SUMAS Faculty

Having earned her Master’s Degree in International Relations at Moscow’s MGIMO University, Xenya Cherny-Scanlon has worked for over 12 years with major international organisations, including the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and WWF, across three continents — in Australia, Kenya, Russia and Switzerland — on promoting greener ways of living.

A seasoned communicator with a thorough knowledge of sustainability and CSR issues, she has managed global communications campaigns, developed internal and external sustainability initiatives, advised CEOs on institutional risks and opportunities, and reported for a major news agency.

Xenya is now bringing together her two passions — fashion and sustainability — in her blog greenstilettos.com, which has a vision of “putting glam into green”. She serves as a sustainable luxury and fashion expert, writer and researcher. Her paper on the contribution of wildlife to the luxury industry was included in the first-ever academic publication on this subject entitled “Sustainable Luxury: Managing Social and Environmental Performance in Iconic Brands” (Greenleaf Publishing, October 2014).

Xenya speaks fluent English, French and Russian, with some conversational Italian and Spanish.