Fur Europe's flagship youth project, the Fur Summer School, returns once again to take 26 young people on a journey across the fur value chain and enable them to understand how fur fits with slow fashion and sustainability.
Entitled “From Waste to Gold,” each year the summer school takes place in Kastoria and Siatista in Greece, at the very heart of the oldest fur hub in Europe. It brings together young people with various backgrounds keen to explore fur from multiple angles such as craft, sustainability, design, business models, ethics, marketing and communication.
Combining both theoretical and practical exercises with visits to fur-related facilities, the Fur Summer School enables young people to foster entrepreneurship skills and connects with established fur business.
No better place to start this journey than a region with a 1400-year history in fur. Kastoria and Siatista are home to thousands of skilled fur practitioners and manufacturers who continuously reinvent the ways to use fur in fashion.
However, the region is not solely about manufacturing. Farmers in the nearby farms take care of the animals day today, while dressers and dyers make sure pelts are processed sustainably and with care of the environment. A bio-plant turns the waste from farms into electricity and other resources so that nothing is ever wasted. This way the loop of production closes to form the perfect circular economy, which is the engine of the region. This behind-the-scenes experience allows young people to learn about fur from farm to fashion.
The Fur Summer school will take place between 23 August - 1 September. Participants don't need any experience with fur. The only requirement is a deep interest in the topic of fur and sustainability and a desire to learn. Find out all the details about the application process here.