About Us

Amina Razvi

Chief Executive Officer

For more than 20 years, Amina Razvi has worked to transform the apparel and textile industry into one that is more sustainable, equitable, and just. As CEO of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), the leading global multi-stakeholder nonprofit alliance for the consumer goods industry dedicated to transforming business for exponential impact through groundbreaking tools, collaborative partnerships, and trusted leadership for industry sustainability, Amina is responsible for the overall leadership and management of the organization. Under her stewardship, the SAC has grown to represent almost half of the apparel, footwear, and textile industry, including more than 280 retailers, brands, manufacturers, NGOs, academics, and other stakeholders. Their mandate is clear: Transform the industry into a force for good by measuring and addressing social and environmental impact along the entire value chain.

Previously, Amina served as Vice President of Membership at the SAC; while transitioning into her current role, she steered the executive team and liaised with the Board of Directors to shape and enact the organization’s current strategic vision. Prior to the SAC, Amina’s role on Gap Inc.’s Global Sustainability team resulted in the development and implementation of environmental initiatives that spanned owned facilities and supply chains, creating a holistic sustainability strategy that furthered ambitious energy and waste goals. Amina also led the first large-scale deployment of the Higg Index across Gap’s supply chain, and has been involved in the creation, development, piloting, and rollout of the Higg Index since its inception. 

Armed with a background in architecture, including a master’s degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and experience designing and managing construction on projects from skyscrapers to museum complexes, Amina’s experience extends beyond corporate sustainability and reflects a passion for collaboration. Under her leadership, the SAC launched pioneering initiatives and tools while forging strategic partnerships and alliances to fuel innovation, amplify positive impact, and drive real-world transformation.

Zita Abila

Senior Manager, Digital Communications

Zita Abila is the Senior Manager of Digital Communications at the SAC. She oversees the strategy and day-to-day running of the SAC’s key digital channels. She is based in the UK. 

Before joining the SAC, Zita had built over 9 years’ experience in shaping and executing digital marketing strategies across several industries, including working as a Digital Consultant with the West Midlands Anti-Slavery Network. Most recently, she was a Digital Engagement and Content Manager at BI, where she managed website development projects and content creation. She holds an undergraduate degree in Law (with French Law) from King’s College London, and a Master’s in Literature and Culture from the University of Birmingham.

Outside of work, Zita loves doing anything involving visual arts, including designing jewellery, making sculptures, drawing, and painting. She also loves reading and writing.

Aoife Ashford

Assistant, Executive Operations

Aoife Ashford is the Assistant – Executive Operations at the SAC. She provides administrative and operational support to the EVP and wider Executive team, helping them achieve their goals and objectives.

Before joining the SAC team, Aoife was an Executive Assistant at a busy commercial property firm in Dublin, Ireland. She provided administrative support to six company directors across the firm. She was instrumental in preparing proposals and presentations that brought in new business and was a key team-member involved in the successful rebranding of the company, running client competitions and company events. She is a Masters graduate of NUI Galway and also holds a B.A. Int. in Arts.

Aoife loves yoga, spending time outdoors, traveling, cooking and speciality coffee. She’s also learning to salsa!

Dani Baker

Senior Manager, Membership Engagement, EMEA

Dani is the Senior Member Engagement Manager for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) at the SAC. She is responsible for ensuring SAC members have the support they need to fully utilize the Higg Index tools, achieve their impact goals, and contribute to the sector’s progress. She is currently based in London.

Before joining the SAC team, Dani worked at SAC brand member ASOS, where she was responsible for the adoption and strategic deployment of Higg Index tools, and for delivering ASOS net zero strategy for supply chain scope 3 emissions. Dani also founded and chaired the UK SAC Brand Forum, bringing together 14 members to accelerate change through sharing best practice and seeking aligning pre-competitively. Prior to ASOS, she led the sustainable strategy at SAC member F&F Tesco Clothing, working closely with apparel industry affiliates and industry working groups. Dani always champions collective action, seeking a common approach to drive sustained change. 

In her free time Dani loves going out and about with her two young children, as well as travelling with her family. When she gets a chance she loves river kayaking and spending time in the great outdoors. Dani has recently achieved a diploma in Herbal Medicine and is always introducing new herbs, flowers, fruit and veg to her little garden. 

Gabriele Ballero

Policy & Public Affairs Officer

Gabriele Ballero is the Policy & Public Affairs Officer at the SAC. He supports the Senior Director of Policy & Public Affairs in coordinating and undertaking key work streams of the SAC Public Affairs Strategy, delivering widespread and effective government engagement and education to ensure that the Sustainable Apparel Coalition and the global consumer goods industry gives more than it takes. He is based in Brussels, Belgium.

Before joining the SAC team, Gabriele was a Consultant in the Healthcare and Lifesciences practice, where he worked on multi-stakeholder projects related to infectious diseases. Prior to that, Gabriele worked in Regulatory Affairs for medical devices in a Brussels-based consultancy. He is a law and global governance graduate at ESADE University in Barcelona with a Masters in European Politics and Governance at the College of Europe, specializing in European Public Policy Analysis.

In his free time Gabriele loves to travel and has unique stories to share about his experiences. He also speaks multiple languages and loves to learn new ones due to his multicultural upbringing. Gabriele is a native Spanish speaker, and he is also fluent in Catalan, Italian, English, French, speaks some Russian and is now learning Dutch.

Erwan Berthou

Director, Membership & Corporate Engagement

Erwan Berthou is the Director of Membership & Corporate Engagement at the SAC. He is responsible for managing engagement strategies and protocols that enable members to achieve their impact goals and to empower his team driving overall member satisfaction. Erwan is based in Amsterdam. 

Erwan brings 15+ years of marketing and merchandising experience with the Apparel and Footwear industry in brands such as Nike, Burton, G-Star Raw and ASICS. In the last 5 years, he led the global customer success team at Myagi in driving user engagement on their (Saas) Digital platform that enables 200+ brands to remotely train at scale with their retailer’s front line associates. 

Outside of work, Erwan’s interests range from exploring planetary health solutions, studying human psychology, following global affairs and being active outdoors with his family and friends.

Adrián Branco

Senior Manager, Higg Index Brand & Retail

Adrian Branco is the Senior Manager of Higg Index Brand & Retail at the SAC. He ensures that the program is developed and launched successfully, and he also leads the development of strategies to increase its adoption and expansion within our industry. He also ensures that the SAC’s members are involved and coordinated through the Strategic Council and Member Expert teams. He is based in Barcelona, Spain. 

Before joining the SAC team, Adrian was Sourcing and Sustainability Manager at Desigual, where he worked on merging both areas to establish a common agenda aligning sourcing with sustainability, enhancing its synergies. As part of his responsibilities, he led the project that has increased the visibility of the supply chain and improved traceability, and established a new roadmap. Previously, he worked in various positions, from product health and safety technician to buyer. 

Adrian holds a degree in Chemistry from the University of Santiago de Compostela and an MBA from IESIDE. He enjoys playing (and winning) board games, gardening, or working in his workshop in his spare time. He loves tussling with his three children and, whenever possible, a nice rainy day.  

Kelsey Cashman

Global Operations Project Manager

Kelsey Cashman is the Global Operations Project Manager at the SAC. She serves as the resident project management expert and plays an essential role in ensuring SAC team members understand and utilize project management best practices. Kelsey also works on developing internal operations and cross-team processes, including managing and training out key operational software and streamlining quarterly metrics reporting. 

Before joining the SAC, Kelsey was a Senior Product Developer at EO Products, where she led a large cross-functional team in creating and launching safe and effective personal care products. She has spent her career leading product development and merchandising projects for both large corporations and start-ups, including EO Products, Brandless, Mattel, and Target. Kelsey has a passion for sustainability and has led initiatives to drive more sustainable business practices, including launching the How2Recycle® program at Brandless to help simplify the recycling process for consumers.

Kelsey holds a Bachelor’s degree in Retail Merchandising from the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling and spending time outdoors, whether camping with friends or tending to her small vegetable garden. She is located in Minnesota, USA.  

Chu Ching

Collective Action Programs Coordinator

Chu Ching is a coordinator of Collective Action Programs at the SAC. She ensures that the SAC’s collective action strategy and programs are planned, implemented, and monitored, while also collaborating with the program team, Higg Index team, and global membership team to conduct research, respond quickly to member inquiries, and update communication platforms. She is based in Hong Kong.  

Prior to joining the SAC, Chu worked as sustainability development assistant at Allied Sustainability And Environmental Consultants Group Limited. She was specialized in ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) consulting, green building, and decarbonization strategies planning. She graduated with a master’s degree in environmental management from the University of Hong Kong.  

Chu enjoys public engagement that enhances people’ environmental awareness. Besides joining regular beach cleaning, Chu designed and launched an online educational game-based project to educate the public about local agriculture in Hong Kong recently. The program drew 16,000 site visitors in two months and the project was covered by the local newspapers. 

Jade Connor

Administrative Assistant

Jade Connor is an administrative assistant at the SAC. She provides administrative support both internally and externally, manages communications with SAC members and assists in the management of projects. She works within the membership team and is based in Eindhoven, Netherlands.

Jade has worked as a project analyst for the New South Wales Electoral Commission, applying voter data patterns to ensure the running of fair and accessible elections across the New South Wales area. Prior to this, Jade worked at the National Transport Authority of Ireland, monitoring and reporting on the performance of bus routes within the public transport network, and highlighting KPIs to government and service providers. 

Jade has also spent time as an independent contractor, drafting data and legislation driven applications for the provision of crisis accommodation for those suffering from domestic abuse in areas of Dublin.

While in University, Jade received an Earth Sciences Undergraduate of the Year award for her work on her thesis, relating to people’s perception of self-driving cars and their impacts on their environment.

Jade has been an ultimate frisbee player for many years, playing in multiple countries and having won several national titles in Ireland. She enjoys spending time with her cat, Dotje, and in her spare time can be found cycling, drinking coffee and taking trips in her recently self-converted camper van.

Emily Croneberger

Manager, Higg Index Communications

Emily Croneberger is the Higg Index Communications Manager for the SAC. She reports directly to the Sr. Director of Marketing & Communications, Lee Green. She is responsible for communicating news and updates about the Higg Index tools for the organization. She also ensures collaboration between relevant stakeholders, internal teams and external partners as it relates to the Higg Index. She is based in Cary, North Carolina in the United States.

Before joining the SAC team, Emily was the Manager of Marketing & Industry Programs at Cotton Incorporated. In this role, Emily was responsible for marketing strategy and worked closely with internal and external teams to coordinate and implement brand messaging and strategies across global brands and retailers. Emily also served as the liaison between the technical and marketing teams at Cotton Incorporated. Emily is a graduate of North Carolina State University’s College of Textiles and holds a B.S. in Fashion and Textile Marketing. She continued her education at North Carolina State University by earning a M.S. in Textiles, focusing her research on sustainability. 

In her free time, Emily enjoys hiking and exploring new places with her husband and two boys. She also enjoys painting, listening to audiobooks while walking her dogs, and volunteering at a local cat shelter.

James Crowley

Manager, Transparency Lab

James previously focused on transparency and traceability initiatives at Fashion for Good’s Innovation Platform, working alongside innovators, brands, suppliers, and other ecosystem partners to guide and coordinate traceability implementation and multi-stakeholder projects.

With an academic background in supply chain sustainability, he completed his Masters in International Development Msc at the University of Amsterdam, focusing on ESG governance of agricultural commodities (focus on Cocoa in W.Africa). After, he worked for Tony’s Chocolonely’s impact team on traceability for impact-driven cocoa projects in Ghana. Then moved to PVH as a sustainability coordinator in their supply chain team, before joining Fashion for Good. His working and academic interests are in supply chain sustainability, traceability systems, circular business models, international development, and social anthropology.

James was born in Winchester, near the south coast of the UK. He enjoys great music from RnB, to jazz fusion, and loves talking sampling and production. He loves travelling and absorbing new culture, and was lucky enough to travel Russia, China, and Oceania before his masters studies. He is fascinated by how the world works, in terms of governance and how to improve the equitable development of societies. Hobbies include, piano, travelling, sports (basketball, football, ultimate frisbee), and eating lots of Syrian, Lebanese and Moroccan food in Nieuwe West –
Amsterdam.

Fun fact – When James was a young boy, at his uncle’s wedding, he thought he could float on lily pads like a frog. So, he jumped onto the lily pads in the pond in the garden of the wedding reception, only to find that he wasn’t a frog, and his wedding outfit became very wet and extremely muddy.

Kelci Degnian

Senior Manager, Membership Engagement, AMER

Kelci is the Senior Member Engagement Manager for the Americas. She is responsible for ensuring SAC members have the support they need to fully utilize the Higg Index tools, achieve their impact goals, and contribute to the sector’s progress. She is currently based in Houston, Texas.

Before joining the SAC team, Kelci was the Projects & Partnerships Manager at the Allegheny County Library Association, maximizing social impact for the 71-site federated member system. She led myriad initiatives aligning partners from the private sector, nonprofits, boards of directors, and government to deliver value and ensure member success. Previously, Kelci was part of the Public Affairs team at Planned Parenthood, Los Angeles. 

Kelci is a graduate of the University of Queensland, Australia. A passionate rock climber, she’ll take any excuse to travel and climb around the world. With few mountains in Texas, Kelci has turned her attention to mountain biking and coffee science. 

Aaron Di Silvestro

Director of Higg Products

Aaron Di Silvestro is the Director of Higg Products at the SAC, the apparel, footwear, and textile industry’s leading alliance for sustainable production. He liaises between the Higg Index subject matter experts and the Higg Co technical teams, develops roadmaps for tool integration, and eases the transition from expert insights to implementation. He works out of Portland, Oregon.

Before joining the SAC, Aaron worked for Nike’s Global Sustainability organization implementing and delivering the tools required to make more sustainable business decisions. Often working in collaboration with the SAC and Higg, Aaron managed the development of the internal Higg MSI implementations and corporate footprinting applications.

In his free time Aaron is a passionate back-country skier and an unapologetic fan of the Seattle Sounders.

Wendy Dittmer

Senior Director of Operations

Wendy is the Director of Operations and oversees the Human Resources, Finance, Legal, and Operations functions at the SAC. As part of the leadership team, Wendy ensures that the organization has the resources and foundation required to build and implement the Higg Index, the industry’s leading suite of sustainability tools. She is based in the US out of Austin, Texas and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Before joining the SAC team, Wendy spent over 25 years in the technology and fashion industries focusing on sustainability, operations, and I/T. Recently, she was the Chief Operations Officer at Raven + Lily, PBC, a Benefit Corporation apparel and lifestyle brand headquartered in Austin, Texas. In that role, she oversaw supply chain partnerships, sales and marketing, and distribution and logistics, leading the company to greater efficiencies and performance. At the Responsible Business Alliance, an industry coalition focused on supply chain responsibility, she led external communications and stakeholder engagements, working on behalf of the industry members. While at Dell, she led work in supply chain sustainability, supply chain I/T, and call center technology.

Wendy has a Masters of Science in Public Policy and Administration from Northwestern University, and a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science from Purdue University. While she loves working in the fashion industry, software coding will always hold a special place in her heart. She enjoys traveling the globe with her husband, and as an avid long-distance runner, is always looking to pair a trip with a race.

Lisa Domoney

Interim Senior Director, Membership & Corporate Engagement

Lisa Domoney is the interim Senior Director of Membership & Corporate Engagement at the SAC. Together with her team, which includes the SAC’s member engagement, development and operations teams, she is responsible for ensuring the active engagement and overall satisfaction of members, as well as growing the organization’s corporate membership base. Lisa is based in the UK.

Prior to joining the SAC, Lisa was Director Responsible Sourcing for Walmart and Asda. She was part of the central leadership team, responsible for strategically positioning and implementing the global programme across 5 countries. She was architect for the Asda modern slavery strategy and board led steering committee and then went on to facilitate the separation from Walmart with the design of an independent responsible sourcing programme and Asda’s inaugural ESG report.

Earlier in her career, Lisa was at the forefront of social engagement projects at Sainsbury’s and Debenhams and is most proud of the accomplishment in her role on the board of the Bangladesh Accord which was instrumental to the legacy work accomplished on factory safety in Bangladesh and India.

In the last year, Lisa founded AVD Consulting, fulfilling a long-held ambition to take the expertise she developed throughout her 25 year career in global manufacturing and multinational retail, her passion for the apparel industry and support organizations to create real change.  

Outside of work, Lisa spends time in the country with her dog, traveling with family, painting, and keeping fit. She is also trustee for a charity which is focussed on long term care for modern slavery survivors.

Orine Dsouza

Senior Manager, Higg Facility Tools

Orine Dsouza is the Senior Manager of Higg tools for the SAC, the apparel, footwear, and textile industry’s leading alliance for sustainable production. She will be responsible for managing and improving the Higg Facility Environmental Module (Higg FEM), Higg Facility Social & Labor Module (Higg FSLM) and their suite of resources. The goal of this position is to continue integrating the input of Coalition members, facilities, and stakeholders into the tools and resources through effective engagement and facilitation, in order to scale the adoption of these tools globally. She is based in Bangalore/India. 

Before joining the SAC team, Orine was the Supply Chain Sustainability Manager for India and Sri Lanka at H&M. This includes setting the strategy, planning, controlling and analysis of impact for the supply chain. She has been a key contributor, providing guidance on strategy, policies, and planning for long-term sustainability. Orine was responsible for leading the team in implementing the Annual Action Plans (Validation, Program and Projects) in cooperation with the business team and suppliers. She also handled any escalation that came from the supplier level, and provided support in managing and mitigating issues. 

Orine has a Master’s degree in Social Work. In her free time, Orine loves to see new places and bake/ cook new cuisine. 

Sophia Ellis

Manager, Higg Index Transparency Program

Sophia Ellis is the Higg Index Transparency Program Manager at the SAC. She is responsible for driving growth and value of the suite of product transparency claims supported within the Higg Index Transparency Program. She is based in Amsterdam. 

Before joining the SAC team, Sophia was a Buyer and Product Merchandiser within the sporting goods industry for more than 6 years. During this time she gained experience of the product funnel, supply chain and merchandising/buying practices within global brands such as Nike, Adidas & Reebok. She holds a BSc. in Marketing, Technology and Innovation and is currently undertaking her MSc. Environmental Sustainability. 

In her free time, Sophia can be found reading non-fiction and getting creative in her studio. In addition, time spent outdoors and practicing mindfulness contribute greatly to her happiness.

Christina Fleming

Manager, Event Programs & Content

Christina Fleming is the Manager, Event Programs and Content at the SAC. She oversees the development of all event programs, content and marketing. She is based in Orlando, Florida, USA. 

Christina started her career at the SAC as the Executive Assistant to the CEO and Executive Operations Manager to the Executive Team and Board of Directors. Prior to the SAC Christina worked as the Communications Specialist and Marketing Manager for an ecosystem of organizations known as Orlando Opportunity Fund, Brand Advance, Orlando Entrepreneurs and Bright Impact. During this time she led their public relations, marketing, communications and administrative initiatives across all organizations. Alongside her communications career, Christina is a certified yoga and meditation instructor and violinist. She loves spending time outdoors – especially if she can bring along her lovely pup, Cleopawtra.

Demith Gooneratne

Senior Manager, Higg Facility Tools

Demith Gooneratne is the Senior Manager – Higg Facility Tools at the SAC. His Key Responsibilities include; Project Management of the Higg FEM and FSLM, in collaboration with a wide variety of stakeholders, and facilitation and coordination of the SAC members’ involvement. This role also continues the development of adoption resources that support the global scaling of the Higg Facility Module and QA testing in cooperation with technical teams and coordination of communications and case studies. He is based in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Prior to joining the SAC team, Demith was the Senior Manager – Environmental Sustainability at Hirdaramani International Exports (Pvt) Ltd; Sri Lanka , where he was largely responsible for the development of their Environmental Sustainability Department, and managing the environmental sustainability initiatives primarily in Sri Lanka for more than a decade and overlooking strategy level implementation in Bangladesh and Vietnam. He Holds a BSc Degree in Physical Science and a Master’s Degree in Environmental Science from the University of Colombo (Sri Lanka). 

In his free time Demith enjoys swimming, watching Sci-Fi Movies and reading articles on new technologies and research findings related to Environment, Renewable Energy and Space Science.

Lee Green

Senior Director of Marketing & Communications

Lee Green is the Senior Director of Marketing & Communications at the SAC. He is responsible for overseeing all communications and marketing activities at the organization, ensuring the work of the SAC is effectively communicated to all stakeholders and that the SAC is regarded as a key partner for transforming the industry to positively impact people and planet. Lee is based in the historic city of St Albans in England, UK.

Before joining the SAC team, Lee was Director of Communications at The Consumer Goods Forum, where he spent 10 years. During his time there, he led the re-branding of the organization and oversaw all communications related to the organization’s eight Coalitions of Action and five global events. This included building narratives on the industry’s approach to sustainable supply chains, plastic waste, deforestation, forced labor and consumer health, amongst others, and working with consumer goods retailers and brands to communicate about their positive actions.

In his free time, Lee enjoys playing and watching sports, especially football (soccer) and darts. Lee also enjoys watching movies and going for trail walks and runs. Lee loves to travel and has spent most of his adult life living outside of the UK; having lived in China for over 10 years and France for eight years.

Hanna Griesbeck Garcia

Manager, Stakeholder Engagement, EMEA

Hanna Griesbeck Garcia is the Stakeholder Engagement Manager – EMEA at the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. She works on the implementation of the SAC Stakeholder and Policy Engagement Strategy as well as the development of internal policies.  As a key point of contact for global partners she ensures successful collaboration and alignment amongst external and internal stakeholders. Hanna is currently based in London. 

Before to joining the SAC, Hanna was the Impact Manager for hylo Athletics, where she implemented and managed the brand’ social and environmental sustainability strategy. Prior, she has worked for Ace & Tate and Fashion For Good as well as taking some time of to explore and travel. She holds a MSc in Environmental Sustainability from the University of Edinburgh and a BSc in Liberl Arts and Sciences – Global Challanges from Leiden University Collage. 

Outside of work, Hanna enjoys spending time with friends, being outdoors and working through her ever growing list of local bakeries and restaurants. She has recently taken up pottery and dabbles in gardening.

Hamza Habib Hasan

Manager, Candidate & Member Engagement, EMEA

As the EMEA Manager for Candidate & Member Engagement, Hamza is primarily focused on driving a better member experience, supporting member adoption of the Higg Suite of Tools, and assisting in member roadmaps all while cultivating a positive member relationship from onboarding forward. He is based in the Berkshire County of United Kingdom.

Prior to joining the SAC, Hamza worked for 10 years at Primark. In his last role he led Primark’s Compliance and Reporting efforts globally through developing Primark’s environmental due diligence criteria for suppliers, significantly advancing adoption of industry tools and pioneered novel solutions in the supply chains. Hamza was also involved in shaping Primark’s environmental sustainability strategy and creation of the ambitious sustainability goals under their flagship programme called “Primark Cares”. 

Hamza grew up in Dhaka the capital of Bangladesh where he completed his BSc on Environmental Management from Independent University of Bangladesh and moved to the UK in 2017 to complete his MSc on Environmental Management from Coventry University. He is a proud father of a boy and a girl who were born 18 months apart. In his free time, he loves to cook, cycle, and spend time looking after a local nature reserve.

Ellie Hackwood

Member Engagement Coordinator, EMEA

Ellie is the Memberships Coordinator for the EMEA Region at the SAC. She works to provide a foundation in the region for a harmonious, effective value added member experience. This involves supporting efficient, relevant and streamlined engagement to SAC members. She is based in London.

Before joining the SAC team, Ellie worked at ASOS where she provided support to partner brands in their progression against the company’s sustainability requirements, including setting carbon reduction targets. She implemented robust processes to improve partners’ resilience to social and environmental regulatory changes. In this role, she was instrumental in driving engagement across internal teams by creating training materials, used to raise awareness and engagement with the company’s sustainability strategy. Before this she completed a Masters in Sustainability and Business at the University of Leeds.

When she’s not working, Ellie’s always finding time to travel and loves to explore new places. When at home you’ll find her hunting out independent coffee shops, meeting up with friends (and their dogs) and enjoying sport.

Laura Helland

Global Operations Project Manager

Laura Helland is the Global Operations Project Manager at the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. In her role, she is responsible for standardizing and promoting best practices for project management across the SAC, developing internal operations, and providing guidance, support and tracking of multiple cross-functional projects across the entire organization. She is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Before joining the SAC team, Laura was the Client Relationship Manager for Sicora Consulting where she supported clients in their organization development goals, including strengthening employee engagement and building leadership skills. Prior to that, she worked as an independent consultant with SAC on a variety of projects, including membership development, membership recruitment, and Board related priorities. Before that she worked in client services at Blu Skye Consulting, where she helped bridge operations with the sustainability consulting teams for the best results. She holds a Masters in Public Policy in Environmental Policy from Mills College, and a BS in Political Science from Santa Clara University. 

Outside of work, Laura enjoys exploring the many lakes and trails in Minnesota with her husband and two sons. She also enjoys playing sports with her family and loves to unwind by listening to podcasts.

Hannah Heyworth

Digital Communications Coordinator

Hannah Heyworth is the Digital Communications Coordinator at the SAC. She is responsible for supporting internal and external communications, as well as special and ongoing initiatives and projects. She also works on brand strategy, member communications, and media relations and outreach, and brings a global perspective to the Marketing & Communications team. Hannah is based in Madrid, Spain.

Before joining the SAC team, Hannah was the Program Manager at ESCP Business School, a private business school with campuses all over Europe. She was responsible for the coordination of two specialized masters programs, and worked predominately in Spanish. Prior to that, Hannah worked as a primary school teacher at a British school in Madrid, and was the Assistant Head Teacher.

She has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Santa Barbara, California. In her free time, Hannah enjoys traveling and exploring new places. She’s a foodie and tries the local cuisine wherever she goes. She loves languages and is a bilingual Spanish speaker, and is slowly learning Italian. When in Madrid, Hannah can be found outside enjoying the sunshine, reading a book, or baking something sweet.

Lizzie Hineman

Manager, Communications

Lizzie Hineman is the Manager, Communications at the SAC. She oversees the SAC’s membership communications, reports, and special projects. As a liaison between the Marketing Communications and Membership departments, she leads how SAC’s global membership receives news and updates from the organization. She is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Prior to joining the SAC team, Lizzie spent over 10 years producing marketing communications for mission-driven organizations and small businesses. Most recently, she is the founder of a creative studio specializing in brand and marketing consulting. Before that, she was the Marketing & Communications Manager for Alpha Phi Foundation, a nonprofit organization supporting Alpha Phi members and their communities through scholarship, crisis aid, and cardiac research grants. She has experience developing effective resources and communications to help membership organizations thrive, and has also led various social media, fundraising, and brand awareness campaigns.

Lizzie is an Indianapolis native and a graduate of DePauw University. In her free time, you’ll find her exploring Chicago’s ever-changing food scene, volunteering at the Farmers Market, hosting friends and family, and walking along the boulevards with her partner and Great Dane.

Devin Hurley

Manager, Higg Index Strategy & Operations

Devin is the Higg Index Strategy & Operations Manager at the SAC. She works with the Higg Index team to support the development of strategies, contributing to tool development planning and execution with the goal of growing SAC’s Higg Index tools and programs. Devin is based in Denver, Colorado. 

Prior to her role on the Higg Index team, Devin was the Member Engagement Manager for the Americas region. While on the membership team she was responsible for ensuring SAC members were supported as they utilized the Higg Index tools and achieved their impact goals. Before joining the SAC team, Devin worked at American Rivers, an environmental conservation organization focused on rivers and clean water, assisting on conservation projects like AR’s Most Endangered Rivers campaign. With a background in sustainability, she has previous experience developing and implementing an internal sustainability program and strategy.

Devin is a Chicago native and graduate from the University of North Carolina- Wilmington. In her free time, Devin is hiking around Denver; she is an avid biker, hiker, and paddleboarder who has a goal of visiting every US National Park. 

Soumya Inumella

Senior Manager, Membership Operations

Soumya Inumella is the Manager of Membership Operations at the SAC. She is responsible for the operational efficiency and improved optimization of the SAC’s membership requirements. She also helps connect the Memberships team to the operations of other teams to improve synergies. She is based in Haarlem, The Netherlands.

Before joining the SAC team, Soumya was the Global Implementation Lead at FedEx Express where she led the global rollout of their latest application to drive adoption & migration, with a strong focus on understanding customer needs. She specialized in strategic project management, building efficiencies and leadership communication. Prior to FedEx, she worked across a variety of organizations, ranging from an art gallery to a consumer goods company.

Outside of work, you’ll find Soumya traveling with her husband, adding to her growing book collection, or binge-watching Marvel movies. She’s also a semi-professional photographer with her favorite subjects being her two little dogs and the occasional human.

Rhys Jones

Director of Operations

Rhys is the Director of Operations at the SAC. He leads the development and implementation of strategies to ensure that SAC utilizes tools and processes that enable efficient collaboration, effective workflows, consistent record-keeping, vendor management, and information sharing. Additionally, Rhys has oversight to the financial health of the organization, working with on-staff and outsourced financial resources. He is based in the US out of Chicago, Illinois.

Before joining the SAC team, Rhys spent 20 years working in various Legal and Operations roles. Most recently he was the SVP Operations at CDM Media, a B2B Marketing company, where he helped oversee the Human Resources, Finance, Procurement/Vendor Management, Legal, and Operations functions. Before that, he spent time at several international law firms where he worked on various Corporate, Commercial, Property and Tax projects.  Rhys is a qualified UK attorney, a graduate of both Cardiff and Glamorgan Universities, and the former Athletic Union President at Cardiff University. 

In his free time Rhys is an avid sports fan, and loves to travel with his family whenever possible. 

Deepak Kashyap

Senior Manager, Higg Facility Tools

Deepak Kashyap is the Senior Manager, Higg Facility Tools at the SAC. His key responsibilities include: project management of the Higg FEM and FSLM, collaboration with a wide variety of stakeholders, and facilitation and coordination of the SAC members’ involvement. This role will also continue the development of adoption resources that support the global scaling of the Higg Facility Module, QA testing in cooperation with technical teams, and coordination of communications and case studies. He is based in New Delhi, India. 

Prior to joining the SAC team, Deepak was a senior member of the sustainability compliance team at IKEA, India, where he led the development and maintenance of Social & Environment requirements and more sustainable agenda at South Asia supply chain. He has been a key contributor to sustainability projects and Supplier Sustainability Index for textile supplier at South Asia level working together with business partners. Deepak was also responsible for tools related to risk mapping, planning, supplier review at South Asia level and a tool related to supply chain traceability and impact assessment at the global level in IKEA. He studied Environment Law and Policy at National Law University, Delhi. 

In his free time Deepak enjoys watching movies and exploring sustainability initiatives around the world.  

Soni Khatri

Manager, Higg Index Verifications

Soni Khatri is the Manager, Higg Index Verifications at the SAC. She ensures building, maintaining, and improving verification programs for the Higg Index suite of tools to ensure that the Higg Index and its related tools are trusted and credible measures for sustainability performance and benchmarking, with scores that can be leveraged for performance improvement and public facing communications. She is based in Bangalore, India.

Before joining the SAC team, Soni was the Program Manager at Google where she ensured suppliers’ adherence to Google’s supplier code of conduct (SCOC) by developing and managing various programs. Overall, she brings more than 10 years of experience in sustainability and responsible sourcing with a focus on Ethical Supply Chain Audits, Sustainability Assurance, Sustainability & ESG Advisory, and ESG Due Diligence. Soni has advised clients on ensuring sustainable supply chains. She holds a Masters degree from TISS, Mumbai. 

In her free time Soni enjoys exploring the outdoors with her spouse and dog.

Jeremy Lardeau

Vice President, Higg Index

Jeremy Lardeau is the VP of the Higg Index at the SAC. As part of the leadership team, he oversees the strategic direction and development of the Higg Index suite of tools. Jeremy is based in Barcelona, Spain.

Before joining the SAC team, Jeremy was Senior Director of Sustainability Analytics, at Nike, Inc. where he led sustainability reporting, performance management, data products, and reporting. Prior to Nike, Jeremy was a manager with PricewaterhouseCoopers’ sustainability practice, successively working out of the Paris, Mexico City, and San Francisco offices.

Jeremy holds a Masters in Industrial Engineering from the Ecole Centrale Paris. In his free time he is known to love travelling, running and alpine climbing, but actually enjoys most horseplaying with his three young boys.

Erlinda Lee

Senior Manager, Global Membership Development

Erlinda Lee is the Senior Manager, Global Membership Development at the SAC. In her role, she ensures the growth of SAC’s corporate member base. She will develop and foster proactive engagement within the apparel and footwear industry, educating non-member companies about the value of membership and its associated benefits, so that they join and further strengthen our coalition. 

Before joining the SAC team, Erlinda was the Development Manager at GoodHout BV, an impact startup company producing a wood alternative bio-composite material made from coconut husk fibers. She led the business development process, and created strong contacts while opening up new opportunities to expand the business. Additionally, she created marketing communication tools for the launch of the material and the ‘go-to-market’ strategies. As a curious person, Erlinda spends her time analyzing information and translating them into actionable plans. 

In her free time, Erlinda likes to do sports such as running and tennis. She also enjoys travelling to Asia (particularly Indonesia) where her roots lie, and continues to travel down under to Australia where she grew up. Erlinda studied at the University of New South Wales.

Betty Li

Senior Manager, Membership Engagement, APAC

Betty is the Senior Manager of Membership Engagement, APAC at the SAC. She leads the APAC region, ensuring that members have the guidance and support needed to reach joint goals and to utilize the Higg Index tools to drive their sustainability strategies forward. She is based in Hong Kong.

Before joining the SAC team, Betty was part of the K11 sustainability team with a dual role as the Community Manager at K11’s Nature Discovery Park – Hong Kong’s first urban biodiversity museum to inspire action towards the UNSDGs. With a focus on stakeholder engagement, she launched the K11 Sustainable Tenancy Pledge to engage and empower tenants on adopting sustainable retail and F&B practices while supporting internal teams on improving operational practices and communications around sustainable building. She graduated as a Marketing major at UBC and completed her MBA at HKUST.  

Outside of work, Betty hosts meet-ups to connect like-minded people as the founder of the Hong Kong Sustainability Club, and co-organiser of the local chapters of Green Drinks and Podcast Brunch Club. She also enjoys solo traveling, climbing and has most recently picked up sailing.

Rachel Lincoln Sarnoff

Director, Communications

Rachel Lincoln Sarnoff is the director of communications at the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. She is responsible for all member-focused communications, developing SAC- and member-led content that successfully weaves together the organization’s past, present, and future into a clear, cohesive narrative. As one of the SAC’s key brand ambassadors, Rachel maintains relationships with members, stakeholders, influencers, and academics and helps to spread the SAC story to external audiences, supporting the organization’s strategic goals. She is based in Los Angeles.

Prior to joining the SAC, Rachel was the communications director at the Product Stewardship Institute, where she worked on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). She was executive director of the nonprofits Healthy Child Healthy World and the 5 Gyres Institute and gave two TEDx talks on plastic pollution. Rachel co-led a microfibers legislation project with Jared Blumenfeld, now California’s Secretary of Environmental Protection. She holds a MA in journalism from USC and annually teaches communications at UCSB, her alma mater.

Also known as the blogger Mommy Greenest, Rachel appeared on “CNN” and established the Shop Drop Challenge, sponsored by ThredUp, to raise awareness about fashion’s environmental impact. In her free time, Rachel is pursuing an MFA and completing her second novel, which imagines a less dystopian and more hopeful future.

Cassandra Lindow

Manager, Data Reporting and Analytics

Cassandra is the Manager of Data Reporting and Analytics at the SAC. She reports to the Director of Higg Products, Aaron Di Silvestro. She creates and manages data reports and works cross-functionally with the team and stakeholders to drive industry and Higg Index insights. She is based in Toronto, Canada! 

Before joining the SAC team, Cassandra was a Senior Analyst at the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) where she used analytics in both credit strategy decisions and pricing initiatives in automotive finance. She has used her expertise to close gaps between RBC and their competitors to reduce risk and increase market share. She was also part of the internal committee that helped with onboarding, organizing department networking sessions, and team charity events. She finished her undergraduate degree in Biology at Queen’s University and has always had a keen interest in the environment. 

In her free time, you can find her reading, running and cooking. She likes to test out new recipes with her family and has joined a running club with friends from University.

Maggie Lumpcik

Senior Global HR Manager

Maggie is the Senior Global HR Manager for the SAC.  In her role, she provides broad HR support throughout the organization. Maggie is based near Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Prior to joining the SAC, Maggie was an HR Manager for RCS focusing on improving the employee experience through increased employee engagement, policy creation and refinement, and system improvement. She has also worked in behavioral health and education. Maggie holds a BS in Psychology from Wright State University and an MBA from Western Governors University.

In her free time, Maggie enjoys spending time with her husband and three children. She enjoys hiking, running, reading, and traveling.  She has a goal to visit as many National Parks across the globe as possible.

Heather Lynch

Manager, Global Membership Development

Heather Lynch is the Manager, Global Membership Development at the SAC. In her role, she is focused on the growth of SAC’s membership base by articulating and demonstrating the benefits of joining the coalition. By building and leveraging relationships, she gathers knowledge to help advance and strengthen the coalition’s (and thus the industry’s) impact across the globe. She is based in Vermont.

Heather joins the SAC with over fifteen years of experience in the higher education sustainability sector where she led the sustainability initiatives at Saint Michael’s College as the first Director of Sustainability. She maintained the college’s greenhouse gas inventory, completed its first sustainability assessment and taught in the Environmental Studies department. Prior to joining the SAC, she worked as the Membership Development Manager for AASHE (the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability), which developed the first higher ed sector-wide sustainability assessment, STARS. She has a B.S. in Environmental Conservation from the University of New Hampshire and a M.S. in Sustainable Food Systems from Green Mountain College.

In her free time, Heather enjoys being outside as much as possible whether it is hiking in the mountains (in all seasons), cross-country skiing, snow-shoeing or gardening. She is a certified Extension Master Gardener and grows her own sustainable crop of garlic. She hopes to hike the John Muir Trail one day.

Dhawal Mane

Director, Training and Verification

Dhawal is the SAC Senior Manager of Training and Verification and is based in Bangalore, India. He is responsible for building, maintaining, and improving verification and training programs for the Higg Index suite of tools and ensure that the Higg Index is a trusted and credible measure for sustainability performance and benchmarking.

Prior to joining SAC, Dhawal worked with C&A’s sustainable chemicals management team as a senior specialist. His role involved working with manufacturers of varying complexities and building their capacity to implement environment management systems. He has worked with vertically integrated textile manufacturer Pratibha Syntex as a sustainability manager and was responsible for executing sustainability projects like GHG accounting and reporting, life cycle analysis, internal and external sustainability communications.

Dhawal has been recognized in the 2017 GreenBiz 30 Under 30 cohort of global sustainability professionals. Through Sustainability Drinks Bangalore, he convenes the city’s sustainability community for networking and collaboration opportunities.

Yasotharan Manivel

Manager, Collective Action Programs

Yasotharan Manivel is the Manager of Collective Action Programs at the SAC. He is based in Chennai, India. He ensures that to drive large-scale, industry-wide environmental and social sustainability programs aimed to deliver exponential positive impacts to people and environment in the value chain. He will play a key role in setting Science Based Target and developing GHG/ carbon reduction roadmap, facilitating dialogue among stakeholders with diverse perspectives, build key short to mid-term plan based on consensus collected from the apparel, footwear, and textile industry.

Before joining the SAC team, Yasotharan was the Operation Process Manger – Sustainable Development at Decathlon for India. Where he is responsible for the implementation of Decathlon’s overarching Sustainability Strategy with a special focus on Labour, Health & Safety, Worker Well Being, and Environment management to the supply chains. He responsibly implemented decarbonized supply chain programs to identify useful solutions and develop strategy to deploy plans for textile & Footwear industries such as CO2 Measurement, Target Set, and Energy efficiency Project & Renewable energy procurement. He developed and monitor the Supplier Autonomy Projects (Human Rights & Environment) and adopt the programs based on regional.

He holds a Master Degree (MBA) in Environmental Management from Bharathidasan University. He is certified ISO 140001 Lead Auditor and he recently completed Strategy & Sustainability course from IESE Business School, University of Navarra. He enjoys spending time with family and kids and running. 

Chris Marshall

Director, Transparency Program

Chris Marshall is the Director of the Transparency Program at the SAC, the apparel, footwear, and textile industry’s leading alliance for sustainable production. He is responsible for leading the Transparency Program, which provides a consistent way for brands, retailers, and manufacturers to share sustainability information on apparel and footwear products, across impact categories such as water use, greenhouse gas emissions, and use of fossil fuels. He is based in Amsterdam in The Netherlands.

Before joining the SAC team, Chris was the Senior Director of Merchandising, at PVH where he was tasked with leading a team developing sports performance apparel. Chris comes with 16+ years of experience in the footwear and apparel industry in companies such as Nike, Converse, Vans (VF), Tommy Hilfiger, and Calvin Klein (PVH). His functional experience ranges from planning, sourcing, vendor compliance, and product merchandising.

Chris prides himself on being a lifelong learner and he has recently finished his master’s degree in digital management. In his free time you can find him chasing the sun, wild camping throughout his multi-day hikes in the mountains.

Andrew Martin

Executive Vice President

As Executive Vice President, Andrew is responsible for delivering strategic and operational leadership for the organization. While continuing to oversee the Membership, Stakeholder Engagement, Collective Action, and Public Affairs teams, as second-in-command at the SAC he is responsible for driving growth of the organization to ensure it can scale impact and deliver value to members. This involves broader strategic development of the organization, including into new verticals / adjacent product categories, development of new revenue streams, and expansions of key partnerships.
Prior to joining the SAC, Andrew was at amfori, the leading business association for open and sustainable trade, where, as VP Services, he was responsible for global operational activities. In addition to a strategic role in the development of the vision and strategy of the organization, Andrew managed membership services, led the implementation of global social and environmental audit assessments, including launching a pioneering audit integrity program, and also the largest capacity building program of its kind for social and environmental performance in global supply chains.
Andrew has a degree in philosophy and theology from King’s College London, an MBA with distinction from the University of Exeter, where he was awarded ‘Dissertation most likely to change global thinking,’ and a postgraduate qualification in team coaching, from UWE, Bristol. During his extensive career, including more than 20 years in global textile manufacturing, Andrew has worked for a multi-national corporation, his own consultancy, and more recently in the education and non-profit sectors.
A highlight of his work and interest is the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan, and its philosophy of Gross National Happiness, an alternative progressive values-based model for measuring and guiding economic, societal, and personal well-being. He is currently based in the seaside town of Looe in Cornwall in the Southwest of England.

Canélia Mbida

Member Engagement Coordinator, APAC

Canélia is the Member Engagement Coordinator for the Asia Pacific region (APAC) in Hong Kong.

Prior to joining the SAC team, Canélia worked at Lacoste as the Supplier Management Coordinator. During her 3 year tenure, she mobilized the brand’s suppliers management tools, and led the task force to integrate sustainability KPIs in the suppliers’ evaluations.

Trilingual in French, English and Mandarin, Canélia graduated from both NEOMA Business School (France) and the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE, Beijing). She has lived in France, Cameroon, Mainland China, and Hong Kong.

She spends her free time taking long walks and biking around. Having strong interests in tech and startups, she’s also involved in the Ladies Who Tech chapter in Hong Kong.

Marya McKee

Manager, Membership Engagement, AMER

Marya is the SAC Member Engagement Manager for the AMER region. She is focused on strengthening member engagement and management by driving a better member experience, supporting member adoption of the Higg Suite of Tools, and assisting in member roadmaps all while cultivating a positive member relationship from onboarding forward. She is also responsible for providing broad membership team support through contributions and project management, developing and implementing team improvements in cross-organizational ways of working, and providing support in AMER strategy both with teammates and members. 

Before joining the SAC, Marya worked as a Program Manager on the sustainability teams of a number of companies, including Reformation and Walmart. Her work experience has focused on the development and implementation of programs and systems to support and report on environmental responsibility within complex supply chains and brand level operations. She managed membership development and reporting with the SAC for both Reformation and Walmart and led engagement with suppliers and internal cross-functional teams to adopt the Higg Suite of Tools. 

Marya grew up in the Ozark Mountains and is a graduate from the University of Arkansas, where she received her M.S. in Crop, Soil, and Environmental Sciences from the Dale Bumpers College and a Graduate Certificate for Sustainability in Business from the Walton Business School. She is passionate about scaling sustainable regenerative production systems, ecosystem dynamics, inclusivity, and artistic expression in all its forms. 

Joël Mertens

Director, Higg Product Tools

Joël Mertens is the Director of Higg Product Tools at the SAC. He is responsible for managing the Higg Product Tools, including the Higg Product Module, Higg Material Sustainability Index (MSI), and MSI Contributor. He is based in British Columbia, Canada.

Before joining the SAC team, Joël was the Manager of Product Engineering and Compliance at Mountain Equipment Co-op where he worked on embedding product sustainability and product safety compliance into the development process. Among these responsibilities, he developed Preferred Fiber Strategy and Supplier Environmental Assurance programs for the MEC label. Joël holds a Master’s degree in Materials Engineering and a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of British Columbia.

In his free time Joël enjoys hiking and camping in the fantastic wilderness of the Purcell and Rocky Mountains. He also spends his time gardening during the (short) summer growing season and developing his “green thumb”. Joël is involved with the East Kootenay Climate Hub, an organization focused on helping local communities take meaningful action on climate change.

Prasanth Nandakumar

Manager, Stakeholder Engagement, APAC

Prasanth Nandakumar is the Stakeholder Engagement Manager for APAC at the SAC. He is responsible for developing the right network of relationships to support the delivery of the SAC Strategic Plan and implementation of the Stakeholder Engagement Strategy. As one of the key SAC contacts for identified stakeholders, he ensures proactive engagement and cooperation among SAC’s members, the broader industry, and strategic stakeholders. He is based in Bangalore, India.

Prior to joining the SAC, Prasanth worked as a Research Specialist for ESG rating providers such as Sustainalytics (Morningstar) and S&P Global. During this time, he supported investors and NGOs with the ESG performance analysis of global companies. Overall, he brings more than eight years of experience in ESG risk assessment, human rights due diligence, and stakeholder interviews. Prasanth has an academic background in Journalism, and he worked with a newspaper for five years before moving into ESG Research.

In his free time, Prasanth enjoys travelling and listening to podcasts and music. He also enjoys long walks and playing badminton.

Angela Ng

Director, Higg Facility Tools

Angela is the SAC Higg Facility Tools Director. Previously, she worked at SAC brand member Columbia, where she focused on sustainability in the social and labor program. Angela was also responsible for managing Columbia’s supply chain sustainability performance and initiatives. Implementing the Higg Facility Environmental Module was central to Angela’s efforts, from scaling adoption of the tool to integrating Higg FEM into Columbia’s business functions. Angela has been working with the Higg Index since its inception. She brings years of supply chain and industry experience. Angela lives by the mottos, “Make a difference” and “pay it forward.”

Samia Ngeow

Global Operations Coordinator

Samia Ngeow is the Global Operations Coordinator at the SAC. She ensures successful software and technology implementation via supporting the Global Team in training and maintaining key operational software, as well as administration in business operation management. She is based in Manchester, UK.

Before joining the SAC, Samia was the Technical Quality Coordinator at GANT where she worked closely with cross functional teams to launch supplier management tools and develop technical processes. She previously worked in operations and production for brands including 31 Bits, Little Green Radicals and AAKS where she gained hands on experience through the tiers of the supply chain and where her passion for ethical responsibility grew.

In her free time Samia enjoys being outdoors whether to hike or enjoy a slow morning outside a coffee shop. She also enjoys photography and you’ll find her unceasingly capturing memories when traveling.

Melissa O de León

Manager, Higg Product Tools

Melissa O de León is the Higg Index Product Tools Manager at the SAC, the apparel, footwear, and textile industry’s leading alliance for sustainable production. Melissa ensures that the methodology and content of the Higg Product Tools are meeting member needs. She supports industry stakeholders in submitting data through the MSI Contributor, and works with members to identify data gaps and opportunities to solicit high-quality life cycle assessment data. Melissa is based in the US in Austin, Texas.

Before joining the SAC team, Melissa co-founded Regenerate, where she worked as sustainability consultant for fashion SMEs to some of Brazil’s largest textile producers. In her role she developed the training tool ‘Sustainable Fashion Cards’, and co-authored the research report ‘Fashion Threads’, funded by the Laudes Foundation.

At a previous role at the Hessnatur Stiftung in Berlin, Melissa conducted ESG assessments for several european companies, and evaluated the textile industry’s criteria of the ‘Siegelklarheit’ platform from the German International Development Agency (GIZ).

Melissa believes in the power of education, and has volunteered in adult literacy, ESL, and community education projects. Most recently she developed a learning module about Sustainability in Fashion for the social entrepreneurship program Yunus&Youth. In her free time, Melissa enjoys sewing and learning traditional Mexican weaving techniques.

Tamina Ogrin

Administrative Assistant, Stakeholder Engagement

Tamina, who is based in the Netherlands, is responsible for providing administrative support to the Stakeholder Engagement team in order to enable efficient operations. She reports to Carolina van Loenen, Senior Manager for Stakeholder Engagement. Tamina ensures that the Stakeholder Engagement team’s communications and work procedures are more efficient by utilising a variety of technological platforms. She also serves as the organization’s administrative liaison with SAC members. 

Before joining the SAC, Tamina was a project intern at ASKV, a non-profit organisation that provides legal and social support to undocumented refugees. She was responsible for maintaining contact with participants and volunteers, establishing partnerships with other initiatives alike, recruiting participants, and conducting intake interviews. Prior to that, Tamina worked for a children’s organisation in Ljubljana for several years, coordinating the planning and execution of numerous private and school events for children, in addition to other administrative and office duties.

Tamina completed a bachelor’s degree in analytical sociology at the University of Ljubljana before earning a master’s degree in sociology at Utrecht University with a focus on criminology and safety. Tamina enjoys exploring new places, attending cultural events, having game nights with her friends, and bouldering in her free time.

Sary Oszerowicz

Higg Index Team Coordinator

Sary Oszerowicz is the Higg Index team Coordinator at the SAC. She reports directly to VP Jeremy Lardeau and will support the Higg Index team operations, from ensuring team activities and milestones are planned, tracked and reviewed to helping schedule MET and SC meetings, and maintaining appropriate documentation of all member interactions.

Before joining the SAC team, Sary was the Research & Insight Director, at Materia Gris, Media Agency, where she was in charge of qualitative and quantitative brand studies, consumption habits, exposure to media and segmentation by lifestyle; being part of new products/brands lunching with great success. She organizes different studies at a regional level that contributed to the growth of the client portfolio.

Sary is based in Barcelona but is originally from Colombia where she graduated in business administration from the University Externado de Colombia, then she had the opportunity to start her career in advertising in Mexico City where she lived for more than 10 years. Sary is passionate about history and how customs, culture, ideas and ways have changed through fashion. She loves to try different flavors; she is married to a chef for a reason.

Mackenzie Roach

Senior Manager, Global Contracts

Mackenzie Roach is the Sr. Global Contracts Manager for the SAC. She is part of the Global Operations team. She is the lead on all global contractual matters and agreements. She manages the flow of each contract from negotiation to execution, and any disputes that may arise. Mackenzie is located in New York City. 

Prior to joining the SAC, Mackenzie was an attorney at a boutique law firm working on several cultural heritage and art law cases. Most notably, she worked on the successful restitution of a painting looted by the Nazis during World War II and cultural claims made by Native American tribes. While at the firm, other work included the representation of non-profit organizations in their compliance, litigation, and lobbying matters and representation of small business owners in contractual and litigation matters. 

Mackenzie received her juris doctorate from the University of Wisconsin Law School and her bachelor’s degree in business marketing from Edgewood College. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling and exploring the city with her small rescue dog. 

Maravillas Rodriguez Zarco

Senior Director, Higg Index Strategy & Operations

Maravillas Rodriguez Zarco is the Senior Director, Higg Index Strategy & Operations, at the SAC. As part of her role, she ensures that the Higg Index tool strategy and tool development roadmap are aligned with SAC’s overall impact strategy and priorities, and that the different tool development roadmaps are integrated with each other and with other external programs. She also coordinates the Higg Index team’s internal operations to ensure the effective delivery of the team objectives across the different Higg Index teams. She collaborates across the organization to ensure coherent strategy execution, fostering alignment and operational effectiveness.

Before her current role, Maravillas was the Director, Higg Brand & Retail at SAC. Her responsibilities included managing the Higg Brand and Retail Module and coordinating with Coalition members, facilities, and stakeholders to scale the implementation of this tool globally. Prior to her time at SAC, she served for 10 years as the CSR & Sustainability Manager at Desigual, where she managed key projects aimed at minimizing the company’s environmental impact, while promoting ethical trading and human rights. This ensured the company operated responsibly across all facets. She also built strong relationships with stakeholders, fostering transparency in the company’s sustainability initiatives. 

Prior to her tenure at Desigual, Maravillas worked as a Sustainability & CSR consultant, and she is a professional with over 15 years of experience.

Maravillas holds a degree in Biology from University of Seville and a Masters in Environmental Impact Assessment from University of Barcelona. In her free time she enjoys combining her two favorite hobbies: traveling and trying new food from all around the world. She also teaches Sustainability classes to Business and Communication masters degree students.

Porcha Roets

HR Coordinator

Porcha Roets is the HR Coordinator at the SAC. She will work closely with Hiring Managers by supporting them throughout the recruitment process. She will manage the candidate experience from their application right up to the Onboarding stage and ensure that they are provided with clear communication throughout the talent acquisition cycle. She will provide reports to Hiring Managers on recruitment metrics and she will also be responsible for recruitment and HR-focused projects. She is based in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Before joining the SAC team, Porcha was the HR Business Partner at St Vincent’s Private Hoslital Melbourne, where she developed strong relationships with her Stakeholders by providing them with strategic and operational advise. She was responsible for the end-to-end talent acquisition cycle for the two Hospital campuses that she supported and she successfully lead various Talent Management Projects. Porcha holds a Bachelor of Commerce with specialisation in HR and Labour relations management from the University of South Africa. 

In her free time Porcha enjoys the outdoors and goes on regular walking trails with her husband and 2 young sons. She also loves travelling and exploring new places. She loves reading and listening to various genres of music.

Mary Rogers

Manager, Finance

Mary is the Manager of Finance for the SAC. She manages the Accounts Payable functions and works with Rhys Jones to support other financial operations for the organization. She is based out of Raleigh, North Carolina.

Prior to the SAC, Mary was the Financial Director for a chain of dental practices as well as the Accounts Payable Team Lead for a large US-based medical lab. She has a BS in Textiles from North Carolina State University, where she worked on numerous projects regarding textile and apparel sustainability.

In her free time, Mary loves spending time outdoors with her husband and her dog. She loves to travel and to play board games with her friends. Her dream is to visit every continent at least once in her lifetime (especially Antarctica)

Sophie Roos

Partnerships Coordinator

Sophie is Partnerships Coordinator for the SAC. She coordinates the apparel alliance, a partnership of four organizations (Apparel Impact Institute, Textile Exchange, ZDHC and the SAC), which involves keeping up to date the alliance workplan and tracking its deliverables as well as coordinating progress reporting and the alliance budgets. Additionally, she provides further support to the Stakeholder Engagement team. She is based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Before joining SAC, Sophie was Project Officer for Euclid Network, a European network for social enterprises, where she led two European projects related to social enterprise internationalisation. During her studies, Sophie fulfilled various part time roles such as working for the Fashion For Good Museum and the VU Sustainability Leadership Hub, a platform for sustainability education at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Sophie is a graduate from the University of Amsterdam and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and holds two MSc degrees; in Environment and Resource Management and Leadership and Change Management.

In her free time, Sophie likes to go to dance classes, particularly ballet and contemporary dance. She is also an enthusiastic baker, frequently explores new hotspots in Amsterdam with her friends and loves to break away from the city to recharge in the green.

Igor San Juan

General Counsel

Igor is the General Counsel at the SAC. He ensures that all legal matters of relevance to the SAC are covered. He is based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Before joining the SAC team, Igor was Legal Director and General Counsel a.i. with the Swarovski Group for almost 10 years, overseeing legal matters ranging from intellectual property rights to corporate law to contracts, marketing and retail distribution legal matters. Previously, he was Legal Counsel at G-Star Raw, a denim and apparel manufacturer and retailer, and before that he was Legal Counsel EMEA at Foot Locker, a global footwear distributor.  

In his free time he likes spending time hiking, and learning about computer science and artificial intelligence. 

Olga Sganzerla

Senior Manager, Strategic Design

Olga leads the Strategic Design work at the SAC. As part of the Higg Index Strategy and Operations team, she is in charge of supporting the Higg Index team, and other teams as needed, in discovering and realizing opportunities for continuous improvement in our organization’s services and offering. Prior to this role, Olga was the Service Design Manager for the Higg Brand & Retail Module (BRM), where she played an active role in the design and rollout of the BRM 2022 Major Update. She is based in Barcelona, Spain.

Before joining the SAC, Olga was Business Designer at NOBA Ventures, an innovation agency with a global outlook, and Service Designer within the Group CX Innovation & Strategy team at Zurich Insurance. In these roles, through the launch of new and improved value propositions and capability building programs, she supported corporates in accelerating their transformation and innovation journeys towards becoming more human-centric, nimble, and innovative organizations.

Olga holds a postgraduate degree in Strategic Management from HEC Lausanne. In her free time, she enjoys spending time in nature, practicing yoga, reading a good book, supporting purpose-driven projects, and definitely traveling around the world to discover new people, places and cultures. 

Hilary Strickland

Chief of Staff

Hilary Strickland is Chief of Staff at the SAC. She reports to the SAC President, Amina Razvi and is her right-hand in managing the Board, and organization-wide projects, and initiatives, such as the strategic plan. In addition, she serves as a thought partner to the executive team. Hilary is based in the US in the Washington, DC area.

Prior to joining SAC, Hilary was VP and Chief of Staff for the March of Dimes President and CEO for more than five years. In this role she served as a strategic executive advisor, managed the Board, and oversaw the strategic plan, and many other projects and initiatives. Before this role, she held various roles touching on internal communications and change management, as well as advocacy positions focused on maternal child health and early childhood education policy issues.

Hilary is mother to two amazing daughters, who make sure there is never a dull moment for her and her husband, Erik. When not running her daughters around, she enjoys audible books, walking, gardening, cooking, and any opportunity for live theater.

Megan Tait

Manager, Finance

Megan is the Manger, Finance at the SAC. She oversees accounts receivable functions, including communications with members and stakeholders regarding invoices and payments. She also supports financial reporting, monthly reconciliation, and grant management. She is based out of the US in upstate New York. 

Prior to joining the SAC, Megan was the Officer, Finance and Administration at BRAC USA, the North American affiliate to BRAC, a global development nonprofit implementing evidence-based, scalable poverty innovations across Asia and Africa. In her role at BRAC USA, Megan managed the day-to-day finance operations and accounting procedures. She also supported grant and contract financial management. Before BRAC USA, she worked in a cross-functional development and operations role at Shadhika, a nonprofit organization that invests in young women’s education and economic self-sufficiency in India. Megan has also worked in the private sector at Gates Capital Management, where she oversaw expense management and supported office administration. Megan has long been passionate about global human rights and has a BA in International Studies from the University of Colorado Denver. 

Outside of work, she enjoys spending as much time in nature as possible. Her favorite activities include hiking, biking, and exploring the mountains near her home. Megan also relishes quality time with family and friends.

Carmel Tenenbaum

Manager, Event Production

Carmel is the Event Production Manager at the SAC. She manages and executes all aspects of the events at the SAC, including working on partner events. She is based in San Francisco, California. 

Before joining the SAC team, Carmel was a student at UC Berkeley, where she majored in international relations. She also spent time in Bologna, Italy, studying event and museum management at the University of Bologna. Carmel has previously worked on the SAC Annual Meeting in 2021, where she assisted in the logistical and technical coordination of the event. Carmel is a strong advocate for making events enjoyable and informative to attendees while utilizing new and upcoming technologies. 

In her free time, Carmel enjoys snowboarding and teaching others how to. She believes that there is nothing better than a day on the mountain after a fresh snowfall.

Beatrice Thumi

Public Relations Analyst

Beatrice Thumi is the Public Relations Analyst at the SAC, the apparel, footwear, and textile industry’s leading alliance for sustainable production. She is the primary contact person for all media inquiries, providing up to date press materials and information as needed. She is also responsible for media outreach, managing media lists platforms, and follow ups for story placements. She is in charge of monitoring and tracking media coverage, providing ongoing reports and industry insights. She is based in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. 

Before joining the SAC team, Beatrice was the Account Director at Oxygene Marketing Communications Limited where she led the PR department. She managed an account portfolio of market leading organizations such as EABL, SEACOM and Sanlam, providing a variety of PR and communication services including specialist areas such as crisis management and reputation management. She has extensive agency experience, steering teams through the development of complex communication strategies, providing support for execution and delivery based on specific client requirements. 

 In her free time, Beatrice likes to keep active and regularly works out. She is a makeup and skincare aficionado and loves creating content for her blog. She is passionate about her faith, personal growth and constantly striving for self-improvement.  She is also an avid reader, enjoys listening to music and podcasts and loves a good cup of coffee.

Joyce Tsoi

Director, Collective Action Programs, APAC

Joyce Tsoi is the Director of Collective Action Programs, APAC at the SAC. She is based in Hong Kong. She manages all SAC’s Collective Action programs and activities, support members and EcoSystem partners to prioritize actions, accelerate sustainable environmental and social impacts and transform our industry into one that gives more than it takes- to the people and the planet. Through building strong industry partnership and collaboration with our Ecosystem and strategic partners from all sectors across our value chain, our aspirational goals could be achieved together: 45% GHG emissions reduction in line with Science Based Targets by 2030 against a 2020 baseline to combat climate change; supports workers’ rights, safety and livelihoods by 2025. 

Before joining the SAC team, Joyce was the Senior Manager, Supply Chain Sustainability at VF Corporation where she spearheaded the key supply chain sustainability program. She’s actively involved in driving corporate and industry sustainability strategies and efforts through the adoption and verification of Higg Index FEM environmental impact measurement activities, Global Wastewater Compliance program, Science Based Targets (SBTs), energy efficiency and renewable energy program aiming to improve the environment, workers and communities and build climate resilience. In addition, she brings over 16 years of diverse global experience across multiple industry sectors including apparel and footwear, electronics, hardgoods, home goods, food and beverage, home goods and toys industries in Europe, US and Asia.

Joyce graduated from University College London, U.K. with a B.Eng. (Hons) degree in Chemical Engineering. She holds a Master of Science (MSc) Degree in Environmental Engineering from Imperial College London, U.K. and a PhD. in Sustainability and Environmental Management from the University of Hong Kong. 

She is a passionate supporter of education, she believes a love of learning should be encouraged where students are inspired and empowered to make a difference. As a working mum with 3 kids, Joyce has served as a parent representative of Quarry Bay School, Hong Kong for the past 9 years. As an alumnus of the University of Hong Kong, she continues to practice teaching on “environmental management systems and audits” course and supply chain resource management course of the Sustainability Leadership and  Governance Program. She enjoys spending time with family and kids, cooking different types of local cuisines, hiking, and swimming on Big Wave beach.

Carolina van Loenen

Director, Stakeholder Engagement

Carolina van Loenen is the Director of Stakeholder Engagement at the SAC. She leads the global Stakeholder Engagement team and develops stakeholder and policy engagement strategies. Hence, she also ensures integrated and aligned strategy delivery by overseeing the implementation of related internal and external policies and processes. As a key senior stakeholder engagement contact, she fosters proactive engagement and cooperation among the SAC’s international stakeholders and represents the SAC at international external stakeholder events. Carolina is based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, which is also her country of residence. 

Before joining the SAC team, Carolina as Public Sector Partnerships Manager at WWF-Netherlands and contributed to realizing food, forestry and governance objectives within conservation goals by initiating and developing multi-stakeholder public sector partnerships and advising on complex frameworks, guidelines and standards. Carolina has ten years of experience managing programs and projects, complex processes and customer operations, mostly in sustainable value chains and governance at international NGOs, as well as public and private sector organizations. She holds a master’s degree in International Relations and Human Rights.  

In her free time, Carolina enjoys music concerts, restaurants or cultural events in the Netherlands or when traveling abroad. She loves to explore nature by bike or foot and loves to discuss current international affairs, technology and South American culture.

Elisabeth von Reitzenstein

Senior Director, Public Affairs

Elisabeth is the Senior Director, Public Affairs for the SAC. She is leading our global activities in public affairs, policy and advocacy, including heading and further developing the public affairs team. She is leading the SAC working engagement with the Policy Hub and other like-minded partner organizations. She is based in Brussels, Belgium.

She has more than a decade of experience in decision-making procedures and public affairs and has acquired extensive expertise in sustainability legislation. She is specialised in strategically positioning members’ interests through targeted stakeholder alliances and constant dialogue with policy makers. Before joining the SAC, Elisabeth was head of the Brussels office of a public affairs consultancy and led the sustainability department at the EU association Independent Retail Europe. 

Elisabeth holds a Bachelor’s degree in European Studies from Maastricht University in the Netherlands and a Master’s in Management, Economics and International Relations, from which she graduated with distinction. In addition to her native German, she speaks English, French and Spanish. Elisabeth loves to travel and getting to know new people as well as cultures. Coming from a region close to the German alps, she also very much enjoys hiking, climbing, and skiing.

Eliza Ward

Senior Director, Membership & Corporate Engagement

Eliza Ward is the Senior Director of Membership & Corporate Engagement at the SAC. Together with her team, which includes the SAC’s member engagement, development and operations teams, she is responsible for ensuring the active engagement and overall satisfaction of members, as well as growing the organisation’s corporate membership base. Eliza is based in London, UK.

Before joining the SAC team, Eliza was at the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) where she was responsible for growing the organisation’s membership, revising and improving its membership offer and representing the organisation publicly. Prior to ETI, she held senior roles at Fairtrade, leading on global partnerships such as with Mondelez International and Ben & Jerry’s, and with the UK’s major supermarkets. Eliza holds an MA in Human Rights from University College London, and a BA in Politics from Newcastle University.

In her personal life, Eliza is a passionate cook who owns an ever-expanding set of recipe books. She loves to travel and experience new places as a local, particularly by sampling local cuisines, and she likes to keep up with current affairs by listening to podcasts.

Sara Warren

Executive Assistant to the CEO

Sara Warren is the Executive Assistant to the CEO at the SAC. She reports directly to Amina and provides her support. She is based in the US in  Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Before joining the SAC team, Sara was the Chief of Staff  at Powerplay Retail where she supported the president of the organization, kept the office running, and helped rebuild the culture.   

In her free time Sara spends most of her time getting her 8-year-old daughter, Raya, from activity to activity, playing with her Chipoo, Rusty, and spending any extra time with her husband, Marc. In the summer Sara will do anything to be outside in the garden, at the pool or just soaking up the vitamin D.