Teen Vogue Summit 2018 Recap
Two days of activism, fashion, tech, wellness, and entertainment
In its second year, the Teen Vogue Summit is one of the most anticipated and well-curated conferences for the digital publisher. The two-day event centers around activism, fashion, tech, wellness, and entertainment — subjects avid Teen Vogue readers can engage with IRL.
Day one of the summit was a precursor to the main event, and it focused on Career Immersion. Sessions included Q&A panels with Instagram employees about how to follow your passion, to fun experiential events such as learning how to pitch TV shows to executives at NBC. The big event the next day took place at the 72andSunny campus in Playa Vista where hundreds of attendees were greeted at the entrance with wristbands, meal tickets, and complimentary swag backpacks. The keynote speakers included supermodel Cara Delevingne, 23-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams and American-Nepalese fashion designer Prabal Gurung.
In between, there were smaller breakout sessions and panels where attendees had the chance to have closer-knit conversations with their favorite digital influencers and industry leaders regarding causes and issues that are currently pressing in the world. Below, Taylor and I rehash some of what we think were the highlights of the inspiring conference.
Creativity, Interests, Community: A Day at Instagram
In an intimate conversation with Instagram (#client) employees, influencer Alex Michael May, and Teen Vogue attendees entitled, “Creativity, Interests and Community” women of all ages came together for a discussion around passions and careers. Panelists chatted about how their journey thus far, sharing how they were able to explore their various interests through their respective career choices. Though the conversation was rich, five key things stood out:
- “Ruthless prioritization is key”
- “What you perceive to be your biggest liability can be your biggest asset”
- Everyone needs to read, “Start With Why by Simon Sinek” and “Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert”.
- “It’s okay to have more than just one thing”
- “When you’re young, just say yes to everything (and figure it out later)”
These overarching themes framed the discussion as panelists shared gems of knowledge with attendees. Each of the five women had her own unique background that led her to be considered for this panel.
Sarissa Thrower, Entertainment Communications Manager at Instagram
Sarissa specializes in global strategic campaigns, strategy, and experiential communications planning.
Alex Michael May, influencer, speaker, writer, and plus-size model
May spoke about building a career out of sharing practical exercises, humor, inspiration, and honesty while helping followers navigate life one step at a time.
Mitzi Gaitan, Emerging Talent Partnerships at Instagram
Mitzi touched on what it was like navigating the Tech and Entertainment industries fresh out of college.
Besidone Amoruwa, Strategic Partnerships Development with emerging talent at Instagram
Amoruwa provided insight on what it meant to continuously refine your interests, making room for what doors the ever-evolving tech space may open.
Claudine Cazian, Head of Entertainment Partnerships at Instagram
Cazian spoke on her experience working from the ground up, always saying “Yes”, and ensuring that her brand left a lasting impact on all who encountered her.
Teen Vogue’s “21 Under 21” Panel
Teen Vogue has steadily transitioned from lip gloss tutorials to stories about female empowerment. As part of this rebrand, they curated a “21 under 21” list, which highlights femme changemakers, activists, and inspiring personas from all ages who are impacting the world in various ways. At the Summit, they hosted a panel with four girls from the list, moderated by Cara Delevingne: Deja Foxx, an 18-year-old reproductive activist, Lily Madigan, a 20-year-old trans activist and British Labour Party Women’s Officer, Maame Biney, an 18-year-old short track speed skater and Olympic athlete, and Tia Adeola a 21-year-old fashion designer.
The panelists discussed the realities of being young while in the spotlight, as well as the importance of influencers like Cara being committed to advocating for younger generations who don’t have a big platform to spread their message.
I was particularly struck by Lily Madigan, who upon first glance seems like an unassuming 20-something-year-old. I marveled at the fact that she was the first trans woman to be the British Labour Party Women’s Officer, advocating for trans rights while simultaneously receiving a slew of online abuse and close scrutiny. She maintained a very relaxed and composed demeanor on stage, which only increased my admiration for her more.
What I took away from this panel is that above all else, self-care is key when you’ve dedicated your life to making big changes in the world. As much as everyone wants to the world to be a better place, there is also constant pushback from those that fiercely disagree. It can be tiring. All of the panelists, including Cara, made it clear that despite their busy schedules, taking time to meditate, sleep, or even spend time with a dear community was essential to fueling their everyday work.
Fashion’s Woke Storyteller: Designer Prabal Gurung in Conversation
On day two of the Teen Vogue Summit, fashion designer Prabal Gurung held a keynote on the importance of inclusivity in fashion. Known as “fashion’s woke storyteller,” Gurung was one of the first to put plus-size models on his runway, and include signature feminist and diversity rallying cries on his designs. Some of his notable projects include his Fall 2018 campaign’s all-Asian cast and his political apparel declaring “Resist With Love” and “This Is What a Feminist Looks Like.”
Taking the cultural narrative and translating it into fashion is his main priority; an initiative that has won over the hearts of Michelle Obama, The Duchess of Cambridge, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Anne Hathway, just to name a few.
Throughout his career, Gurung has consistently advocated for diversity and has much to say when it came to the state of the fashion industry. Though he touched on many things surrounding the subject, his final remarks to the youngest generation of up-and-coming consumers were especially notable:
“We [designers] get constantly told, all of your political views, all your cultural views, all your inclusivity views, all of these diversity views mean nothing at the end of the business when they look at the numbers. So if you want real change, if you want those people holding the dollar to change, you have to make the change and you have to stop buying or buy designer brands and things that matter to you — things that represent your values. Fashion no longer is an isolated fabulous thing… I think it’s extremely important that you guys understand the power that you hold.”
