Hello mis amores,
As the founder of Goshopia and the Country Coordinator for Fashion Revolution UAE, I carry this initiative very close to my heart. Each year, as April approaches, I feel a sense of hope and urgency come together. Hope for a fashion industry that celebrates life, culture, and creativity—not exploitation. Urgency, because we are still rebuilding from the heartbreak of Rana Plaza, and there is still so much work to do. This year, I’m thrilled to invite you to join Fashion Revolution Week UAE 2025, happening from April 21st to 27th. Our theme this year? “Think Globally, Act Locally.”
This is more than just a campaign. It’s a movement, a celebration, and a call to action. Through storytelling, education, art, and action, we’re reimagining the fashion system—from the roots up.
Why Do We need a Revolution: A Look Back to Look Forward
In 2013, the Rana Plaza building collapse shook the world. Over 1,100 garment workers—mostly young women—lost their lives in the name of cheap fashion and greed. Every Fashion Revolution Week since then has been about remembrance, resistance, and regeneration. Eleven years later, we’re still asking the same vital questions:
- Who made my clothes?
- What’s in my clothes?
- How can we do better—for people and planet?
This Year’s Manifesto in Motion
In the UAE, we’re channeling the global movement through our local lens. Our focus this year is on three powerful pillars that guide our agenda:
- Cultural Integrity: Honoring heritage, giving credit, and preserving craftsmanship.
- Solidarity and Inclusiveness: Making fashion a space for every voice, body, and background.
- Mindful Consumption: Reducing waste, upcycling, and embracing circularity with intention and style.
From panels to parties, student showcases to traditional textile talks—there’s something here for every conscious fashion lover, designer, student, and changemaker.
🌍 A Digital Showcase Like No Other
This year, our student competition evolves into the #FR25 Digital Sustainable Fashion Showcase—a celebration of creativity, ethics, and ingenuity. It’s open not just to fashion students, but also to hobbyists and anyone crafting their own designs with sustainability in mind.
Submissions are open until April 14th, with the showcase live from April 18th–30th. Watch, vote, and witness how fresh talent is designing a better fashion future.
Vote for your favorite look and be part of their journey.
🤖 Can AI Help Fashion Become More Sustainable?
April 21st | 6:00 PM GST | Online via Zoom
We’re diving deep into the intersection of technology and ethics in this thought-provoking panel. With speakers from Microsoft, DAMAC Group, and beyond, we’ll explore how AI might help us design better, waste less, and personalize more—without losing our humanity in the process.
Moderated by yours truly—with my FRev hat, Goshopia hat and my AI Master’s hat all on.
🌿 Fashion & Its Roots: Honoring Ancestry, Inspiring the Future
April 22nd | 6:00 PM GST | Online
This panel feels like a love letter to heritage. From Sri Lanka to Italy to India, we’ll explore how lacework, handloom, and ancient techniques hold the answers to a sustainable future. If you believe that what’s old is not forgotten—but sacred—this session will speak to your soul.
Led by inspiring people preserving culture through craft, this event is an ode to the hands that came before us.
🎤 Behind the Seams: The Struggles of Fashion’s Makers
April 23rd | 6:00 PM GST | Online
Let’s bring the hidden stories to the front row. This panel uncovers the systemic challenges faced by slow fashion’s unsung heroes—our makers. With voices from India, the UAE, and beyond, we’ll explore innovation, equity, and empowerment.
Let’s shine a light on those who stitch our values into every thread. Register here for this awesome panel!
🎨 Creative Upcycling & The Spirit of Jugaad
April 24th | 6:00 PM GST | Online
From scraps to statements, this session will show you how waste can become your greatest muse. Featuring Refash founder Akanksha Kaila and hosted by upcycling queen Poojitha Lakshman, this is your invitation to turn the old into something golden.
Register and let your imagination run wild here.
🌀 Are We Going Backwards? Fast Fashion vs. the Revolution
April 25th | 6:00 PM GST | Online
Are we winning the battle for better fashion—or are we losing it to ultra-fast giants like Shein and Temu? This brave, necessary conversation brings marketers, coordinators, and advocates to the table to tackle the hard truths.
Let’s get real, get strategic, and protect the values we care about. Register here!
🎊 The #FR25 Community Celebration
April 26th | From 6:00 PM GST till late | InterContinental Dubai Marina
Now, for something a little more joyful! Join us for an unforgettable evening of music, connection, style, and celebration. It’s our big Fashion Revolution Week party—and you’re on the guest list.
Bring your friends, your dancing shoes, and your slow fashion flair. This is where community meets consciousness, and we raise our glasses to the future we’re building—together.
Register here and it is open to everybody, so bring your friends along!
♻️ Clothes Swap & Furoshiki Workshop
April 27th | 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM | London College of Arts, Dubai
Let’s wrap up the week with the most feel-good activity of all: a clothes swap! Bring your pre-loved garments and find new treasures. While volunteers get the swap shop ready, join our Furoshiki Workshop led by Poojitha Lakshman and learn the art of sustainable gift-wrapping. It’s beautiful, cultural, and zero waste.
Register here and let’s end the week with creativity and connection.
A Final Word from My Heart
Fashion is powerful. It touches every life, every culture, and every corner of our planet. But it’s also broken. Fashion Revolution Week is our moment to rebuild—not with fear, but with hope, courage, and community.
To the volunteers, the artisans, the students, the designers, the dreamers… Thank you. You are the threads of this revolution. Let’s keep weaving a future we can be proud of—where style meets soul, and consciousness becomes culture.
Join us. Share the message. Be the change.
With all my love and purpose,
Araceli Gallego
Fashion Revolution UAE Country Coordinator
Founder of Goshopia
Follow the movement on Instagram @fash_revuae
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Hashtags to follow and share:
#FRw2025 #FashionRevolutionWeek2025 #WhoMadeMyClothes #WhatsInMyClothes #LovedClothesLast
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