasn't framed appropriately. That's the problem. They are getting skewed statistics because of this.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
It's not such a clear cut answer. I am for the use of leather, but I am for sustainable sources, such as biofabricated leather produced in the lab through animal cells culture.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
This is an interesting topic. Many people fixate on banning leather and furs in favor or faux alternatives, completely dismissing the fact that those alternatives are actually polyester-based, hence harmful to the environment (CO2 emissions, plastic dispersion in the oceans and in marine animals and organisms, pollution and diversion to landfills).
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Except that only emperors could wear it, the peons wore potato sacks.
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I know that Gucci pledged to pay governments when in excess of certain self imposed limits. Perhaps these payments are included in the statements.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
It's easier for a company like Kering to investigate, but a smaller brand doesn;t have this luxury. The only solution I see is to work only with those players with a trusted certification, so the work is done for you already.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
In my case the biggest challenge comes from my budget constraints and top management. I usually work for medium range brands, where margins are already really tight, so we can never afford eco-friendly materials. We have adopted some in some cases, but they were through our Chinese manufacturers, not directly from the mill, and very hard to trace the real...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Sorry to contradict Kering here, but there is evidence that luxury houses HAVE in fact exploited people, and not even far away from home, BUT IN ITALY. See investigative article from the NY Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/20/fashion/italy-luxury-shadow-economy.html
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Stefania Corti made a comment
My manifesto is a collage I made with paper dolls, wearing beautiful clothes cut out from the pages of fashion magazines. The title, Zero Waste, represents my values, my vision, my incitement to change and my commitment within an ecological, cultural and economic agendas. I want to see a future in which fashion companies stop overproducing and sending their...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
As far as the loan is concerned I would suggest reaching out to social investors (there are many angel investors in the market who help finance social enterprises). Another idea would be to create a crowdfunding campaign (there is so much power in the masses).
As far as expanding into new product offerings, I would discourage David. I believe young... -
Stefania Corti made a comment
I will write a letter to various senators in the state where I live (California) to pass laws to require all companies with more than 500 employees to have a sustainability officer in-house. Through this kind of position the government of a state like Californian (or any other state or nation) can implement a due diligence initiative for all firms (not just...
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A sustainable fashion industry can exist. The downfall is the elimination of fast fashion from our current tastes, both in terms of affordable trends and super cheap clothing.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Only when the profit-at-all-cost culture and mindset will stop, will we have a cleaner planet. Unfortunately, corporations are driven by greed. CEO's are greedy, the board of directors are greedy, top managers are greedy. Especially in the USA.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I can also recommend Renewal Workshop to all designers in this course: they partner up with fashion brands to give a second life to donated clothes.
https://renewalworkshop.com/pages/our-story -
@mariajosees this is awesome! thanks for sharing! I have been looking for something like this for years!
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Stefania Corti made a comment
1. Buying second hand is what I have been doing for years now, specifically at designer resale shops. The second hand clothing industry is growing 21 time faster than traditional retail, according to recent research. The only question mark is whether or not the proceeds add up to a country's GDP (as goods cannot be counted twice in an economy).
2. Donating... -
Yes, I knew about this. Ethiopia is now China's subcontractor. They are especially adept at making athletic shoes. I believe Nike is producing in Ethiopia too now.
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Distressed denim can still be achieved with technology that doesn't require water usage and use of toxic chemicals. Laser comes to mind.
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I also think that governments should invest in sustainable technologies to ensure scalability of certain processes and make it easier for fashion companies. There are many of these even developed by University institutions, but they are too expensive to bring to market, so they remain a concept. Some examples are:
1. Worn again (http://wornagain.co.uk/)
2.... -
Most fashion companies respond to consumers' requests for sustainability, corporate social responsibility and transparency by greenwashing. Every single company I have worked for has made the minimum efforts to ensure that the main manufacturer follows environmental and humane protocols, just to protect themselves on a superficial level. They all squeeze costs...
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Stefania Corti replied to Stefania Corti
You guys are missing the point. Verifying the manufacturer directly below you is one thing. Verifying the several subcontractors used by the top manufacturer is another.
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I am not trying to be the devil's advocate, but since I work in the industry I can tell you why companies are reticent to disclose their manifacturing sources. The main reason is that 'contacts' in the fashion industry sometimes act as a differentiator. Disclosing one's factories opens up the possibility that a competitor will reach out to those factories,...
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Stefania Corti replied to Ann Ross
Totally agree. In Italy there isn't even a minimum wage standard set by the government. Are we kidding?
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Stefania Corti made a comment
The more I read about the UN sustainable goals the more I realize their incompatibility with the US capitalist model.
1. "Rest, leisure and reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay, as well as remuneration for public holidays": Americans are given very few paid holidays; many are guilted into not even taking the few ones given;... -
Here's an article (it's in Italian, but Google has a traslate function for you who don't speak the language). It's about a bikini being sold online by Misguided for 1
euro. The media dubbed the controversy «One Pound Bikini Gate».
https://www.corriere.it/moda/news/cards/bikini-che-costa-euro-criticato-social-non-rispetta-lavoro-ambiente/bikini_principale.shtml -
Stefania Corti made a comment
Ok, once again:
"it can be difficult for a brand to identify where children may be engaged in work. In order for brands to ensure that there aren’t children working in the production of their goods, it is important for brands to map their suppliers all the way down to the raw material."
How are we supposed to do that as fashion brands? Please explain! -
Because I am Italian, I decided to search for some more information within Europe. I found an investigative article published in 2016 on BalkanInsight.com, claiming that following the release of its exposé of an Italian factory operating in Romania and its dubious treatment of the local workers, the journalist was sued, while the Romanian workers themselves...
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The part about what we can do for those of us who work in the fashion industry is still very vague, such as " ask questions". I can ask a million questions and the manufacturers in Asia will still tell me what I want to hear. This is not the way to go about it. I feel strongly that every fashion company should have an ethics and sustainability officer based in...
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I am surprised Iceland is not in the list, as the country is the first and only one that made it illegal for women to be paid less than men for the same job.
https://www.businessinsider.com/iceland-has-made-it-illegal-to-pay-women-less-than-men-2018-1?IR=T -
Stefania Corti made a comment
They keep talking about transparency as a solution for brands to look into their supply chain. What I want to know is HOW to achieve transparency when the supply chain can be extremely long and in different locations in the planet.
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@RitzP I don't know about misrepresented fair trade labeling, but as a designer I can tell you that most fashion companies are so greedy that most often than not they are simply greenwashing. They use buzzword like "empowering women" and "sustainability" in order to appeal to an ever conscientious consumer, but they do close to nothing to put their foot where...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Here's a video on the importance of Fair Trade:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwuQbmLCTEc -
Stefania Corti made a comment
This is the article mentioned in this section. I am from Italy and utterly ashamed of this:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/20/fashion/italy-luxury-shadow-economy.html -
Stefania Corti made a comment
"Elements of a decent standard of living include food, water, housing, education, health care, transportation, clothing, and other essential needs including provision for unexpected events."
Following this definition of 'decent standard of living', wages in the United States fall way beneath the cutoff limit. -
Stefania Corti made a comment
As a designer myself, I know how close to impossible it is to ensure the company you work for acts in the best possible sustainable and responsible way. Most US and EU fashion companies have learnt to adhere to certain standards, and they try to use manufacturing facilities overseas who in turn are equipped with certification and international standards. The...
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I want to add another comment: for the past five years or so I have been buying 95% of my clothes and shoes from second hand shops (eBay, Tradesy, Poshmark, and many local designer resale shops). One of the reasons is that I love having unique and high quality designer clothes that transcend passing trends, but i don;t have the means to afford such wardrobes....
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1. brands: Castañer, SJP, Shein
2. Of the three brands mentioned above, only SJP (Sarah jessica Parker) has made public announcements about her commitment to sustainable production, although I could only find this information in press releases and other editorials.
3. No SDG in particular was mentioned, but SJP designs her clothes (especially her kids line... -
I like what is being said about less affluent communities being the ones most deeply affected by poor sustainable practices, although being the ones usually contributing less to them.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
1. sustainable fashion: developing and implementing best practices in the fashion development, production, distribution and consumption process, striving for the least possible negative impact on environment, workers' health and livelihood, communities at large, natural resources.
2. topics I associate with ‘sustainable fashion’: social responsibility,... -
Stefania Corti made a comment
Thank you for offering a course. My name is Stefania, I am from Italy but I work in Los Angeles as an apparel designer. I am really committed to using sustainable, eco-friendly and socially responsible practices in the industry. After my MBA I decided to become a sustainability consultant or in-house sustainability manager for fashion brands, but I am having a...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Thank you for offering a course. I am an apparel designer who is really committed to using sustainable, eco-friendly and socially responsible practices in the industry. After my MBA I decided to become a sustainability consultant or in-house sustainability manager for fashion brands, but I am having a hard time finding courses that I can take to expand my...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I think she should maximize what she does best: writing and print imagery. This lends itself to the blog format. The market might be saturated with blogs, but her unique point of view, content, and style should set her apart from the competition. Also, the blog should be the main vehicle of communication, but should also be accompanied by complementary media....
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I love this!!!
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I know a friend of a friend who, as a mother who often accompanies her kids to play dates and school parties, noticed how much waste was generated: plastic bottles, plates, glasses, utensils. Everything was disposed of in the garbage can, and ultimately to landfills to add to the human carbon footprint. She discovered a gap in the market for a product and...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
My name is Stefania. I am a fashion designer and an MBA. I have several business ideas a week, but I never make them a reality. I am stuck in the R part of R&D. I hope this course can give me some courage and persistence.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I am a fashion designer, currently out of work, just finished my MBA and now I am bored, so I turn to education to pass time :(
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Stefania Corti made a comment
When we talk about Fashion Sustainability we can also discuss the circular economy, which is aimed at repurposing everything, not necessarily recycling or upcycling, but definitely not discarding things. One of my favorite brands that subscribe to this philosophy is Mud jeans (based in Amsterdam).
They say "We believe you can only enjoy life when next... -
Stefania Corti replied to Peter Gorse
Yes but we need to understand why they use it, what the consequences of not using it would be, and if there are any substitutions for it (should it be essential to some purpose). We are missing information here.
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Stefania Corti replied to Myra Boyle
I will look it up, thanks for sharing.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
As a designer I am actually profoundly annoyed by the myriad of celebrities who "are" now designers. All they do is lend their face and image, based on their huge social media following and on the fact that they are well dressed by some stylist. I do not mind endorsing, but I do mind celebrities fooling people that they are designers. What has happened is that...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
As much as I am tempted to choose the cultural agenda, I think that I will go with the economic one. Consumerism and the idolization of brands and material possession are a plague, but they are also the reason why many nations around the world have been able to convert from poor agricultural societies to prosperous industrialized ones. The problem is to be...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
As much as I am tempted to choose the cultural agenda, I think that I will go with the economic one. Consumerism and the idolization of brands and material possession are a plague, but they are also the reason why many nations around the world have been able to convert from poor agricultural societies to prosperous industrialized ones. The problem is to be...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
One more comment. When Raf Simon was at Dior and They made the documentary “Dior and I”, I liked that they showcased all the “invisibles@: sewers, seamstresses, artists, cutters, pattern makers, and the actual designers!!!!!
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Love it that they mentioned Naomi klein’s No Logo book. A must read. It is so true that nowadays it’s all about hollow brands and the glittering allure of brand names.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I value my family, nature, the planet with all the different places and cultures and languages.
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Stefania Corti replied to Carlos Viesca-Lobaton
We are talking about sustainability so those issues are separate.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
One more thing: I disagree with her statement that luxury sets the way for fashion. That was more appropriate in the past. Today we are experiencing a trickle up effect. It is the complete opposite: casual wear and pop trends from the street influence high fashion.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Guys let’s remember fashion companies are not non-profits: they are for profit organizations that create products and rely on consumption to make a profit. The fact that they study to find ways to eliminate or reduce waste and that they educate the public on their processes is huge.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
I work in fast fashion, where CEO's are all in for a fast profit and look at ROI only in the short term. I am currently getting my MBA and when I finish I want to get another master's in sustainability. My goal is to move away from being a slave designer to someone else, and actually help fashion companies (even fast fashion) as a sustainability consultant.
To... -
Stefania Corti made a comment
Hello, I am a fashion designer, I do activewear. I am from Italy but I work in Los Angeles. My goal is to help the organization where I work to gradually adopt sustainable practices, fabrics, and innovative ways to change how fashion is created. I took a semester abroad at London College of Fashion 10 years ago, I loved it and glad to be back.
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Stefania Corti made a comment
When I pitched my idea to investors last year we met on Skype for the first time. My partner and I had only 10 minutes to hook them, so we were only able to present our generic concept idea. The investors loved: they asked us to write a few pages, so they could pass the info over to the CEO. We sent a mini presentation via email that included both words and...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
The men's apparel company Untuckit, which produces dress shirts to be worn untucked, started through investment collected on Kickstarter, back in 2011.
The founders (Chris Riccobono and Aaron Santander), classmates in business school, had zero fashion background but thought that the market had a gap, and that gap being the need for shorter shirts to be worn... -
Stefania Corti made a comment
I believe that before adopting and implementing digital supply solutions across the economy, a nation is obligated to its citizens to prepare them for the change. Whether it's in the form of free technical trade education, government grants on a wide scale for small entrepreneurship, or free lateral training, you cannot ignore the "masses" that will likely...
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Stefania Corti made a comment
Scenario 1= Donald Trump. Oh boy!
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Stefania Corti made a comment
The rebirth of the supermodel, who created a brand around her persona by Instagramming herself: see Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner.
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Ha ha exactly :) hopefully I wasn't too pushy, I am an opinionated complainer :(
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But if you don't always question how things can be better done, society would never progress. The abacus worked just fine, why did they fix it? So did the first cell phone that ever came out. I am not Jewish, but I know that Jews are taught to always question everything, from their faith and beliefs, to how they do things. I try to keep that in mind, because...
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You are probably right, but I don't believe in vertical companies made up of 200,000 employees (meaning I don't like them). I believe in decentralization, just like in politics, with team groups and employee engagement. And even without teams you can still find ways to involve employees at all level, Japan does it all the time. Usually where there is a huge...
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thank you, sent you email :)
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Ha ha, so true, I am taking 4 course at once, not easy to juggle. Thanks so much on the report, that was so on point.
