Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Lagos Fashion Week is being recognised for its contributions to promoting a more sustainable global fashion industry.
The influential Nigerian showcase for African fashion was named a finalist this week in the “Build a Waste Free World” category of the 2025 Earthshot Prize, which celebrates transformative climate solutions from around the world. Since 2020, Lagos Fashion Week has staged a sustainability-focused event each year called Woven Threads that advocates for responsible and ethical design practices in fashion.
Founded in 2011 by Omoyemi Akerele, Lagos Fashion Week has garnered international attention for platforming the work of emerging designers and local artisans. The event has also fostered global market access to design from across the continent through multiple initiatives, while integrating circular practices in the regional textile and apparel sector.
“The Earthshot Prize is not just about me or Lagos Fashion Week, but about the community of designers, artisans, and young people who continue to prove that African fashion has something powerful and lasting to offer the world,” said Akerele, who was named a climate leadership fellow at Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs earlier this year. “For us, sustainability is not a trend — it is survival.”
ADVERTISEMENT
The Earthshot prize was established in 2020 by Prince William of the United Kingdom to identify and celebrate environmental leaders. This year’s cohort of 15 finalists was selected from nearly 2,500 nominees. The five winners will be announced on Nov. 5 at an awards ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Learn more:
Africa’s Powerhouse Is Rewriting the Fashion Week Playbook
As Lagos Fashion Week kicks off, founder Omoyemi Akerele looks back at ten years of shows and reveals how Nigeria’s flagship fashion event could adopt a pan-African strategy in the decade ahead.
