Parsons alumni address fashion’s waste crisis through biomaterials and cultural engagement

Emma Kowalczyk and Nij Balar, recent graduates of Parsons’ Master of Science in Strategic Design and Management program, are tackling one of fashion’s most persistent challenges: waste. Rather than developing yet another experimental textile, they turned their attention to accelerating the adoption of biomaterials, which they see as essential to reducing reliance on finite resources, restoring ecosystems, and rethinking global supply chains.

Their initiative, GYLD, functions as a creative agency that promotes regenerative materials through public engagement, storytelling, and immersive experiences. One of their prototypes transformed a SoHo retail space into a multisensory environment using SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast), aiming to make sustainable materials not just viable but culturally desirable.

The alumni credit Parsons’ interdisciplinary curriculum—with its emphasis on systems thinking, entrepreneurship, and research-informed design—for giving them the tools to bridge scientific innovation with cultural and market relevance. For educators, their work underscores the importance of teaching not only technical and creative skills but also the strategic, ethical, and cultural dimensions of material innovation.

As Kowalczyk and Balar’s project shows, preparing students for the future of fashion means equipping them to engage with sustainability at multiple levels: from lab research to business models to shifting consumer perceptions. Their approach illustrates how fashion education can evolve to address the industry’s environmental impact while fostering graduates who are ready to drive systemic change.