Welcome to Citizen Femme’s April 2025 Sustainable Edit, showcasing the sustainable collectives on our radar this month.
Including an off-grid non-profit safari lodge in the South African bush, a responsibly sourced cashmere brand that nurtures traditional craft skills and safeguards Mongolian herding communities, and a beauty retailer that’s changing the way we shop. Here are a few of the names making a positive change this April.
FASHION
London-based OYUNA was founded by Mongolian-born designer Oyuna Tserendorj, who works closely with her tight-knit international team to create timeless cashmere designs that blend London’s stylish edge with the beauty of the Mongolian landscape. The knitwear brand’s vision is deeply rooted in Oyuna’s Mongolian heritage; celebrating Mongolia’s nomadic culture with an utmost respect for the herders, the custodians of the land from which Oyuna’s cashmere is proudly sourced. Their mission is to lead impactful projects that bring long-lasting solutions to the sustainability of cashmere – helping to preserve the unique culture and pristine nature of Mongolia and its unique grasslands for generations to come. Committed to responsibly sourced, environmentally friendly cashmere, Oyuna works with The Sustainable Fibre Alliance – a non-profit organisation that aims to minimise the environmental impact of cashmere, safeguard the livelihood of the herding communities and improve animal welfare standards.
BEAUTY
Cult Beauty
Finding beauty products that align with our personal values can be a challenging space to navigate, but thanks to Cult Beauty’s Cult Conscious edit, fact-checking the ethical pros of a product has never been easier. In partnership with transparency tech-platform, Provenance, which uses blockchain technology to digitally verify the wealth of information that pervades the beauty realm, Cult customers are empowered to make eco-friendly, informed choices at a glance. Provenance performs extensive due diligence when it comes to brand’s impact claims, devising a ‘Proof Points’ system to categorise beauty products into various impact categories. Whether that’s finding beauty essentials that are vegan and cruelty-free from the likes of Augustinus Bader and Summer Fridays, or B Corp and recyclable from brands including Sunday Riley and Medik8, it’s never been easier to shop by your values.
STAY
On the banks of the Palala River in the Waterberg region of South Africa, lies Lapalala Wilderness Reserve. Comprising 50,000 hectares of unspoilt natural beauty, Lapalala’s vision is to continue to protect and conserve the biodiversity of the game reserve, uplift its neighbouring communities and create a responsible and sustainable model to secure its conservation status into the future. It all started with a vision of creating a different kind of safari lodge – one that operated off the grid, embraced sustainable technologies, and contributed to the land and its people. And so, Lepogo Lodges was born. Committed to 100 per cent not-for-profit, all proceeds go back to Lapalala Wilderness Reserve to fund future conservation projects. Having recently opened its second property, Melote House, last year, the new site offers guests an exclusive-use, fully off-grid experience, in which sustainability and ecological sensitivity are at the fore. Carved into the hillside with living roofs that small animals can graze from, the design incorporates the house back into the mountain, ensuring it blends seamlessly into the surroundings. Due to its remote location, Melote House uses entirely renewable, solar energy to power the whole site for a truly sustainable hideaway that provides guests with an exclusive, immersive experience deep in the heart of the African bush.
ACCESSORIES
Troubadour Goods
Co-founded by two former financiers, the path to Troubadour was years in the making and came from their quest to find the perfect travel bag – elegant, understated, and one that made the least possible impact on the planet. A mission which has subsequently led to the brand being certified B Corp status in recognition of their sustainability efforts. From leather cutting and stitching to hand finishing, mastering the skills of hand-crafting leather goods can take a lifetime of dedication. The name Troubadour honours the travelling storytellers of days gone by; inspired by the brands highly-skilled artisans who are behind the making of each carefully constructed bag. Made from vegetable-tanned leather, using an entirely natural process that dates back more than a thousand years, this natural method of tanning transforms animal hides into soft, smooth, durable leather of the highest quality. It’s also a far more eco-friendly method than chrome tanning, a cheaper, chemically intensive alternative that uses chromium sulphates and acidic salts to tan hides, resulting in pollutants that cause major health risks to both humans and the environment.
EAT
Saison by Mauro Colagreco
A celebration of the enduring British love affair with the Riviera, which began with Queen Victoria and has seen generations of travellers drawn back by its charismatic allure, Saison at Raffles London at The OWO takes inspiration from the glittering stretches of the Italian and French coastline. Atmospherically lit from above via an original Edwardian skylight, in what was once the library of the Old War Office, the building is steeped in history and – aside from the sensational cuisine – is worthy of a visit to experience dining in such an architectural landmark. Headed up by Argentine Michelin-star chef, Mauro Colagreco, Saison serves up relaxed all-day dining with seasonality as a guiding light; sourcing flavourful ingredients from close by, and championing each ingredient in its simplest form. His strong belief in harnessing hyper-local and hyper-seasonal ingredients has seen him create a close-knit supply chain of trusted producers; and his commitment to environmental sustainability has led to him being a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for biodiversity. Reducing food waste is taken very seriously throughout all the kitchens, with AI technology implemented to help monitor waste and modify production. No food waste goes to landfill, instead it’s composted and anything that is incinerated is done so in a site that turns the waste into renewable energy. Highlights from the spring menu include the sea bream carpaccio, delicately studded with plump citrus pearls and trout roe, the wild Cornish halibut with pink peppercorn, and the pumpkin gnocchi with gorgonzola cream.
Lead image: Lepogo Lodges
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