Why Consumer Behavior is at the Heart of SFF26
TL;DR Sustainability teams are under pressure to prove business value, but even the best systems struggle when people don’t participate in them. SFF26 is dedicated entirely to consumer behavior, consumer psychology, and the science of adoption because understanding what drives participation is essential to helping sustainability initiatives gain traction, earn investment, and scale.
After a decade of hosting conversations across the sustainable fashion ecosystem, we've watched sustainability become more visible, more ambitious, and more innovative.
But we've also watched something else happen.
We've watched sustainability lose momentum.
Sustainability teams are under growing pressure to prove business value. Budgets are being scrutinized. Fashion executives have significantly downgraded sustainability as a growth priority, and brands are scaling back ambitions as budgets tighten and commercial pressures intensify. Meanwhile, leaders continue to wrestle with a difficult reality: consumers often say sustainability matters, but their behavior doesn't always follow.
At SFF, we've spent the last several years asking ourselves why.
Why does sustainability continue to struggle for attention, investment, and influence inside organizations? Why do some initiatives gain traction while others stall?
The industry has spent years building sustainable systems. But we've spent far less time asking what it takes to get people to participate in them. The more we sat with that question, we realized that building systems and creating participation are two different challenges.
The future of sustainable fashion isn't systems change or behavior change. It's systems change AND behavior change.
That's why, for the first time in the Sustainable Fashion Forum’s history, SFF26 is dedicated entirely to consumer behavior, consumer psychology, and the science of adoption.
From October 28-30, 2026, at the Hyatt Regency Portland in Portland, Oregon, we'll bring together behavioral scientists, consumer psychologists, brand strategists, and sustainability leaders to explore what it actually takes to create participation, adoption, and business value.
The Question at the Heart of SFF26
Most sustainability leaders agree that consumer participation matters.
The harder question is whether consumer behavior can be influenced in ways that meaningfully change sustainability's trajectory and create measurable business outcomes.
Can sustainable behaviors become mainstream? Can behavioral science help drive participation, demand, and long-term engagement in sustainable fashion? And are there real-world examples that demonstrate what that looks like in practice?
Those are the questions at the core of SFF26. And they're the questions our entire program is built to answer.
Who's Helping Us Answer It
The SFF26 program brings together behavioral scientists, consumer psychologists, brand strategists, and leaders who have applied these ideas inside major organizations and can show what it looks like when participation creates measurable business value.
Every speaker was selected because they bring evidence, real-world examples, or perspectives that fundamentally change how we think about participation and adoption.
Who Will Be in the Room
SFF26 is designed for mid-to-senior professionals working across sustainability, marketing, communications, strategy, and policy roles, particularly those responsible for helping sustainability initiatives gain traction inside their organizations.
Past SFF attendees have included leaders from brands, retailers, consultancies, technology companies, government bodies, and nonprofits, including Vestiaire Collective, eBay, Reformation, Apparel Impact Institute, PVH, Allbirds, Gap Inc., Rothy's, Adidas, Nordstrom, Better Cotton, Cascale, and VF Corp.
What they share is a belief that sustainability has to work commercially, not just conceptually.
If you're responsible for making sustainability work inside your organization, this room was built for you.
What You'll Walk Away With
Practical frameworks for designing sustainability initiatives that drive real consumer participation
A clearer understanding of the behavioral science behind consumer decision-making
Language and evidence to make the internal business case for sustainability investment
Direct relationships with peers who are navigating the same pressures
Access to the SFF26 Intelligence Report -- a post-conference synthesis of session insights, case studies, research, and actionable recommendations designed to help you translate what you learned into your own work
A closing session dedicated entirely to one question: given everything we've discussed, what do you do next?
Speakers and programming details announced soon. Sign up for conference updates to be the first to receive speaker announcements, programming updates, and event news leading up to SFF26.
Join the Conversation at SFF26
Tickets are available now. Join sustainability leaders exploring how consumer behavior shapes whether sustainability initiatives gain traction, create business value, and continue earning investment.
