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She is currently Senior Lecturer in Fashion and Course Leader of BA Fashion & Textiles Design at the University of Portsmouth within the Faculty of Creative Cultures and Industries. Additionally, where she integrates cutting-edge fashion marketing, communication, sustainable business and design thinking methodologies into curriculum and industry engagement.

Dr. Kaner has spent over 15 years leading interdisciplinary research and development projects across academia and industry. Her work includes collaborations with INDITEXH&M Germany, the European Space AgencyReflo Sportswear, ArçelikLC Waikiki, and Novo Nordisk, with a geographic reach spanning the UK, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Turkey, and the Netherlands.

Her research approach is grounded in participatory design, co-creation, and design thinking, including focus groups, usability testing, and prototype development. She has developed:

  • Five criteria for evaluating sustainable fashion practices,
  • Three label system prototypes to improve sustainability literacy,
  • And four consumer personas to guide sustainable communication strategies.

She currently works on active projects including the People in Centre Project with INDITEX and a Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Reflo Sportswear, where she contributes sustainability-driven business innovation models and product lifecycle frameworks.

She also holds institutional roles as a Member of the Faculty of Creative Cultures and Industries Ethics Committee and Marketing & PR Coordinator of the Agile Centre for Equitable Sustainability, supporting the university’s research culture, visibility, and ethical practice. She is a member of Union of Concerned Researchers in Fashion. Previously affiliated with the Social Interaction and Media Lab at Koç University, she contributed to several EU-funded and industry-driven projects addressing misinformation, cognitive bias, and behavioural change through design-led methods.

Dr. Kaner is also an experienced educator. She lectures on fashion marketing and communication, sustainable business, participatory design, qualitative methods, and design research, and supervises doctoral and postgraduate students. She is currently an External Examiner for MA Fashion Marketing & Sustainability at London College of Fashion and External Marker at Winchester School of Art.