PENANG Hill is home to nature, great trekking pathways and a lush rainforest – qualities that granted it the Unesco status of Biosphere Reserve.
According to the international body, the historic hill range is a mosaic of urban and agricultural landscapes, with one of the last coastal rainforests in Malaysia.
The area consists of coastal lowland and dipterocarp forests, mangroves, wetlands, beaches and coral reefs.
These diverse habitats support a wide range of floral and faunal diversity, including endemic and endangered species such as the Irrawaddy Dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris), Sunda Pangolin (Manis javanica) and various migratory birds.
But tonight (April 15), the hill will be converted for the first time ever into a fashion runway to celebrate one of the world's few sustainable fashion house’s apparel wear.
Hosted by The Habitat – the facility is the gateway to the biosphere world of nature.
Tonight’s event will be unique because it will have fashion and designs made up solely of recycled plastic bottles.
With such innovation, the show has attracted global and local celebrities from the world of film, music and arts – not to mention Penang's strengths in culture.
Tagged as ‘Fashion in the Forest,’ the event is branded by the organisers as an eco-event, as the audience will be part of nature.
The ME2WE movement will be unveiling its new sustainable Fall/Winter 2023 collection of designer streetwear, whose brand intends to create a culture of togetherness.
Founded by US celebrity fashion designer Simplicio Michael Luis, or better known as ‘M’, and entrepreneur Stuart Patton, whose goal is to make the brand purposeful not only through sustainability, but also by empowering the community to create an impactful positive movement.
"By moving from ME to WE, we can achieve more," said Patton, co-founder of ME2WE.
The event itself will hopefully become an inspiration to the efforts in Penang to fight plastic pollution, especially since the state has taken the lead to bar the use of the highly polluting materials, which is slowly but surely polluting the soil and seas.
Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) is a member of the global movement Break Free from Plastic, which is headquartered in the US and has strong regional representation in the Philippines and Indonesia.
SAM, through its senior research officer S. Mageswary in 2020, expressed hope that Penang will ban the use of the material once and for all, instead of raising its prices when it is dispensed at supermarkets or hypermarkets and other retail outlets.
The organisers are also flying in Grammy Award-winning singer Jamie Jones from the pop group ALL-4-One.
However, he will only be performing at a private concert at an undisclosed location for the after-party gathering.
Patton wants to share three points about the ME2WE, which is that it is an international brand, it is eco-friendly and because of this, has a following among celebrities.
"We would also love to highlight our unique affinity to Malaysia as a brand because of its diversity in all aspects," said Patton.
The event will also see emphasis towards safeguarding sustainable practices, which eroded, especially during Covid-19, which saw the comeback of plastic as materials for food containers, medical use and for transportation.
With the coming together of fashion, celebrities and the noble cause of saving the planet, it is hoped the audience will bring a message back to their homes that there is a need to do things differently in a world riven with a pandemic, a war and economic strife, as well as environmental degradation.
Patton hopes that ME2WE can bring smiles for a moment with its fashion innovations and environmental message. – The Vibes, April 15, 2023
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