Farmers, Activists & Brands: Better Cotton Finalises Conference Line-Up One Month Out 

Better Cotton, the world’s largest cotton sustainability initiative, will welcome cotton farmers, retailers, brands, environmental activists, and innovators to its annual conference, which takes place in İzmir, Türkiye, on 18-19 June. 

Under the overarching theme ‘It Starts with Farmers’, the 2025 Better Cotton Conference will catalyse lively debate and collaborative action as it explores the sector’s most pressing issues and interests, from climate finance and regenerative agriculture to traceability, sustainability claims, and industry regulations. 

Alan McClay, CEO at Better Cotton, said: “The Better Cotton Conference puts global cotton farming communities at the centre of its discussions. They form the backbone of the fashion and textile sectors, and it’s through this lens that we can reach a consensus as an industry that drives progress for everyone, right back to the start of our supply chains.”  

The conference will explore four important and interconnected themes: Nurturing Equality – A Fairer Future for Farming Communities; Restoring the Environment – Turning Climate Commitments into Action; Deepening Impact with Data – Unlocking Insights for a Stronger Cotton Industry; and Shaping our Future – Policy, Collaboration and Industry Evolution. 

Confirmed keynote speakers include ex-Starbucks Chief Sustainability Officer, Michael Kobori, who now serves as an independent Director of Bunge Global, SA., one of the world’s largest agricultural companies; social and environmental advocate Lavinia Muth, whose work in ethically driven fashion and agriculture has spanned 15 years; and climate justice campaigner Tori Tsui, who is a Senior Advisor for the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty and Climate Justice Lead for Brian Eno’s Earth Percent. 

With only one month until the event, Muth said: “I’m excited to join the Better Cotton Conference to challenge and reimagine cotton farming as if relations matter. This isn’t just about better practices, it’s about deeper relationships: cotton as kin, land as ancestor and labour as sacred and precious. Let’s move beyond sustainability as a checklist and toward justice as a practice.” 

Kobori, who was involved in the establishment of Better Cotton 15 years ago, added: “I have followed and supported the organisation’s extraordinary progress with great interest. I am looking forward to learning about Better Cotton’s latest impacts as well as its future plans and how I can best support these.” 

The event will welcome farmers and field-level representatives from Australia, Brazil, Côte d’Ivoire, India, Pakistan, Türkiye, the USA, and Uzbekistan. 

Organisations also set to participate over the two days include: IKEA, Textile Exchange, John Lewis, the Fair Labor Association, the Organic Cotton Accelerator, FS Impact Finance, Solidaridad, Cotton Australia, and Farmer Connect.  

After the conference, Better Cotton will host interested attendees for farm tours at which they will see first-hand how Turkish cotton farmers have been implementing more sustainable agricultural practices.  

Notes to Editors   

• The conference in Izmir has USB Certification as its Headline Sponsor; Control Union as its Premium Sponsor; and is also proudly sponsored by Cotton Benin, Cotcast.ai, Cotton Connect, San-JFS, Kipas, and Source Intelligence. 

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