Eco-Steward of the Year
AFIRM Group
Nathaniel Sponsler, Director, accepting
The Apparel and Footwear International RSL Management Group (AFIRM) is a global association of the world’s leading apparel and footwear companies established in 2004 with a mission to reduce the use and impact of harmful substances in the apparel and footwear supply chain. Accepting the award for AFIRM, Director Nathaniel Sponsler is a consultant, attorney, and facilitator of apparel and footwear industry collaborative initiatives to advance chemicals management and product quality testing. He is now in his tenth year facilitating AFIRM after serving as Gap Inc.’s AFIRM representative for nine years while overseeing chemicals management for the iconic U.S. brand.
Before taking the stage at the American Image Awards on April 21, let's hear a bit about what continues to drive the organization forward.
What is one word or phrase that defines AFIRM Group’s outlook for 2026?
“Balance”
Chemicals management continues to be a hot topic among regulators around the world – so much so that new chemical regulation is outpacing and even conflicting with other major sustainability priorities. AFIRM strives to find the appropriate balance between ensuring the safety of chemical content in products and promoting the responsible reuse of finite resources via circular economy and garment durability initiatives.
How does industry-wide collaboration support your business goals and growth?
AFIRM is very active in the policy space given the many chemical regulatory developments we are seeing. We seek to provide the very best technical information and recommendations to policymakers in a way that they can understand. Our efforts are helped by alignment of messaging across multiple trade associations who may not necessarily specialize in or have expertise in chemicals management. By sharing aligned talking points with policymakers, we are more likely to prevail on them to enact the most pragmatic policies. Industry collaboration helps AFIRM achieve its goals and the traction we continue to gain with policymakers naturally attracts new member brands to the collaboration.
As we move into the latter half of the 2020s, what initiatives or priorities will be key to AFIRM reaching its 2030 objectives?
Of all the sustainability initiatives in our industry, chemicals management is the most mature with all kinds of chemical testing, reporting, and restriction obligations going back at least two decades or more. With each passing year, more chemical regulations are enacted – but this topic can no longer operate in isolation given the competing sustainability initiatives now taking shape. The best example is the effort to transition the fashion industry into a circular economy, which effectively means reusing the very same materials that are being restricted with new chemical regulation. Should the fashion industry be reusing or banning those materials? We cannot do both simultaneously. Likewise, the push for more durable garments requires the use of durable chemistry, which is often associated with hazard traits that can be managed but that are increasingly being regulated nonetheless. This is yet another growing tension we continue to see.
Why does a focus on transparency and sustainability remain critical for the fashion industry in 2026 and the years ahead?
Not only is this focus the right thing to do for the long-term health of our planet’s biodiversity and ecosystems, but it is also being mandated under a host of new regulatory initiatives around the globe. We are moving from a world where efforts to increase transparency and sustainability are nice to have to a world where they are legally mandated for continued market access.
Why is it important for consumers to understand the materials used to make their clothing, and how can fashion leaders help increase that awareness?
Materials used to make clothing have widely varying environmental footprints, and it is important for consumers to have access to credible information about the impacts of the garments they buy so they can adjust their consumption habits accordingly. Fashion leaders can help increase consumer awareness via transparent, credible, and easily understood product information, including the steps taken to minimize environmental footprints while maximizing safety through chemical and physical testing. This is not an easy task, but it will be required under new regulatory schemes now in the early stages of implementation.
Looking ahead, what would success look like for the fashion industry when it comes to safer materials and consumer trust?
With various policy initiatives in motion to transition the fashion industry into a closed-loop circular economy, success would mean consumer trust in the safety and durability of new garments incorporating recycled materials.
Get your tickets to support AFIRM Group and the future of the industry! We look forward to an incredible 50th anniversary celebration on April 21!