The global garment industry is expected to expand by two-thirds by 2030 and be responsible for one-quarter of the global carbon footprint by 2050, up from two per cent in 2015. The fashion industry is recognized as the second-most polluting sector in the world after the oil industry. Luxury consumers are expressing a willingness to spend more for garments whose production doesn’t harm the environment or exploit workers.

Ethnic minorities hold just 11 per cent of board seats on the 15 largest publicly traded fashion companies. The case for making the fashion industry more inclusive is both moral and ethical and also makes business sense. The most technically and culturally diverse boards are significantly more likely to deliver higher profits and generate more sales.

While fast fashion industry is considered the main driver of rapid expansion in the textile industry, luxury industry can help raise standards that would put downward pressure on fast fashion. A rigorous best-practice program for garment factory inspectors still does not exist despite a global outcry after the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh killing more than 1,300 garment workers. An Italian fashion chamber roundtable has called on investors in the industry to make sustainability part of their criteria.