Language

English

Start date

July 2027

Frequency

Evening

Fruition

On campus

Duration

2 Weeks

Price

€1,900

Turn your personal commitment to our planet and the people on it into a strategic pillar of your professional development.

The Sustainable Fashion Summer Course gives you the techniques and tools you need to make a fashion brand, its products, design processes, marketing, management and the materials it uses, truly sustainable.

It’s a fundamental theme for the industry, and involves every stage of the product life cycle: design, the purchasing of materials, production, logistics, product use and end of life.

Under the guidance of professionals who’ve made their mark in the sector. you’ll debate and analyse solutions, put theory into practice in technical classes and workshops, and visit businesses adopting eco-friendly solutions.

Information to decide

In this course, promoting, managing and developing sustainability is considered key if we’re to play a proactive role in the sustainable future of the fashion industry.

A dynamic format that combines technical classes held by professional designers, with debate and analysis sessions, practical workshops and visits to companies making sustainable fashion happen.

You’ll acquire the knowledge and tools you need to develop and manage sustainable projects, create new products and services, adopt sustainable business models, and redefine processes that are no longer viable, all with a systemic perspective.

A course for graduates in Fashion Design, Business Administration, Marketing and Communication.

Entrepreneurs in the fashion sector looking for a new, more sustainable approach for their production processes, techniques and methodologies will find the course both interesting and useful.

Professionals with proven experience in the field of design or fashion brand management, sustainability, CSR, communication or marketing can take their professional development to the next level with this course.

The fashion industry must change and adopt more resilient and viable models for the medium-to-long term. This commitment to change is complex and affects every stage of the product life cycle, meaning a large number of professionals must acquire the specific technical know-how required and the necessary strategic outlook to comprehend the fashion business in a totally new way. 

The aim of this summer course is to provide a solution to this problem from a holistic and interdisciplinary perspective, one that can be applied to a number of professional fields in the fashion industry, from design or production to sales, communication or management.  

Along with the theoretical and practical sessions, leading professionals will be giving talks to pass on their first-hand experience of today’s market, and you’ll get a more complete picture of the fashion business as your fellow students come from a variety of professional backgrounds. 

During the 2-week course you’ll be having this learning experience on IED's international campus at one of the most prestigious fashion schools in Europe against the backdrop of Barcelona. This city is a magnet for international fashion brands and the best possible place to see what’s happening with the latest trends, find inspiration for courageous, contemporary projects and put them into practice for a more sustainable future.

Syllabus

WEEK 1: GENERAL BLOCK

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CONTEXT
Workshop 1: What challenges are we facing? VISION 2030

FINAL PROJECT: A poetic quest - Brief and introduction

THE ETHICAL JOURNEY

FEELING & THINKING WORLDVIEW: How do we see and feel about the world?

ETHICS AND VALUES: What moves us? What does doing things right mean?

A GLOBAL VIEW AND GOAL: What kind of world do we want?

THE PATH TO THE GOAL: Look - What is there that’s sustainable? And ambition - Is it sustainable enough?

DOING - THE WHY DOS
Workshop 2: THE LIFE CYCLE OF CLOTHING
Why - act: The impact on ecosystems and people

BEING – THE HOW TOS
How to - build: Measurable /traceable / decision-making
How to - be: Culture / transparency / partnerships / innovation
How to integrate sustainability into business

SAYING & SHOWING: Communication and integrity

DIALOGUE 1: THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY AND SUSTAINABILITY
Circular Economy principles applied to fashion

CASE STUDY: The challenges of a circular economy
A debate: CIRCULAR ECONOMY VS SUSTAINABILITY

A BUSINESS WITH A PURPOSE: BUSINESS VISIT



WEEK 2: SPECIALIST BLOCK

SUSTAINABLE DESIGN

Sustainable design strategies for the textile-fashion industry (part 1)
Workshop 3: REDESIGN (MATERIALS AND PROCESSES)
Sustainable design strategies for the textile-fashion industry (part 2)
Workshop 4: Putting sustainable design into practice

SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION PROCESSES
Challenges for the denim industry: Solutions to the challenges of washing and finishing
Challenges with colour: Solutions to the challenges of dying and printing
Social Sustainability: Human Rights due diligence

DIALOGUE 2: INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY
Workshop 5: Creativity + Sustainability
Unique designs for a better world
Eco-innovation and competition

FINAL PROJECT: A poetic quest
Project Presentation

News

Professional fashion catwalk with models parading

17 September 2026

IED fashion takes centre stage at 080 Barcelona Fashion

Acceptance Letter (by IED Barcelona lecturer Jeakyong Sim), Compte Spain and L’AMAR (brands founded respectively by IED Madrid alumni Santi Mozas and Nacho Lamar) will take to the catwalk at Spain’s most international fashion event in October.

Crowded stalls of an auditorium

15 September 2026

More than 200 students from 52 nationalities open the 2026-2027 academic year of the IED Barcelona

On 14 September, the Welcome Event welcomed a new generation of creatives and designers joining the undergraduate programmes.

14 September 2026

Chimera – Hybrid Artifacts: Design Connects Turin and São Paulo

Seven bags, two cities and one shared project. A collaboration between Italy and Brazil has evolved into an international design journey, bringing together different cultures, materials and design languages.

11 September 2026

Issue 4: Material World - Plural Intelligences

What happens when we recognize the intelligence of materials and learn to work with it responsibly, collectively, and collaboratively?

11 September 2026

IED Kunsthal Bilbao temporarily transforms Doña Casilda Park with ‘Sareak’

A cross-disciplinary project bringing together nearly 200 members of the community to reflect on contemporary communication through design.

11 September 2026

Peio Santisteban’s “Flores para un monstruo” Wins the IED Madrid Fashion Talent Award 2026

Twelve students from the Fashion Design Bachelor’s Degree at Istituto Europeo di Design Madrid presented their collections for the second consecutive year as part of the OModa Madrid Es Moda programme.

07 September 2026

Fashion show and festival: the IED Public Programme is back

In September, IED's Public Program returns with a calendar of events across its campuses in Italy and Spain, offering opportunities for dialogue, exchange and discovery open to the community and the wider public.

07 September 2026

From Turin to Tokyo: IED and Pioneer Denim bring new visions of denim to the international runway

Projects by students on IED Torino’s Undergraduate Programme in Fashion Design, developed using materials supplied by the company, are heading to Tranoï Tokyo and Denim Première Vision as part of the collaboration with Pioneer Denim, bringing together research, experimentation and product culture.

07 September 2026

IED Madrid Alumni Talent at OMODA Madrid es Moda 2026

Designers and IED Madrid alumni Luis Berrendero and Carlota Barrera have taken part in this edition’s programme, alongside other IED Madrid initiatives such as its Fashion Show 2026 and the event with Roberto Verino.

Don't miss it

14 September 2026 - 18 September 2026

Barcelona

IED Barcelona 2026 Undergraduate Welcome Week

The welcome event for undergraduate students, teachers and staff to mark the official opening of the new academic year will take place on Monday 14 September.

Exhibitions and Festival

02 October 2026 - 08 October 2026

Madrid

Sepiia’s 10th Anniversary Exhibition

IED Madrid alumni and designer Federico Sáinz de Robles celebrates the 10th anniversary of his brand, Sepiia, with an exhibition.

An open notebook showing two pencil sketches, one of a lamp and the other of designer handbags
Exhibitions and Festival

17 October 2026 - 17 October 2026

Barcelona

Barcelona Dibuixa 2026: “The Power of Hand Drawing”

IED Barcelona is offering this workshop, where participants will discover, guided by architect and lecturer Gianfranco La Cognata – Laco 2, how design takes shape through illustration.