4 Days, 5 Cities, 1 Radical Vision for Fashion

During four days of Amsterdam Fashion Week, we hosted a central hub at NIO House in Amsterdam, connected to satellite events in Accra, Cairo, Toronto, and Jaipur. We explored intersections between informal and formal systems, craft and industry, and the Global North and South.

‘Kanta To The World,’ our upcycling experience at Amsterdam Fashion Week (AFW), was our largest event to date. Over four days, we hosted a central hub in Amsterdam at NIO House, connected to satellite events in Accra, Cairo, Toronto, and Jaipur. Our aim was not only to showcase upcycling but also to explore intersections: between informal and formal systems, craft and industry, the Global North and South, and local action and global dialogue.

From my perspective, the four days felt like an “ultra-marathon” of coordination, creativity, and engagement. While I orchestrated workshops, panels, and co-creative experiences, my co-founder Daan Sonnemans ran a 75 km ultramarathon up Kilimanjaro — an apt metaphor for the physical and emotional intensity, but also the adrenaline rush, of the event. Amsterdam Fashion Week was my ultra-marathon up Kilimanjaro.

We believe in the power of intersections, the bridging of informal and formal systems, the potential of third spaces, the richness of hybrid interactions, and the wisdom embedded within communities. I could not be prouder of what we accomplished over the four days: a program that not only created a shared space in Amsterdam but also connected a global upcycling community.

Traditionally, fashion week has been synonymous with exclusive shows, brand showcases, and ‘too-cool-for-you’ crowds. Yet the space we cultivated in the heart of Amsterdam was different: open, warm, safe, and unrestricted. It became a haven for creativity, experimentation, and upcycling. Unwanted clothes were transformed into a playground for meaningful creations, conscious conversations, new interactions, and powerful statements.

Part of what sustained that energy was the support of our food and drink sponsors, who helped us create an atmosphere of care and hospitality. We are especially grateful to Tony’s Chocolonely, Wakuli, BeVino, and Cultcha Kombucha for aligning with our values and contributing to the spirit of connection that defined the event. Similarly, Het Goed provided second-hand furniture that shaped a welcoming, flexible environment — reinforcing the ethos of reuse and circularity.

Over 400 people joined us in Amsterdam to engage, learn, create, and exchange — not to mention the ripple effect across the satellite events in other cities. I believe what we achieved planted seeds for the future of fashion. How can we hold space for marginalised communities at the forefront of textile waste? How can we confront the immense mountain of discarded textiles together, as a global community of people who care and exercise agency over the life of our garments?

Day One: Co-Creation and Connection

The first day was filled with anticipation — and a bit of anxiety. After months of planning and promotion, I feared attendance might fall short. Those fears quickly dissolved as participants arrived, curious and ready to engage.

We began with a co-making session featuring knitting, crocheting, and collaborative upcycling with Knits & Notes and Rafael Kuoto. This hands-on practice immediately created a sense of shared purpose and connection. Participants were not just observing; they were actively creating, experimenting, and learning. The energy of the room was further lifted by a lively afro-funk set from Jota Juan.

The space was officially opened by Amelie Strens, Chairwoman of Amsterdam-Centrum, whose presence anchored the event and signalled the city’s commitment to community-led initiatives.

In the afternoon, the panel “Upcycling Across Borders” brought together voices from both European and Ghanaian contexts. Rafael Kuoto and Sophia Winterman (Knits & Notes) represented European craft and design perspectives, emphasising community-led solutions and cultural connection through craft. Emmanuel Tetteh (Daily Dosage), Richard Asante Palmar (Alpha Costume), and Bukari Latifa Forkwie (Kuoro Earth) spoke from Kantamanto, sharing lived experiences of balancing survival, artistic expression, and business in the midst of second-hand clothing flows.

This conversation highlighted upcycling as simultaneously a cultural practice, a livelihood, and a form of resistance. The panellists also pointed out the structural challenges: declining bale quality, regulatory barriers, limited visibility, and inadequate market access. Yet they celebrated the resilience, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing that define the Kantamanto community.

Meanwhile, in Accra, our partner Theme Party Ghana hosted the Upcycle Street Party, with upcycled collections, a fashion show, a pop-up, and live upcycling demonstrations. Day one reinforced the importance of creating co-creative spaces where local knowledge and global dialogue meet.

Day Two: Before the Bale

The second day focused on interventions before clothes even leave local communities. A workshop in simple alterations by Etta Studio introduced participants to practical ways of prolonging garment life, emphasising hands-on learning and empowerment.

At the same time, SWAPMODE hosted a lively swap party, creating a fun, participatory space where attendees could exchange clothes, explore sustainable fashion alternatives, and experience the joy of circular practices firsthand.

The panel “Before the Bale” highlighted how everyday choices and local systems influence the circular economy, stressing that the loss of agency over garments is systemic. Moderating the session, I framed the conversation around reclaiming agency and extending garment lives locally. Etta Lathan-Pons (Etta Studio) called for normalising upcycling as aspirational and mainstream. Marite Flores and Laura Vicaria (SWAPMODE) emphasised cultural shifts that make swapping joyful and easy. Suanny Aranguren (The Shared Bag, Toronto) underscored the social value of community workshops, while Hunaina Kamran (New Circles, Toronto) brought frontline insights into donation volumes, contamination, and the importance of dignity in the recipient experience.

Together, the discussion advocated for a hierarchy: repair and swap first, upcycle second, recycle only as a last resort.

As the day concluded in Amsterdam, Suanny carried the momentum forward in Toronto with an upcycling event at OK Studios, showcasing local skills and engaging the community in embroidery and other techniques. This demonstrated collective action across borders and the power of shared practices to shift systems.

Day Three: Grassroots Meets Industry

Day three examined the intersection of informal upcycling practices with industrial systems, asking whether upcycling can scale without losing its creative soul. In Amsterdam, it started out with a tote bag upcycling workshop by Oscar Wentz. Once again, our space was alive with activity, filled with people on the ground, cutting, stitching, experimenting, and discovering the possibilities hidden in discarded fabrics.

The energy was hands-on and collaborative, a reminder that the act of making is itself a form of dialogue. It was deeply heartening to see familiar faces return from the first two days, joining us again on Monday with the same energy and curiosity. The sense of continuity reminded us that what we were building was more than a series of events; it was becoming a community.

This workshop set the stage for deeper conversations, during the panel talk “upscaling upcycling” later in the day, about the future of upcycling. Can grassroots creativity survive when it meets the scale and efficiency of industry? We opened the livestream with Cairo an hour before the panel talk, offering a glimpse into the vibrancy of their activation and setting the tone for a truly cross-continental dialogue. The atmosphere was spontaneous and warm as participants in our Amsterdam workshop waved across the screen to the community in Cairo, bridging geographies through shared creativity and mutual recognition. That day’s panel explored micro-factories, industrial support for informal makers, and metrics for success beyond production volume. Oscar Wentz, an Eindhoven-based independent upcycler, highlighted the need for regulation and accessible material pipelines, while Ahmed Heiba, co-founder of The Shared Bag, presented the Glass Textile micro-factory in Cairo as a model for embedding small-scale makers and educational institutes in industrial spaces.

Both speakers stressed that scaling must preserve agency, protect knowledge, and maintain the aesthetic and cultural integrity of upcycled products. It became clear that industrial infrastructure can complement grassroots creativity, but only if it is designed to serve communities rather than replace them. Practical actions, such as co-designed micro-factories, student-material pipelines, and cross-border workshops, were identified as immediate ways to increase impact while respecting cultural roots. It was such a highlight for the Amsterdam community to see the students showcase their creations one by one over the livestream, so much creativity emerging in just a couple of hours. From inventive pieces incorporating old zippers to unexpected transformations of discarded fabrics, their work demonstrated how quickly discarded materials can be reimagined into something aspirational, playful, and full of cultural resonance.

Almost immediately after, changing roles for the first time during the event, I became a panellist in the “No Time To Waste” talk hosted by Amsterdam Fashion Week. I felt extremely privileged to be curated alongside speakers who are absolute powerhouses in the Dutch sustainable fashion ecosystem. What struck me most during the panel was the contrast in how each of us approached the same problem. For Renée van Wijngaarden (1/OFF® Paris), it was about desirability, how to make upcycling aspirational and accessible beyond the luxury niche. For Ellen Mensink (Bright.Fiber Inside) , it was about volume and systems, how industrial recycling could become scalable through integration and investment. For me, it was about visibility and justice, ensuring that communities like Kantamanto, who are already doing the work of remanufacturing, are recognised as central to the solution rather than peripheral.

Listening to Jonas Zitter (KledingCast) frame the conversation through the lens of waste reduction made me reflect on how often “waste” is still discussed without acknowledging the human labour that carries its burden. The discussion reaffirmed how much remains unsaid in global dialogues. While European recycling models show promise, their benefits will remain partial unless legislation acknowledges where most of the waste actually ends up. Without redistribution of resources and decision-making power, circularity risks becoming another uneven playing field. Walking off that stage, I carried a mix of gratitude and responsibility. Gratitude for being given space at a platform like Amsterdam Fashion Week to hold space for perspectives that are often excluded, and responsibility because I know those words must translate into pressure, partnerships, and pathways that genuinely shift power.

Day Four: Heritage as Future

The final day centred on learning from heritage to reimagine the future of fashion. In Amsterdam, we began with a visit from the Circle Economy team, an almost surreal moment, welcoming the very people whose research on Dutch clothing exports has shaped so much of our understanding of the system. Their presence felt like a bridge between data and lived action, research and practice.

During the panel, Bhaavya Goenka (IroIro Zero Waste, Jaipur) shared India’s culture of jugaad, a spirit of ingenuity and making-do, that resonated deeply with Ghana’s repair economy and even with European’s fading habits of scavenging attics and basements for materials. Together, these stories reinforced that upcycling is not a new invention but an ancient, global response to scarcity. Discussions highlighted how material limitations fuel creativity, catalysing makers to construct textiles before cutting patterns, and how traditions like zero-waste pattern cutting hold lessons for today’s overproduced systems. The panel agreed that upcycling’s future lies in a “tapestry” of approaches, grassroots craft and industrial systems working together, so long as infrastructure supports communities rather than replaces them.

Finally, the tension between the purity of craft and commercial viability emerged, alongside the importance of building demand by shifting aesthetics. Workshops, collective imagination, and visible role models can help reframe upcycling as aspirational. The day closed with a clear message: discarded materials can be reimagined into powerful cultural expressions, but only if systems evolve to respect both heritage and community agency.

Threads We Carry Forward

Across the four days, several themes consistently emerged. Intersections matter: connecting informal and formal systems, North and South, and craft and industrial practices creates opportunities for collaboration and learning. Action beats abstraction: workshops, hands-on experiences, and piloting new ways of making are more effective than purely theoretical discussions. Policy must support practice: EPR, HS codes, and fund flows need reform to enable local upcyclers to thrive. Cultural framing is essential: upcycled goods carry heritage, meaning, and stories that differentiate them from waste. Scaling must be community-led: micro-factories, maker spaces, and exchange programs can amplify impact while protecting creativity and agency.

Immediate steps forward include opening two-way feedback channels between exporters and Kantamanto buyers, running paired workshops connecting global makers, and documenting and promoting their stories. Medium-term priorities involve piloting micro-factory models, establishing market access funds, and creating shared maker spaces near Kantamanto. Long-term actions include embedding repair and circular literacy in education, advocating for EPR and HS code reforms, and establishing cross-border residency programs for makers.

‘Kanta To The World’ reminded us that fashion’s future is about more than garments; it is about people, practices, and systems. By centring makers, connecting communities, and blending craft with industrial infrastructure, we began charting a path toward circular, just, and culturally respectful fashion. Over four days, we did not simply showcase upcycling; we lived it, learned from it, and built the foundation for a global community committed to transforming waste into creativity, livelihoods, and culture.

Thank you to everyone who dreamt with us and made this a reality.

This blog post is part of the Decolonial Fashion Futures Lab, a collaborative project supported by the Creative Industries Fund NL through the Climate (in)Justice grant program. The project explored alternative fashion systems rooted in care, circularity, and community — bridging knowledge between Ghana and the Netherlands to imagine just and sustainable futures for the fashion industry.