Sustainable fashion isn't just a fleeting trend. With a growing number of young designers focusing on the social and environmental impact that fashion has on communities, “designer activism” and “eco collection” are terms that we’ll be hearing more and more, at Fashion Week and on the street. At the forefront of the sustainability movement are initiatives like Awamaki Lab, a four-month design residency program that enables emerging designers to work with a weaving association in the Patacancha Valley of Peru, connecting the women of this small village with a sustainable outlet for their traditional hand woven textiles, and designers with the resources to create a capsule collection.

By providing a design mentor and an experienced fashion photographer, the Awamaki Lab program gives designers the chance to create a collection and have it documented and publicized by a PR firm hired by Awamaki. The designers are involved throughout the entire experience, and beyond educating a generation of artists about the importance of socially responsible design, the Awamaki Lab project creates a viable income for the Quechua women involved that's unrelated to tourism, the primary industry of their region in Peru.

For its inaugural season, Awamaki Lab worked with designer Nieli Vallin, who studied design in Paris at the Chambre Syndical de la Couture; her design mentor, Tara St James, owner of successful eco fashion line Study and 2011 Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award winner; and Kate Reeder, an NYC-based fashion photographer. Brought together by the program’s director, Annie Millican, the three American fashion devotees will work with the vivid textiles and simple draping of the lliqllas (yik-ee-yaahs) -- traditional woolen shawls worn by the Andean women and children -- that characterize Quechuan clothing.

From fringed, asymmetrical wraps to form-fitting dresses with cowl necks, Nieli Vallin's collection features modern pieces that also preserve the authenticity and integrity of the Quechuan women’s traditional textiles. This weekend, Awamaki will be launching their first pop-up shop in New York City, where Nieli Vallin will take orders for bespoke pieces. Hello poncho!