Modeling the winning design for the 2011 RCGD Global competition was the beginning of my journey into the world of ethical and sustainable fashion, which went on to become a main driver for my modeling career. On the night of the RCGD event, Suzy was wearing a beautiful, deep purple gown that had quilt-like patches of color sewn onto the bodice and skirt. It was sheer glamour, but it felt like home. As she told me about the design (created by Jeff Garner), I was fascinated to learn that its materials had been grown on an organic farm in the US and how many of the common practices in the fashion industry had extremely negative affects on the planet and the people working to produce the clothing.

I started to think a lot more about what I could do and decided that, as much as I could, I would promote sustainable and ethical fashion, and collaborate with conscious brands to align my image with my beliefs as much as possible. This choice lead to a number of successful collaborations in the form of photo shoots, runway shows, panel talks and interviews, all to increase awareness for sustainable and ethical fashion, and the urgent need for the fashion industry to make big changes for the future of our planet.”

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Founded in 2016 by Áine Rose Campbell and Cameron Russell, the Model Mafia, aka, the Model Activist Community, is a powerful community of nearly 250 fashion models who work take collective action to create a more equitable, just and sustainable fashion industry and world.