This UKFT Nature Series webinar explores how fashion and textile businesses can use the recommendations and guidance of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) to understand their interactions with nature, assess how these translate into financial risks and opportunities, and unlock innovation to drive both resilience and commercial value.

The session will focus on practical strategies businesses can implement to move from insights to action on nature, sharing lessons learned from early movers and sector experts.

The webinar will cover:

· Latest insights into why biodiversity is a material business issue to the fashion and textile industry.

· An introduction to the recommendations and sector guidance of the TNFD and how it can support better business decisions.

· How businesses are exploring innovation in materials as a tool for nature-related risk reduction and value creation.

· What strategies and approaches can support business in moving from risk assessment to implementation.

· Lessons learned from early movers in the sector on how businesses can get started on nature.

This practical session will support businesses who are working to get ahead of future disclosure requirements, respond to investor questions on nature, boost supply‑chain resilience, and act on nature‑related opportunities.

Speaker Bios:

Andrew Mitchell: Andrew Mitchell is the Founder of Global Canopy, an NGO in Oxford and has spent a lifetime at the frontline of tropical forest conservation and sustainable finance. He is Senior Adviser on Nature and Climate Finance to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Co-founder and Senior Adviser to the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosure (TNFD). As an international thought leader on sustainable finance, climate change and forests, he advises governments and the finance sector on risks and opportunities related to transitioning the global economy towards a nature positive future.

As Senior Adviser to Global Canopy, one of the world’s leading providers of ‘data for nature’, he helped to accelerate the understanding of forests and climate within the UNFCCC and pioneered biodiversity disclosure among corporations worldwide. He leads Equilibrium Futures, a private consultancy advising the financial sector. His latest publication “The Little Book of Nature Business: an investment framework for tomorrow’s world.”

Dr. Helen Crowley: Dr. Crowley is a global authority on biodiversity and nature-based solutions with over three decades of leadership integrating nature, climate, and sustainability into business, finance, and conservation strategy.

Helen has over 30 years of global experience in biodiversity designing and implementing nature-and climate-based solutions, and integrating nature into business, finance, and enterprise strategy. She led conservation strategy with the Wildlife Conservation Society in Africa and Madagascar for over a decade, a decade advancing corporate sustainability at Kering, and serving as Managing Director at Pollination, an advisory and investment firm focused on nature and climate. She now advises companies, investors, NGOs, and start-ups globally. Dr. Crowley co-produced a short documentary film and was recognized among Australia’s top 52 ‘newsmakers’ in 2022. She serves as a non-executive Director and Advisor on several for-profit and non-profit Boards. Helen holds a PhD in Zoology from the Australian National University, has led research expeditions with the Australian Antarctic Expeditions and the National Geographic Society, and was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre National by the President of Madagascar for her services to the country.

Julian Ellis-Brown: Julian Ellis-Brown is a systems thinker and design engineer specialising in novel sustainable materials. Based in London, he co-founded Ponda (previously SaltyCo) alongside fellow students Antonia Jara Contreras, Finlay Duncan and Neloufar Taheri when they met on an innovation programme at the Royal College of Art and Imperial College London. Julian’s background in mechanical engineering, alongside his design Masters, enables him to have a holistic understanding of both the minutia and macro impact of designing materials that put nature first.

Ponda (previously SaltyCo) uses the hardiest and most adaptable parts of nature to build materials in a changing environment whilst actively healing it. Their flagship product is a plant-based fibre fill for apparel and other applications, made from salt-tolerant freshwater-free plants. Salt marshes are some of the most planet-healing spaces in the world, and farming salt-tolerant plants in these environments provides optimum sustainability, while reducing reliance on heavily freshwater-reliant plants such as cotton.

Valerie Pinkerton: Valerie leads market engagement on the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) in the UK for the Green Finance Institute (GFI). She works closely with senior leadership of UK companies to build a strong business case for taking action on nature, from disclosure to nature transition planning and execution, and coordinates the TNFD’s UK Consultation Group. Valerie joins from the CANA Collective, where she was a contractor with a focus on natural capital accounting. Previously, she was a Director at Pollination, where she supported clients with nature risk assessments and strategy development, due diligence as part of carbon market transactions, and coalition-based policy advocacy for scaling environmental markets. Prior to this, she was an Associate Program Officer at the Robertson Foundation, making strategic grants to address climate change, protect ocean health, and deliver landscape-scale restoration projects.

Only Accessible to UKFT Members.

The webinar will be recorded and sent to all those who registered.

ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY 101 WEBINAR SERIES (S101)

To go alongside its Sustainability 101 Series, the UK Fashion & Textile Association (UKFT) is hosting a programme of webinars focused on sustainability topics such as standards, Green Claims, Greenwashing and Due Diligence. This is part of UKFT’s goal to simplify the journey towards sustainability and help companies make the right choices by providing unbiased, industry-specific guidance.