Linda Speldewinde is leader in the development of the fashion industry in Sri Lanka and founded Peshakala, a project which aims to revive the use of the country's indigenous textiles. In 2000, having spotted the lack of fashion and textiles education courses in Sri Lanka, Linda founded the Academy of Design, a pioneering venture to provide undergraduate education in fashion. The Academy aims to promote design as both a serious educational discipline and a dynamic profession in Sri Lanka. Since the Academy's successful launch she has continued her role as a leader in the development of the fashion industry and founded Peshakala, a project which aims to revive the use of indigenous textiles in Sri Lanka and engage young designers with craft communities in villages; a crucial project in a country where there is such economic disparity between the urban and the rural. To highlight the important contribution which design makes to the cultural and economic life of Sri Lanka Linda established Colombo's inaugural Design Week in 2008.
I have been an entrepreneur since I was 19. My first business, which I started and later my brother joined, and which he is still running today, it was importing interior products: interior architecture, furnishing. So, basically, that was a business that I started, so I was already an entrepreneu...(Full transcript available to logged in subscribers.).
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