Livia Firth has a fastidious commitment to sustainable fashion, and has been walking the red carpet for the past three years on the arm of Husband, Colin Firth to bring the environmental and social issues surrounding clothing to the fore. She started the Green Carpet Challenge (GCC) three years ago and her immediate beauty and warmth elicits flashes from the best photographers and inches of editorial on her GCC initiative. Vogue UK commission her to blog about her experience in sustainable fashion, attending red carpet events such as the Oscars, Met Ball, meeting the Obamas and last week the Golden Globes. Livia chooses outfits for each event that are created to stringent sustainability guidelines and her blog documents the process.  She works with some of the most exciting designers in the industry, provoking innovative approaches to ethical fashion.  

Her 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards gown was created by Armani from recycled bottles.  On her blog she wrote of the dress “When I put the dress on it felt incredible. It transports me to Italy in the 1960s. Armani just knows how to do this so well! There is also a really fun geisha reference in this dress with the ornate lining - very in line with the current Armani look. But the real achievement for me is that last night the GCC proved that sophistication and sustainability can go together. That's the victory that Armani has delivered for us.”

Giorgio Armani was obviously excited about the dress commenting to the press “Livia’s enthusiasm and dedication to this cause have been very inspiring for me. Awareness for the environment is a topic that’s very important for us all: we cannot avoid it”. His niece, Roberta Armani, who worked closely with Livia on the project said “I was captivated by her contagious energy and by her enthusiasm in making such an important message her own and transmitting it to the world. It was very innovative of her to realize that a project like this could capture the imagination and generate great publicity’.”

Looking forward to 2012, the Green Carpet Challenge is set to feature world’s leading fashion designers: Chanel, Alberta Ferretti, Tom Ford, Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Stella McCartney, Paul Smith, Valentino, Roger Vivier and Ermenegildo Zegna. The designers are all tantalized by the challenge. Frida Giannini, Creative director of Gucci said “Livia's passion for the mission of this project is infectious. We all have a collective responsibility towards future generations to minimise our impact on the environment and through this initiative we can hopefully show that you don't have to make any compromises in design and creativity when working with environmentally friendly materials." Alberta Ferretti said “Creating feminine, glamorous, yet eco-friendly clothes is a challenge that stimulates my creativity. I believe that fashion is a strong way of communication that can support such an actual and contemporary cause.”  As Livia wrote on her blog “Fashion is a brilliant communicator. The fashion we communicate through the GCC promotes social justice, environmental integrity and the very best in design.” 

The luminary list is a double pronged thrust forward for sustainable fashion. Ethical options are done beautifully, unlike some misguided green fashion, engaging the best minds in the fashion industry in the challenge of creating sustainable production has the potential for a wide ranging influence in the fashion industry. The inspiration that the designers dressing Livia provide to the next generation of designers is immense, and provides a roadmap for future designers to work towards sustainability.