Milan Fashion Week: Rural mountain women collaborate with top Italian designer
The women of Topchu retain ownership of their designs and will be able to reproduce the fashion items and sell them directly, benefiting from the increased international exposure.
Photo: ©FAO/Mirbek Kadraliev
A unique collection by Italian-Haitian fashion designer Stella Jean and craftswomen from the mountains of Kyrgyzstan will be highlighted at Milan Fashion Week today.
The collaboration is supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) through its Women’s Committee and the Mountain Partnership Products initiative, a global branding scheme promoting products from small-scale producers in mountain areas.
The initiative builds the resilience of mountain people, many of whom live with threats of climate change and are poor and marginalized.
Stella Jean, a champion of ethical fashion, partnered with the Mountain Partnership Products initiative after being introduced by the FAO Women’s Committee to the work of the Kyrgyz women from Barskoon, a settlement at 1750 meters elevation in the northeast of the country.
“When I saw the women's silk and felt work, I immediately knew that they are the backbone of eco-sustainable fashion. They are custodians of a circular economy which is equitable and has a low environmental impact,” Jean said.
The women create carpets, wall hangings and silk-and-felt scarves using traditional feltwork handed down through generations. In 2017, with support from the Mountain Partnership Products initiative, they formed an artisan group called Topchu to produce and market products collectively. Thanks to the sales of their scarves around the world, the women have been able to boost their incomes, support their children’s education and expand their vegetable gardens.