UCL alum Juliet leads on sustainability at Stella McCartney

UCL alumni from a huge range of academic backgrounds are pursuing rewarding careers in sustainability. Here we share the story of Juliet Russell, Head of Sustainability at Stella McCartney.

Juliet Russell (UCL Geography 2012) is Head of Sustainability at Stella McCartney.

The Stella McCartney fashion brand has always held sustainability at its core, launching in 2001 as a vegetarian company with no leather, feathers, fur or exotic skin.

About Juliet

Juliet draws on her education and varied career to ensure the Stella McCartney fashion brand does not compromise on desirability or sustainability. Her role looks at every aspect of the supply chain to reduce waste and use of raw materials, and aims to increase the innovation of repurposed, recycled and regenerative alternatives. Whether this be by using old-stock fabric or giving a second life to ocean plastics, the ambition is to close the loops and establish a new, circular economy-based precedent for the fashion industry.

Prior to joining Stella McCartney, Juliet worked with a range of businesses. This included the materials science company Pangaia, where she developed the company’s sustainability vision and commitments.

After graduating with a Master’s from Imperial College London, Juliet started post-graduate life working in environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting at G&A Institute, briefly working in chemical and waste compliance within the fashion industry and before moving to DG Cities, an urban innovation company delivering practical solutions to improve city living. She led a collaboration with Imperial College London, supervising Sustainability and Engineering students on consultancy projects, which included developing an app for optimising electric vehicle (EV) charging resources.

Listen to the podcast

Listen to Juliet’s guest appearance on UCL’s Generation One Climate podcast: “Does the earth have to be a fashion victim?”. In this episode, host Mark Maslin chats with Juliet about all things fashion; they discuss the industry and its current problems – from greenwashing to fast fashion – what needs to change, and how you can shop more consciously.

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