The Green Carpet Challenge or the GCC is the brainchild of the always eco-fashionable Livia Firth (yes, wife of Mr Colin Firth) and has been buzzing since 2009. The challenge works with A-list designers and pioneering sustainability brands, to catapult sustainable green fashion onto the world stage, with many partnerships winding up on the red carpet.
Lots of well known celebrities and designers including Cameron Diaz, Julianne Moore and Tom Ford, have already participated in the initiative, but with a new website and a whole raft of new collaborations underway, we take a look at some of the recent Green Carpet Challenge projects.
1. Collaboration with Chopard
The latest collaboration and arguably one of the more interesting ones, has been between GCC and luxury jewelry line, Chopard. Chopard is working with the challenge, alongside the Alliance for Responsible Mining, in launching a new collection, appropriately named “The Journey.” The collection itself includes a gold diamond bracelet and matching earrings, with the materials being sustainably sourced and Fair-mined gold from community mines in South America. This is the first jewelry collection to be awarded the GCC brand mark; and to add even more excitement to the occasion, the initiative was recently launched in Cannes. Chopard already has a fifteen year relationship with Cannes, being the sculptor of the coveted Golden Palm Trophy.
2. The Met Ball 2013
This year’s Met Ball was the third time the event had teamed up with GCC on the red carpet to promote green fashion. Livia herself even embraced the Punk theme with a specially designed Moschino dress, made of certified low environmental impact yarns. Just to add a quirky element to the evening, she added a peace sign to the back of her dress, made entirely of pins. She also recruited friends and eco advocates Emily Blunt and John Krasinkski to the cause. For her second foray in the challenge, having first participated last September, Blunt donned a black Carolina Herrera gown made with vintage wool fabric and silk chiffon, while Krasinski looked dapper in a Tom Ford suit made from low environmental impact woven wool. (the same one used for Bradley Cooper’s eco friendly suit at the Golden Globes.)
3. Gucci’s Green Bags
Livia Firth and the GCC also recently teamed up with Gucci, the Rainforest Alliance, and the National Wildlife Federation, to create a luxury handbag line made out of deforestation leather. The collection itself is the culmination of years of work in securing sustainably produced leather from the Brazilian Amazon, and has become the first leather product to be certified as ‘zero deforestation.’ The bag’s supply chain is also transparent and each bag comes with a GCC Passport containing important information for the consumer detailing the sustainability credentials, setting a new standard for brand accountability. The three new Gucci handbags: the Hobo, the New Jackie and the Top Handle Tote, all carry the stamp of sustainability.
Images: Eco Age