2024 Rust Belt Fibershed Symposium:
The Potential of a Place-Based, Soil-to-Soil Textile System
Registration for the symposium is now full! BUT join us for the free & open-to-the-public portion from 2-4 on Saturday, January 27th for vendors, learning stations, and a raffle. Click here for more info!
Join us for the 2024 Rust Belt Fibershed (First annual) Symposium:
The Rust Belt Fibershed is convening regional voices from across our local fiber and textile community -- including producers, designers, community members, and more-- in our first annual Rust Belt Fibesrhed Symposium to explore the connection between people and materials necessary to transform our textile system. As this is our first symposium, we'll focus on the whole picture: the potential of place-based, soil-to-soil textile system.
You'll hear from experts within the supply chain--from farmers to processors, to dyers, to designers, to up-cyclers and menders-- as they discuss how place-based focus on textiles can shape and transform our surroundings and create unique and vibrant connections.
Along with our panel of guest speakers, there will be immersive learning stations and engaging discussions with experts. Whether you're a textile enthusiast, designer, farmer, gardener, culture shifter, climate advocate, clothes-wearer (we know you are!), or simply curious about the power of textiles to create a healthier future, this event is a must-attend.
Just like the importance of the local farm-to-table movement, don't miss out on this inspiring opportunity to be a connect in the foundational work of bringing back a place-based, regional textile system in a responsible way-- a way that boasts joy, connection, purpose, and makes our place in the Rust Belt Region a place where we can thrive (yes, clothes can contribute to this!).
The Symposium experience is a 3-Part Act:
Part 1: Friday Night, January 26th, 7-9. Community viewing of River Blue at Cedar Lee Theatre.
Part 2: Saturday Morning, January 27th, 8:30-1:00ish Symposium speakers, fashion show, and clothing swap! (SCROLL FOR DETAILED AGENDA!)
Part 3: Saturday Afternoon
1-2pm: Symposium ticketholders only
2-4pm: Open to the public
Vendors and Hands-on Learning/Demo Stations immediately follow the morning programming.
You can purchase tickets to parts of this event separately, or bundle and save! See more information below.
part 1
Friday Night, 1/26, 7:00
While the main conference takes place on Saturday, the weekend will kick-off with a special screening of River Blue at the Cedar Lee Theatre in Cleveland Heights on Friday night, which details the devastating effects of the textile industry's pollution of our planet's waterways. The film is important and moving and will fill in some details behind the "slow fashion" movement. Our collective viewing will tee us up for Saturday's inspiring tone of the future potential in a regenerative, regional system.
Our symposium kicks off on Friday night, January 26th, at the Cedar Lee Theatre in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, for a special screening of the documentary RIver Blue, which examines the fashion industry, its impact on the worlds’ rivers, and what consumers can do to inspire change for a brighter future. Bring some clothing items to drop off for the next day’s clothing swap!
part 2
SATURDAY, 1/27, 8:30-1:00
The symposium will commence at 8:30 on Saturday morning at the beautiful 78th Street Studios in Cleveland. Pastries, fruit, coffee, and tea will be served.
We’ll begin at 8:30 with registration and refreshments, and you’ll have the opportunity to drop off any clothing swap items and redeem them for tickets to use at the end of the morning.
We will hear from farmers, processors, sewists, community leaders, designers, up-cyclers who will share their expertise and vision for the future of this region.
We will close out the speaking portion of the morning with a celebratory fashion show showcasing outfits made completely from within the Rust Belt Fibershed by local artisans.
Starting at 1:00
After the fashion show, you’ll have the opportunity to engage in a in the clothing swap (if you'd like, bring a few well-loved items to drop off in the morning before the symposium).
After the fashion show, we’ll head upstairs, and ticket holders will have an hour to engage in hands-on demonstrations, shop local fiber and clothing vendors, and connect more with people you heard from during the symposium. This last part— the demonstrations and clothing vendors—will be open to the general public from 2-4pm free of charge.
Keep an eye on this page as we update it with speaker and learning demo table bios and the full agenda.
78th St Studios bottom level, which will host the majority of the morning activities, beginning at 8:30: speaker presentations from our soil-to-soil Rust Belt Fibershed community and a fashion show at 12:45 to close our our time together. Coffee, tea, and light pastries will be served.
part 3
SATURDAY, 1/27
1:00-2:00— symposium ticketholders only
2:00-4:00— free to the General Public
Engage in hands-on demonstrations, shop local fiber and clothing vendors, and connect with people who are also passionate about local fiber systems! More details about vendors and demos to come!
78th St Studios top level, which will be filled with learning tables for soil-to-soil demos, a clothing swap, and vendors.
Who is this conference for?
Anyone who wears clothing, uses bedsheets, pulls curtains closed, has a rug in their home (you get the picture)! More specifically: if your interests include any of the following, this is for you: Fashion, Agriculture, Textiles, Sustainability, Art, Local Economies, Health, Resilience, Climate Action, Animals, Community Building, Ecology, and so much more.
By participating in this symposium, you are directly contributing to momentum to make our Rust Belt region a better place to live. We want to meet you, and we hope to see you there!
Do you need a scholarship ticket?
We have a limited amount of scholarship tickets available for those who truly need them. If you are reading this, there are still some available. Please use the code "SCHOLARSHIP" at checkout.
DETAILED AGENDA:
FRIDAY NIGHT, Jan 26th, River Blue Screening, Cedar Lee Theatre
6:45-7:00- Show proof of ticket purchase, purchase refreshments, drop off any clothing-swap items for tomorrow, and find a seat in the theater. We’ll give a very brief welcome and introduction prior to the documentary beginning.
7:00-8:40- Documentary Screening: River Blue
8:40-9:00- Jess Boeke, Executive Director of the Rust Belt Fibershed, will connect the documentary to our work in the Rust Belt Fibershed, and what folks can expect tomorrow.
SATURDAY, Jan 27th, 78th St Speakers, Fashion Show, Learning Station, & Vendors
8:30-8:50- Arrive, register, refreshments, mingling, and drop off clothing swap items for tickets
8:50-9:05- A Grounding Opening
Co-Founders Sarah Pottle and Jess Boeke: The Potential for Place-Based, Soil-to-Soil Fiber
9:05-9:50 - A Fiber Farmer’s Perspective on the Healing Potential of Local Textiles
Introduction by RBF Board Member Emily Pek / Frayed Knot Farm in Newberry,
Charis Walker/ Tarheel Billy Farm in Southern Ohio
Sherry Mitchell/ Mitchell Wool Co in Dryden, MI
9:50-10:20- Collective Growth: Community-Grown Flax & Indigo
Introduction by RBF Board Member Jennifer Lumpkin / My Grow Connect in Cleveland
Jess Boeke / Rust Belt Fibershed in Peninsula, OH
Jessica Pinsky /Praxis Fiber Workshop in Cleveland, OH
10:20-10:30 Short break for connection, refreshments, post-it-questions, and restroom
10:30-11:20- Reclaiming Regional Processing and Manufacturing
Introduction by Kelly Powers/ Powers Acres from Granger Township, OH
April Zeilinger /Zeilinger Wool Company from Frankenmuth, MI
Shailah Maynard / Sew Valley from Cincinnati, OH
Emily Tiell / Esperanza Threads from Cleveland, OH
11:20- 11:40- Designing in the Rust Belt Fibershed
Introduction by RBF Board Member Aaron Jacobson / FAAN from Cleveland, OH
Celeste Malvar- Stewart/ Malvar-Stewart from Columbus, OH
11:45-12:20- The Most Sustainable Wardrobe is the One You Already Own
Introduction by RBF Board Member, Olivia Vanistandael, Textile Engineer - Pittsburgh, PA
Sarah Silk/ Silk Denim, from Pittsburgh, PA
Rebecca Harrison/ Old Flame Mending from Pittsburgh, PA
12:20-12:35- Short Break for refreshment, post-it questions, and restroom prior to fashion show
12:35-12:45- Closing Remarks
Sarah Pottle, Rust Belt Fibershed from Medina, OH
12:45- 1:00- OYOO Fashion Show
Outfits by: Sarah Silk, Sara Guren, Janel Franks, Courtney McCrone, Priscilla Roggenkamp, Emily Kichler, Margy Sankey, Debbie Christensen, Jasmine Kornel & Charity Thomas, Maggie Latham & Lizzi Essie, Brette Soucie & Katie Pfohl, Hannah Reed, Morgan Neiss, Anna Kiss Mauser-Martinez, Katie Jackson
1:00*-4:00 Hands-On Learning Stations and Vendors*
1-2pm: morning symposium ticket holders only*
2-4pm: free to general public
*Clothing Swap: morning ticket holders only
Hands-on Learning Demos: sewing, mending, crocheting, wet-felting, cordage-making, flax-to-linen processing, suri-alpaca-fleece touching, roving demo, and so much more!
Shop Vendors: fiber straight from local farms, vintage vendors, local cut-and-sew vendors, natural dyers, and more!
Learn more about how textiles are made, pick up a hobby, go home having supported local organizations and business, and make some new connections!
Click to see more information about:
Sponsorships
Are you a business and interested in sponsoring the 2024 Rust Belt Fibershed symposium? You can easily do so by purchasing a “sponsor ticket” at the link above.
The strength of this conference lies in our community, our collective voices, our co-creation, and also our sponsorships. By giving to the Rust Belt Fibershed 2024 Symposium, you’ll help us accomplish our goal of providing speaker fees to regenerative fiber farmers and processors, offer scholarship tickets, develop print media including but not limited to “Taking Climate Change into my own Closet” workbooks for attendees, postcards, and signs for the event. We’ll also use funding to pay professional photographers and videographers to cover the event so that we can continue to tell the story of how our textiles impact our environment. In appreciation of your donation, we would like to display your name as a Sponsor for the event on our website and at the bottom of print materials for Symposium attendees. After donating, in response to your confirmation email, please send us any logo, website, and an IG social handle in response to this email. We'll ensure it makes it into our printed, presentation, and website materials.
Thank you for helping us make this year’s event a springboard for ecologically-based culture shifts throughout the rest of 2024! If you would like to donate more than $250, you can purchase multiple "tickets" in increments of $250.
We are an official 501(c)3, and all donations are tax-deductible. If you'd like to chat more about partnering with the Rust Belt Fibershed, please reach out to rustbeltfibershed@gmail.com. We'd love to chat more.
Photography/Media Disclaimer
Please be aware that by participating in this event, you are entering an area where photography, audio, and video recording may occur. By your presence, you consent to be photographed, filmed, and/or otherwise recorded.
Your entry constitutes your consent to such photography, filming, and/or recording and to any use, in any and all media throughout the universe in perpetuity, of your appearance, voice, and name for any purpose whatsoever in connection with the [Your Organization's Name].
You understand that all photography, filming, and/or recording will be done in reliance on this consent given by you by entering the event area.
If you do not agree to the foregoing, please let our event staff know so that we can accommodate your preferences.
Thank you for your understanding and support in helping us capture the spirit of this event!
Many, many thanks to the Cleveland Foundation, who have helped make this event possible.