Kirsten Dickerson: Building A Sustainable Lifestyle Brand That Supports Marginalized Women Around The Globe

Before founding her own sustainable fashion company, Kirsten Dickerson was working as an art director in the film world, as well as holding various jobs within the global non-profit leadership realm. Raven and Lily's origins began with Kirsten calling together some of her friends in the L.A design scene to create a non-profit focused on offering women a more sustainable livelihood within the fashion industry.

They wanted to help guide and train these women to create garments that people all over the world would desire and seek out, and provide them with security and a sustainable living. Once Kirsten saw the joy and need the non-profit was creating, she quit her job and pursued this work full time.

The company is now a certified B-corporation, that employs over 1500 marginalized women in countries like Kenya, Cambodia, Guatemala, Pakistan, just to name a few. They offer these women a fair trade wage, access to a safe job, sustainable income, healthcare and other tools that help them thrive. As Kirsten believes, "when women move forward, the world moves with them" - African Proverb.