DLS-CSB bags top prize at 1st Aboitiz Green Fashion Revolution in Manila
DLS-CSB WINS ABOITIZ GREEN FASHION REVOLUTION MANILA. De La Salle-College of St. Benilde, with a design concept dubbed “Eiron,” was named grand prize winner as well as the winner of five special awards at the first Aboitiz Green Fashion Revolution in Manila. University of the Philippines Diliman and Asia Pacific College were named 1st and 2nd runners-up, respectively. Since 2012, Aboitiz Green Fashion Revolution has been challenging college students to create clothing, footwear, and accessories that make use of recycled materials and highlight the importance of the 3Rs-Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.
With a striking blue-white portfolio highlighting the pressing issue of water pollution, De La Salle-College of St. Benilde (DLS-CSB) was declared the grand prize winner at the Aboitiz Green Fashion Revolution 2016 last January 30, the first ever to be staged in Manila.
Besting the collections from two other schools, namely the University of the Philippines Diliman and Asia Pacific College, DLS-CSB wowed the hundred-plus crowd at SMX Convention Center Aura with its edgy design concept dubbed “Eiron,” from the Greek word for “irony.”
“We wanted to spread awareness of how each and every one of us are killing the waters and suffocating it with pollution. The biggest irony is that we, its caretakers, are the very source of its pain and destruction,” DLS-CSB said.
Aside from winning a P50,000 cash prize and the opportunity to implement a corporate social responsibility project in coordination with the Aboitiz Foundation, DLS-CSB similarly swept all five special awards, winning the Best Clothing Design, Best Accessories Design, Best Bag Design, and Best Footwear Design titles.
An annual favorite within Cebu’s college and university fashion circuit for the past four years, the Aboitiz Green Fashion Revolution-with the theme “ECOUTURE: Greener Design for a BetterWorld”-successfully debuted in Manila for the first time this year.
Some of the country’s eminent fashion icons such as topnotch designers Ma. Rosanna Ocampo and Ito Curata, Philippine Tatler’s Mia Borromeo and People Asia’s Paolo de la Cruz, Celia Elumba of the Philippine Textile Research Institute, and Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc.’s Melissa Aboitiz-Elizalde judged this year’s designs, which were derived from an estimated 200 kilograms of materials from various Aboitiz business units.
“We in Aboitiz, have a sustainability mindset of doing well by doing good, always making the right long-term decisions that balance the interest of people, planet and profit. We would like to pass and instill this mindset to our youth, as young as they are, like our participants,” said Sonny Carpio, Aboitiz Foundation Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.
“We would like to congratulate all schools that participated in this event. We consider you all winners not only for this event but champions in creating a BetterWorld through sustainable green fashion,” Carpio added.
The Aboitiz Green Fashion Revolution was the brainchild of a group of Aboitiz scholars during the Aboitiz Scholars’ CSR Summit in December 2011 and was first staged in 2012 through the auspices of the Aboitiz Foundation. Since then, it has been challenging students to create clothing, footwear, and accessories that make use of recycled materials and highlight the importance of the 3Rs-Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.
About Aboitiz Foundation
Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. is the corporate foundation of the Aboitiz Group. Established in 1988, it addresses the social and economic development needs of marginalized members of society. It constantly delivers value to its stakeholders including the communities where it has presence. The Foundation focuses its corporate social responsibility efforts on education, enterprise development, the environment, and health and well-being.