Companies and student groups came together Wednesday in Kogan Plaza for the first ever Eco-fashion Extravaganza, an effort to elevate fashion and environmental awareness.

GW hosted the event as part of GreenFest 2004, which took place all day Wednesday in Kogan Plaza.

Vivavi, an online company offering products made of environmentally friendly materials, was the main contributor to the event. Josh Dorfman, the founder and CEO of Vivavi, launched the company in April 2004.

“You can lead a stylish lifestyle that is good for the planet,” Dorfrman said. “These two options do not need to be independent from each other.”

Vivavi.com, the company’s Web site, offers clothing, accessories, bags, furniture and footwear, all made out of recycled or environmentally safe materials. Beer cap belts, organic cotton tee shirts and bags made of highway billboards are also available for purchase.

“I wanted to bring the best brands and forward-thinking designers together,” Dorfman said. “I want to make it easy for people to find this stuff.”

Vivavi members showed off their clothing collection by putting on two fashion shows and setting up sales tables.

The center of Kogan Plaza was turned into a runway, displaying the sign, “What if ‘eco-friendly’ looked like this? It does now.”

Sophomore Andrea Baron, who worked with Dorfman to set up Wednesday’s event, staged the shows “to get the product out to the college market.”

“I helped him because I enjoy event planning and it is benefitting everyone,” Baron said. “I think we have been very successful so far … I am not worried about how much we’re making.”

Ten percent of all Vivavi sales during GreenFest will be donated to GW Alternative Spring Break.

Several other companies came to GreenFest 2004 to set up tables selling their products.

GW Students for Fair Trade, founded by senior Lina Musayev, offers fair trade products such as bags, journals, scarves, chocolate and coffee.

The group guarantees that the farmers and workers making the products receive a fair price for their goods.

Another company, DaLata Designs, produces clothing and accessories created from recycled aluminum can pull-tabs.

Susie Wyshak, who worked at the DaLata table, said it has had a Web site for about six months, although this is the first time they have offered their products at a show.

“All these products are made by a family in Brazil … half of the profits go back to them,” she said.

The Sigma Kappa sorority also participated, selling lollipops to raise money for Alzheimer’s disease research.