The COMÚN Foundation and the Ministry of Climate Protection are calling for submissions in three categories by July 15th. The jury’s prize is endowed with 4,000 euros and a separate youth prize
Vienna (OTS) – Launched in 2023 by the COMÚN Foundation and the Federal Ministry for Climate Protection,Vivienne“, the Austrian prize for ecological textiles, will be awarded jointly again this year. The prize is offered in memory of the late sustainability pioneer Vivienne Westwood and is intended to highlight sustainable fashion and creative approaches to ecological textiles. Innovative textile companies and fashion creators from all over Austria as well as young people are invited to submit by July 15, 2024. The award ceremony will be held by Federal Minister Leonore Gewessler and COMÚN Chairwoman Veronika Bohrn Mena at an event at the Federal Ministry for Climate Protection on September 20th.
COMÚN chairwoman Veronika Bohrn Mena is looking forward to many exciting submissions: “With the Vivienne Prize we want to show how innovative the domestic textile and fashion industry in Austria is and how strongly the ecological idea is already anchored in it. In every region of the country there are people and companies who are thinking about how they can contribute to solving environmental problems in the textile sector. I am particularly looking forward to the prospects of young people. Because we are not just consumers, we are also designers of our world and the sooner we become aware of this, the better.“
Christian Holzer, Head of the Environment and Circular Economy Section in the Climate Protection Ministry: “The textile industry has massive negative impacts on the environment and climate. From pesticides, energy consumption, wastewater and microplastics to large amounts of textile waste, it is responsible for over 10 percent of global CO₂ emissions. With the Austrian circular economy strategy, we provide a clear path for sustainable production and consumption in order to establish a resource-saving, innovative, circular and competitive textile industry. Numerous producers and fashion designers are already proving that recyclable clothing is possible. We would like to bring these pioneers to the fore and honor them with the Vivienne Prize.“
Three categories, a total of 7,000 euros in prize money
The six-person jury includes experts from education, science and practice, but also takes the youth perspective into account. Veronika Pfeiffer-Gössweiner (Herka Frottier), Andreas Bartl (TU Vienna), Smilla Buschbom (student representative), Marianne Musek (designer, Herbststraße fashion school), Julia Weihs (Ministry of Climate Protection) and Rebecca Bachinger (COMÚN Foundation) work in it.
On the one hand, the jury selects the three finalists for the jury prize worth 4,000 euros and also selects three further submissions for voting for the audience prize worth 2,000 euros. Last but not least, three submissions will also be selected for the Youth Prize worth 1,000 euros, which also has its own category and is aimed at students. All information can be found at www.viviennepreis.at.
Questions & Contact:
COMÚN Foundation, +436607038864, board@comun.at