RHITA Glossary: Words to Navigate the Future of Fashion

Abstract

Digital platforms have become key infrastructures in the contemporary fashion system. They operate as critical infrastructures capable of mediating knowledge, connecting actors and deeply influencing the ways in which innovation, sustainability and cultural heritage are perceived. However, the vocabulary used to describe these transformations is often unstable, generic or borrowed from other fields without critical adaptation. Terms such as innovation, digital, intelligence or openness circulate widely, but their meaning changes depending on the context, generating ambiguity rather than a shared understanding. The RHITA Glossary addresses this need by proposing a shared vocabulary that integrates technological transformation, cultural heritage, territorial specificity and human capital without simplifying or flattening the complexity of the phenomenon. Conceived as a future-oriented compass, the glossary helps users navigate complexity and uncertainty without resorting to oversimplification. The proposed definitions not only clarify concepts, but also open up alternative scenarios for rethinking roles, relationships and responsibilities in contemporary fashion, strengthening the integration between academic research and strategic industrial practices. In this sense, RHITA becomes a conceptual and operational laboratory where language, knowledge and technology combine to design sustainable innovation.