Fashion Research & Technology

Team

• Prof. Dr. ir. Troy Nachtigall

  Professor Fashion Research & Technology – Expert wearable technology, digital production techniques, data-driven design and innovation in fashion and textiles

  Troy Nachtigall is a highly experienced Designer and Design Researcher who leads research at the intersection of fashion and technology. He actively seeks out strategic partnerships that will play a crucial role in shaping the future of the textile, clothing, fashion, and footwear industries. Troy is a core member of the Erasmus+ Fashion and Textile Transitions project and the New Textile Ecosystems (New Texeco) Research Community. His practical background in Design and ICT fuels his passion for exploring the data-material relationship through wearable items.

  

• Leslie Eisinger

  Researcher Fashion Research & Technology

  Designer and knitting expert 3D Robot Knitting Lab Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences

  

• Marco Mossinkoff

  Researcher and lecturer Fashion Research & Technology | AMFI

  Marco Mossinkoff holds a PhD in branding and marketing strategy from the University of Amsterdam, a master's degree in general economics from the same university, and a bachelor's degree in mathematics and statistics from the University of Florence. He is a senior lecturer at the Amsterdam Fashion Institute of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences and a guest lecturer at Nyenrode Business University. Marco advises companies on channel and branding strategies and conducts research on complex adaptive systems (CAS) and chaos theories in fashion. With a background in management training, market research, and the sales of professional mainframes, he combines practical experience with academic expertise. Marco is fluent in Italian, Dutch, and English, has practical knowledge of Spanish and German, and is a jazz music enthusiast.

  

• Gwen Parry

  Research manager Fashion Research & Technology

  Gwen Parry is a research manager at the Fashion Research and Technology (FR&T) research group, where she works with lecturer Troy Nachtigall on research into data-driven and future-oriented ways of making and wearing clothes. She is also a manager and researcher at the Visual Methodologies Collective. Gwen has a background in political science, art history, and arts and cultural policy, and has previously worked as an editor and arts research manager at institutions including the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the Rijksmuseum, and BAK. She is an active member of committees of the Council for Culture and has contributed as a curator to projects on sustainable fashion and visual culture.

  Contact

  [email protected](opent in nieuw venster)

  

• Maaike Feitsma

  PhD lecturer-researcher

  

• Lisette Vonk

  Researcher lecturer, Coordinator VR/AR atelier

  

• Sam Edens

  Lecturer and researcher

  Sam Edens is a bio-designer and researcher with a background in product design and cultural studies. She conducts materials research into bio-based and living materials, such as algae, fungi, yeasts and bacteria. At Fashion Research and Technology, she works on projects involving bio-based and living materials. Sam also coordinates the Biomaterials Studio, where students, lecturers and researchers experiment with sustainable materials.

  Get in touch

  [email protected](opent in nieuw venster)

  

• Sandra Kuijpers

  PhD researcher

  

• Dr. Lívia Stroschoen Pinent

  Researcher

  Lívia Stroschoen Pinent is an anthropologist who researches the intersection of fashion culture and digital transformation, with a focus on its implications for the entire supply chain. As a lecturer and researcher at the Amsterdam Fashion Institute (AMFI), she teaches in the Bachelor’s program in Fashion & Management and in the Master’s program in Digital Fashion, specializing in Digital Fashion Technologies. She has nearly twenty years of experience in applied research and marketing and has contributed to groundbreaking fashion tech projects at both startups and large corporations.

  Get in touch

  [email protected](opent in nieuw venster)

  

• Ishwari Thopte

  Lecturer-researcher

  Ishwari Thopte is a Lecturer, Researcher, and Coach at the Amsterdam Fashion Institute (AMFI), Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, where she contributes to fashion branding education and applied research. She is currently pursuing her PhD (Hybrid across Wageningen and Groningen University), with her research centred on regenerative business and entrepreneruship as enablers of a net positive circular economy in the fashion and textile sector. She is the lead researcher on the GEN-C (reGENerative entrepreneurship Competencies for fashion) Erasmus+ Cooperation Partnership Project between Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, University of Galway, Ege University, and Universidad de Vigo. Thopte brings over a decade of cross-sector experience at the intersection of fashion, technology, and sustainability. Prior to joining AMFI, she served as a Senior Researcher at The Hague University of Applied Sciences and as an Investment Project Manager at the Centre for Fashion Enterprise (CFE) in London, where she mentored and advised more than 250 fashion and technology businesses across the UK, Europe, and the United States, and gave keynotes at international events including at SXSW and Sonar. She continues to coach masters students at London College of Fashion alongside her role at AMFI, Groningen and Wageningen.

  Get in touch

  [email protected](opent in nieuw venster)

  

• Merunisha Moonilal

  Researcher

  Merunisha Moonilal is a regenerative systems strategist, researcher, and educator specializing in the intersection of sustainability and digitalisation in fashion and education. With over twenty years of experience, she combines industry expertise and academic work to address environmental and social challenges in fashion systems. As a lecturer, researcher, and Sustainability Coordinator, she focuses on embedding practical and critical sustainability approaches—such as circularity and responsible sourcing—into curricula and institutional strategies. Her background in industry and consultancy, working with global brands and supply chains, informs her understanding of real-world implementation challenges and regulatory contexts. Through her teaching and coordination roles, she promotes education as a space for critical inquiry and applied research, aiming to prepare learners and organisations for ongoing transitions. Central to her work is the concept of “readiness,” bridging the gap between policy ambitions and practical, inclusive transformation in fashion and textiles.

  Get in touch

  [email protected](opent in nieuw venster)

  

• Marleen Henny

  Project manager

  Marleen Henny is a senior internationalisation advisor and project manager. She specialises in diversity and inclusion and internationalisation, including the internationalisation of the curriculum (e.g. COIL, BIP and IatH). She is also part of the coordination team for the NEB Stewardship Lab and the iKudu project. Within the European university alliance U!REKA SHIFT, she is the work package lead for the theme ‘Inclusive & Connected Campus’. With over 15 years’ experience in internationalisation, including roles in Morocco, at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and now more than five years at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (HvA), she brings a broad and international expertise to the role.

  Get in touch

  [email protected](opent in nieuw venster)