The Global Footwear & Apparel Traceability Summit
- jpascu02
- Mar 20
- 3 min read
Allison Haynes, GFAT Co-Coordinator
Francesca Roblez, GFAT Support Team
Jordan Lee, GFAT Co-Coordinator
On February 25 & 26, the second Global Footwear & Apparel Traceability Summit occurred at the Syracuse University Washington, D.C. campus, supported by the Dynamic Sustainability Lab and The University of Oregon Sport Management Program. This event brought together policy experts, university researchers, supply chain leaders, industry associations, suppliers, and key stakeholders from major brands to address challenges and advancements in regulatory compliance, supply chain transparency, and industry-wide collaboration.
Key themes discussed were:
Collaboration & Industry Alignment – Creating a unified approach between brands, suppliers, and policymakers.
Standardization & Simplification – Streamlining global traceability definitions, data & policy standardization for better accessibility and adoption.
Technology & Data Interoperability – Leveraging AI, blockchain, and Digital Product Passports (DPPs) for seamless tracking.
Economic & Business Impact – Understanding the ROI of a fully traceable supply chain to all stakeholders up and down the supply chain.
Keynote addresses were given by Dr. Nikki Roy, Senior Energy Advisor to U.S. Representative Sean Casten (D-IL) and Dr. George E. Bogden, newly appointed Executive Director of Trade Relations at U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Dr. Nikki Roy discussed the bi-partisan Voluntary Sustainable Apparel Labeling Act which Congressman Casten introduced with Congresswoman Maria Salazar (R-FL). Dr. Bogden discussed how the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act set a global standard for supply chain compliance, the growing need for government and industry collaboration to enable effective policy enforcement, and proactive risk-based compliance approaches.
Working groups established at the first GFAT summit in Portland, Oregon in October of 2024, provided a pitchback of their results at the DC summit.
Working Group 1 Pitchback
Led by: Dr. Jay Golden, professor and director of the Dynamic Sustainability Lab at Syracuse University
Objective: Make global regulations easier to understand and apply across supply chains.
Key Points: Dr. Jay Golden was joined by three of his graduate student research fellows, Kathryn Murphy, Rahul Raja, and Jake Snelling, from Syracuse University, to discuss industry survey results that they collected and analyzed. They discussed the need for, as well as the barriers to developing and implementing a global traceability database for real-time regulation tracking.
Working Group 2 Pitchback
Led by: Lorrie Vogel, Founder/President of ImagineNOW Inc. & pre-tem professor at the University of Oregon Sports Product Management program
Objective: Streamline traceability efforts across the industry to reduce costs, improve compliance and enhance data accuracy.
Key Points: Lorrie Vogel illustrated that expanding industry-wide adoption of electronic tracking systems needs a standardizing framework. Electronic Product Code Information Services (EPCIS) were discussed as a use case and reference, while AI and blockchain were presented as a key to ensure compliance and data authenticity.
Working Group 3 Pitchback
Led by: Stacey Roen, SR Consulting
Objective: Improve communication and build a pre-competitive network of industry associations, upstream partners, and industry leaders to guide transparency best practices.
Key Points: Stacey Roen and her working group developed a detailed stakeholder map in which key industry players were identified. Roen discussed the need for a shared, industry-wide framework for data exchange and establishing a global data dictionary for common traceability language.
Industry Association Panel
Next was a panel discussion to understand efforts currently underway at each organization and glean industry perspectives on how to integrate traceability effectively. Panelists and audience members acknowledged the duplication of efforts across the industry and a need to better understand the larger landscape of groups under taking traceability work globally.
GFAT Next Steps
Finally, the GFAT leadership team consisting of Dr. Ellen Schmidt Devlin, Founder & CEO of ESD Consulting Services, Dave Kelley, Founder and Principal of Zefyr Solutions, as well as the working group leads, Dr. Jay Golden, Lorrie Vogel, and Stacey Roen, provided their insight and discussed next steps for GFAT and this convening congress of industry representatives.
Final Takeaways
Traceability is no longer optional—it is a business imperative and a regulation requirement.
Collaboration is key—a unified global effort is needed for real progress.
Regulatory frameworks must be standardized—transparency will reduce compliance burdens.
Technology-driven compliance—software/platforms, AI, blockchain, and digital passports will drive efficiency.
ROI must be clear across the supply chain—brands and their suppliers must see the value of traceability investments to fully buy into change.
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