Scott Echols

ZDHC Programme Director, Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC)

Scott Echols is ZHDC's programme director. With over 30 years of experience ranging from environmental chemistry to textile and footwear product chemistry, he is an expert in sustainable materials and processes for the apparel and footwear industries. Prior to joining ZHDC, Scott was part of Nike's materials science innovation group and was Environmental Manager for CS.A Europe.

Scott holds bachelor and master degrees in chemistry/textile chemistry.

Georgia Parker

Innovation Manager, Fashion for Good

Georgia Parker is an Innovation Manager at Fashion for Good, the global initiative that convenes brands, producers, retailers, suppliers, non-profit organisations, innovators and funders in a pre-competitive space to support and embed breakthrough technologies into the fashion supply chain. She focuses on orchestrating brand and innovator collaborations, in areas of the supply chain related to raw materials, dyeing and finishing. Previously she worked at adidas in their Brand Sustainability team and was also part of the Ellen MacArthur Fellowship Programme.

She has a background in business having started her career at Deloitte.

Guenther Widler

Head of Technology for Denim & Sodamide, Dystar

Gunther Widler is the Head of Technology for Denim & Sodamide at DyStar. He joined DyStar in 2000, and is responsible for new technology and application methods to ensure the technical leadership of DyStar in Indigo. In 2000, a global leader in dyes, pigments, inks and auxiliaries for the textile industry strongly committed to sustainability.

Gunther started his textile career in 1983 as dyehouse manager in various European textile plants producing terry towels. In 1994 he joined BASF and worked in various development groups for Vat and Disperse dyes.

A textile engineer specialising in textile chemistry, he graduated from Vienna's High School for Textile Industry.

Dr Thomas Schaefer

Head, Bluesign Academy

Dr. Thomas Schaefer is the Managing Director of Bluesign Technologies. As head of the academy, the think tank of Bluesign, his primary responsibilities comprise generating and disseminating knowledge on the current trends and changes in textile production with focus on consumer safety relevant topics and environmental implications of chemicals management in textile production. He regularly revises the various criteria of the bluesign system and consults brands, textile manufacturers, chemical suppliers and institutions.

Thomas co-authored the document 'Best Available Techniques in Textile Industry' commissioned by the German Federal Environmental Agency in 2003. He also contributed to the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines in 2016.

Eric M Smith

Technology Manager, DuPont

Eric is currently a DuPont Fellow in the Advanced Printing business of DuPont. Since early 2018 he has been working on digital printing of new inks and pre-treatments for direct to garment applications, as well as for the digital Decor printing used in lamination processes for structural applications.

Eric earned his PhD in organic chemistry at The University of California, Irvine in 1997. In the same year, he joined DuPont Central Research and Development, focusing on new methodologies for combinatorial chemistry. In 2000, Eric joined a new business venture, - DuPont Displays, developing new materials and processes for OLEDs (Organic Light Emitting Diodes).

In 2015, he joined the DuPont Advanced Materials business as the Technical Manager for the West, focusing on the development of screen-printable electronic materials.

Drummond Lawson

Sustainability Director, Arc'teryx

Drummond Lawson is the director of sustainability at Arc'teryx. In his five years at the Vancouver-based outdoor gear design company, he has launched and now leads its environmental and social impact programmes.

An environmental chemist by background, Drummond focuses on good design as a tool for positive change. He previously directed sustainability efforts at Method Products in San Francisco and worked as a materials scientist at EPEA in Hamburg.

He is a fellow of the Aspen Institute First Movers' social intrapreneurship fellowship and holds degrees from the University of Calgary, Universite de Savoie and Cambridge University.

Paul Cowell

Head, Business Development & Brand Marketing, Archroma

Paul Cowell is the global head of the business development and brand solutions team at Archroma. He joined the company in 2013 and was responsible for apparel and interior marketing for Asia. Soon after, he was appointed to the role of global head of brand marketing, of the textile specialties business. He was also responsible for award-winning cloud based ONE WAY mill optimisation which revolutionised the digitalisation and calculation of resource usage in textile processing.

With 30 years in the textile industry, Paul started his career working on pure molecular research before moving into global technical support for textile processing mills. During his time with DyStar, he worked in colour communication tools and processes to help the textile supply chain reduce costs and time. In 2010, he joined Bluconnection, a start-up manufacturing pre-reduced indigo solution to dye indigo denim yarn.

Christian Wieth

Senior Global Marketing Manager, Novozymes

Christian Wieth is Senior Global Marketing Manager for enzymes for textile and leather applications at Novozymes, a position he has held for the past six years. He has worked for 28 years in both technical and commercial positions at Novozymes, a world leader in biological solutions. The company's products include innovations in enzymes for textile applications with solutions across biopolishing, bioscouring, bleach clean-up, denim abrasion and finishing and desizing. A graduate from Denmark's Technical University, Christian is a chemical engineer specialised in biotechnology.

Dr Sam Chen

Deputy Head, R&D Centre, Everlight

Sam Chen Hsiao-San is the Deputy Head of the research center in Everlight Chemical Industrial Corporation (ECIC), where he leads 20 researchers to develop colourants and inks for digital textile printing as well as business office printing applications. Sam has 25 years of experience on dye synthesis and inkjet application. After getting his PhD from UMIST Textile Department, UK in 2001, he started to work on dye synthesis, purification and ink formulation for inkjet printing application.

Dr. Sam Chen Deputy Head, R&D Centre Everlight Chemical Industrial Corporation (ECIC) Sam Chen Hsiao-San is the Deputy Head of the research center in Everlight Chemical Industrial Corporation (ECIC), where he leads 20 researchers to develop colourants and inks for digital textile printing as well as business office printing applications. Sam has 25 years of experience on dye synthesis and inkjet application. After getting his PhD from UMIST Textile Department, UK in 2001, he started to working on dye synthesis, purification and ink formulation for inkjet printing application.

Dunja Drmač

Sustainability Officer, European Apparel and Textile Confederation (EURATEX)

Dunja Drmač is a Sustainability Officer at EURATEX, the European Confederation of Textile and Apparel industry, in Brussels working on chemicals policy, circular economy, industrial emissions and energy, and sustainable supply chains in coordination with the national and European Member associations.

She graduated with a Master of Science in Environmental Policy from Bard College (USA) and prior to that obtained a Bachelor's degree in Biology with a minor in English technical writing from Slippery Rock University (USA). She joined EURATEX in 2016 after gaining experience in a Brussels based consultancy, at the European Commission and the World Health Organization.

Yariv Bustan

Vice President, Product and Marketing, Twine Solutions

Yariv Bustan is the Vice President of Marketing and Product Management at Twine Solutions, a technology start-up that has developed a proprietary and revolutionary digital on-demand thread dyeing system and a digital dye-to-match color application.

Yariv has over 15 years of experience in product management, marketing and business development roles of multidisciplinary, high-tech products from both start-ups and global corporations with a focus on marketing, product strategy, business development and strategic partnerships. He holds a B.Sc. in Electronic Engineering from HIT and an MBA with a major in Marketing from Bar-Ilan University.

Jonathan Wehrli

Product Manager for Eco Passport, Oeko-Tex® Association

Jonathan Wehrli serves as Product Manager for ECO PASSPORT by OEKO-TEX®, the testing and certification system for chemicals, colourants and auxiliaries used to manufacture textiles and leather. He is in charge of the list of restricted substances and manufacturing restricted substances, as well as responsible for the development of the standard according to new regulations as well as scientific insights.

Prior to joining the OEKO-TEX® Association, Jonathan held various positions in the chemical industry working on classification systems as well as compliance security projects. He holds a MSc in business chemistry.

Andrew Filarowski

Technical Director, Society of Dyers and Colourists

Andrew Filarowski is the deputy chief executive of the SDC and has over 20 years of international experience of textile and business management.

In his current position, he is responsible for the development of the Society's training courses internationally. He is secretary to BSI Colour Fastness and Colour Measurement Committee TCI/81 and its mirror committee in ISO TC38.

Andrew is also instrumental in ensuring the Society maintains its position in the field of education in textile coloration and is responsible for Colour Index, an internationally acclaimed publication. He ensures that the Society continues to be relevant for professionals involved in the coloration industry.

Carlos Aguilar

President, The Spanish Association of Textile Chemists & Colourists (AEQCT)

Carlos Aguilar is the president of AEQCT. He is managing director of Aguilar & Pineda Asociados S.L., a textile machinery, chemicals and environment technology company. He is also managing director of Luciano Aguilar S.A., a family business with 139 years of history dedicated to packing machinery, president of the IEEE-Spanish institute for Packaging, and vice president of Salón Hispack, an international packaging exhibition.

Diana Wyman

Technical Director, American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC)

Diana Wyman is the technical director of AATCC. She oversees textile test method development, instruction, and research. She has been involved in all aspects of product testing - from managing a contract lab to developing specifications for a retail brand. Diana holds degrees in fashion merchandising, business, and textiles. She also serves on textile committees for ASTM, ISO, and IPC.

Jan Marek

Vice-President, The International Federation of Associations of Textile Chemists & Colourists (IFATCC)

Jan Marek is the vice-president of IFATCC and president of the Czech Society of Textile Chemists and Colourists (since 2008). He is technical and sales director of INOTEX Ltd, an innovation and technology transfer company specialised in wet processing of textiles supporting the implementation of research and technological development results into the practice of industrial companies.

Janak Mehta

Imm. Past President, The Dyestuffs Manufacturers Association of India (DMAI)

Janak Mehta is the immediate past president of DMAI. He was president for four consecutive years, from 2012 to 2016. Earlier, he was also the president from 2006 to 2009. He has also recently been selected as the first ever Chairman of Asia Dyestuff Industry Federation (ADIF).

Janek is a member of the executive committee of the Indian Chemical Council. He has been nominated to be a member of the Task Force on Chemicals set up by Indian government's Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilisers since 2003.