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Dr Mark Sumner is well placed to share his knowledge and expertise on the subject of fashion with listeners of the ProGRESS podcast. If anyone has a passion for fashion and wants to enter it as a profession, but wants balance to ensure they are putting sustainable and ethical practices at the heart of their chosen career, listen in.
Mark's own career has taken him from training as a quantity surveyor to studying first physics, then a doctorate in textile engineering. He joined renowned and respected retailer Marks & Spencer, working as a textile technologist. While he was there, Mark studied for an Open University degree in environmental science, afterwards becoming a leading sustainability specialist for the firm.
When Mark left retail he joined the University of Leeds School of Design and became the lead lecturer focussing on sustainability, textiles, clothing and the fashion industry.
Even though he has a full schedule he still publishes research papers, most recently on the influence of yarn characteristics on microfibre release from knitted fabrics during laundering.
In this episode of ProGRESS, Mark discusses:
University of Leeds School of Design BA Sustainable Fashion Programme
United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals and (SDG) 8
Marks & Spencer's sustainability practices
University of Leeds School of Design
The Leeds Institute of Textiles and Colour
Season 1 Episode 9: Sanjukta Jitendhar, architect, Mikhail Riches
Season 1 Episode 10: Duncan Goose, founder of Global Ethics and One Water
Season 1 Episode 11: Sarah Ashworth, researcher developer at University of Manchester
