BIO

Pioneer of upcycling in Poland. Designer and educator in the field of circular fashion and upcycling methodology. Founder and CEO of the circular fashion brand Saint Warsaw – one of the first on the Polish market. This year, by the editors of ELLE, she was included in the list of 20 Women Changing the World – for her work on the fashion ecosystem in Poland and promoting circularity.

Her mission is to change public perception on textile waste and second-hand clothes, and to scale upcycling system design in the fashion industry in combination with climate education. She also transfers her knowledge and several years of experience as a stylist, designer, art director and strate-girl to creative-strategic workshops, lectures on social and design innovation for companies, designers, NGOs and consumers. She is an advisor and expert for UN-led programs such as Climate Leadership and #EndPlasticPollution at UNEP. She is also an expert on the EU Closed Circuit Textile Strategy of the Roundtable for Sustainable Fashion at UNGC under the United Aliance for Sustainable Fashion.

Co-creator, costume designer, artistic director of film projects awarded at Polish and global film and new media festivals such as the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia, EUROPRIX Top Talent in Vienna, including one of the world’s first interactive films entitled: „Sufferrosa”, awarded at The Webby Awards in New York, among others. A forerunner of upcycling in Poland. The designs of her upcycling collections have appeared in the press in Poland and abroad since 2003. Magazines such as Vogue, Forbes Women, Elle, Gazeta Wyborcza, Zwierciadło and The Guardian have written about Monika Surowiec’s work and her projects.