I wore a kilt to a climate action and it literally changed my life. A Scotsman stopped me in the street and said, “Aye, that’s what this movement needs, its own clan tartan!” He was none other than Loftus McLeod of Skye, the fearless freedom fighter who founded the Liberation Kilt Company to fight 18th-Century injustices, earning him the 1781 Disturber of the Peace Award.

Inspired by his fine example, a group of us were arrested on Capitol Hill for protesting the hijacking of the Waxman-Markey climate & energy bill by the guileful fossil fuel lobby. Sitting in a DC jail, I realized McLeod was right. What our fractured movement needed was a unifying symbol that anyone could wear, whatever group they belonged to. So we resurrected the Liberation Kilt Company and set about designing a climate change tartan.

Named in honor of Dr. Charles Keeling, the climate scientist, said Keeling tartan was worn at COP26 by the entire World Wildlife Fund delegation, including Eliud Kipchoge, the world champion marathon runner. And Greta Thunberg owns a cuddly Keeling-clad WWF panda.

We've also designed tartans against human trafficking (Blueheart tartan), the persecution of writers (Havel tartan), nuclear proliferation (Yamaguchi tartan), deepening inequality (Liberty Square tartan), creeping authoritarianism (Tahrir tartan), and other modern scourges.

Partnering with global universities, the V&A and varuous NGOs, our Rebel Tartan Project empowers art and fashion students around the world to confront global issues in radically creative ways. Browse their inspiring portfolios here.

With years of art and activism under our belt, it was time to open our store—a store for those of us who wouldn't be seen dead in Vuitton. We make bespoke kilts and a quirky collection of t-shirts featuring kilted skeleton Ben Nevis (a big hit with Oxford students).

We offset shipping emissions by donating a portion of each sale to carbon removal start-ups, such as Running Tide, and reinvest a portion of our profits in the Rebel Tartan Project.

p.s. we've got an exciting retail concept in the works, combining clothing & accessories, weaving, tailoring, books, talks, screenings, music, food & the arts—uniting people for a catalytic experience. Good Tripadvisor stuff.

Giles, co-founder