Campaign Goal: To ultimately eliminate the demand for fur in fashion. Campaign Objective: To reduce the demand for fur in fashion through educational initiatives for a compassionate world, focusing on students of fashion and the general public. Brutality of animals and environmental damage are common in the production of fashion. This partnership initiates gradual and sustainable change, by educating students and consumers of the environmental damage, cruelty and abuse of animals and hazards for personnel involved in the production of fur fashion. Public data, industry reports and 6 years research by ACTAsia are documented in 2 publications on our website.

The focus on fur industry research and public opinion surveys underpins the campaign, ensuring we use accurate, up to date and credible data which then shape the messages in other areas of the campaign. The consumer survey connects and gauges opinion in consumer groups and provides accurate up to date data on the fur industry, the results are used in the planning stages of our events for the following year. The Fur Free Retailer Scheme is an international network of brands that pledge to go fur free. ACTAsia is the China representative and to date has 51 brands committed to promoting compassionate choices for consumers. ACTAsia’s annual Compassion in Fashion Festival takes place in China and hosts a fur free day, fashion show and forum. In 2020 the fashion show was presented by Stella McCartney, iconic FFR and cruelty free brand. The forum welcomed 15 speakers from Governments, Media and Brands who all contributed to open discussion on the topic of fur in China and globally. Through the forum we seek to connect experts from the fashion industry and academia and provide a way to learn from the innovative ways people are making the industry more sustainable and eliminating the use of fur. In 2021 we have exciting plans to provide two forums one focussed on industry and one on consumers to ensure we serve both groups and give each audience more specific discussion and plausible options for moving away from fur. Mainstream media engagement is important for this event to ensure the messages are provided to the public. Credibility is gained through the reports and research work undertaken and shared. In 2020 a fashion curriculum for Higher Education fashion students was launched, with support from John Lau, London College of Fashion called Compassion in Fashion: Sustainability begins with Fur Free, the course looks at sustainability through the lens of fur and will be a world first. The course will be transferred to an e-learning platform (bilingual) and launched online in June 2021 to increase accessibility. We base our projects on promoting the SDGs and industry adaptations bringing accurate up to date information to the public eye. We seek positive partnerships to further the reach and scale of the audience. In 2020 we moved to a hybrid model of delivery for the Compassion in Fashion Festival which has made the event accessible across China and the world.

ACTAsia is working at both sides of the supply and demand cycle. We aim to reduce demand for fur but at the same time support and build capacity within brands who pledge fur free (Fur Free Retailers) so that they can benefit from the change in demand and supply the public with sustainable cruelty-free products. The Forum offers an industry focus to explore alternative materials e.g. apple leather, and also empowers brands to make the change to fur-free. The fashion show is an opportunity to showcase fur free brands and act as a catalyst for change. Framing the fur free movement within the overall sustainability movement is key to keep the issue mainstream, in the public eye. Consumers need to be open minded and be able to decipher between what is the truth and what is ‘greenwashing’. To be able to differentiate, they must be knowledgeable about issues and sustainable choices. Surveys indicate that consumer education programmes are key for future change. Climate change and pollution are topical subjects for global debate with farming practices of all species coming more under scrutiny than ever before. Young people are changing their eating habits to vegetarian and plant-based meals in preference to eating meat products. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused people to look critically at their lifestyles and think more carefully about the ways in which the production of goods that we eat and wear, can adversely affect the lives of so many people in different ways, also the inhumane treatment and unnecessary slaughter of so many animals. There are moral and ethical implications for students of fashion and the general public to consider which need to be balanced with not just economic choices, but also with compassionate choices. Such choices can have greater positive significance for the health and wellbeing of civic society, so through the consumer education programme we aim to keep the discussion alive within the public arena and invite key academics, scientists, fashion brands and designers to the Forum to debate and discuss their understanding and perspective within the fashion industry. ACTAsia’s experience of the Fashion Show & Forum model as a vehicle to promote consumer education during the past 5 years, indicates there is a growing willingness and change within the fashion industry. A most welcome signal indicating that the global fashion industry will be instrumental in steering the world to a fur free future.

ACTAsia, established in 2006, is a registered NGO in the UK, The Netherlands, Australia, a 501c3 in the USA, a Social Enterprise in Guangdong Province China and complies with each country’s legal requirements. ACTAsia is directed by the Chief Executive, accountable to the Board of Trustees and globally has an international Board of Advisors (volunteer consultants), 9 full time employees; 10 part time employees and approximately 100 volunteers. Robust governance structure is in place for ACTAsia with strategic planning, budgeting, key performance indicators, evaluation and partnerships identified. This process is directed and monitored by the ACTAsia Head Office in UK. An external auditor submits financial accounts and an annual report to the Charity Commission and Companies House as required by law. ACTAsia produces an Annual Report with financial information which is available for public scrutiny. Compassion in Fashion is an ACTAsia campaign initiative which incorporates a Sustainable Fashion curriculum for students and an annual Fashion Show and Forum. For this initiative ACTAsia has 2 key partners. I) Associate Dean at London College of Fashion (LCF) John Lau as the lead, and ii) Fur Free Retailer Association, a group of international NGO’s all registered with the relevant authorities in their respective countries. Each representative has decision-making authority and reports as agreed by their respective governing body. The campaign in managed by ACTAsia’s International Director of Programmes, reporting to the Chief Executive. Reports and images are reported on the website, with academic information reported under the iCARE section, the academic arm of the organisation for reports on formal education publications and events. Other stakeholder networks for this campaign represent the fashion industry, academia, sponsors and non-profit organisations. Monitoring and evaluation with any necessary changes are reported to stakeholders at regular pre-agreed intervals, ensuring the outcomes and process is transparent. Events are managed and reported by using ‘task.io’, an application used to collect data as it happens to ensure transparency and generate immediate updates for all stakeholders. KPI’s are measured and displayed to inform of the impact and success of each event. Media reach of the 2019 Fashion Show and Forum was in excess of 40million. ACTAsia’s credibility has been enhanced during the past 6 years through robust research, documented and published in the following documents: 2018 ACTAsia, Toxic Fur: A Global Issue; 2019 ACTAsia, China’s Fur Trade and its position in the global fur industry.

China Biodiversity and Conservation Green Development Fund (CBCGDF)\r\nJohn Lau, Associate Dean at London College of Fashion (LCF) \r\nFashion Zoo \r\nOpen Philanthropy Project \r\nAnimal People Forum \r\nAnima \r\nFur Free Retailer scheme