Sustainability, Fanaticism, and Fashion at USF!

The University of South Florida Graduate School’s Graduate Student Challenge Grant program for interdisciplinary research has provided our team of graduate students (including Robb Fladry, Elizabeth Victor, Jeffery Hinzmann, Andrew Romanar, and myself, Ellen Mueller) with funds to study the relationship between sustainability and fanaticism, or a lack thereof, among USF students. We started by creating and distributing a survey to measure USF students’ attitudes towards sustainability and fanaticism.

After collecting this data, it seemed natural to create an event that would attract a broader audience than the typical research-paper-reading crowd. The idea of a fashion show seemed ideal for showcasing our findings on these USF students’ viewpoints.

Design research included utilizing Google Image Search for words such as “sustainability,” “fanaticism,” and “America,” and researching popular college T-shirt designs in an effort to emulate the look and feel of college students’ clothing choices. After collaborating with graphic designer, Phil McCollam, to create the designs, they are now available via Zazzle.com, a site that will print designs on-demand, which is one of the more sustainable ways of producing these items, and that features organic and American-made products.

Through the narration of this fashion show and the online product descriptions, a broad audience will be able to learn about our research findings on USF student views.

For more information, please visit http://www.ellenmueller.com/fashion or email Ellen at emmuelle@mail.usf.edu