(In recent years, sustainable fashion and sustainability have built a strong case for itself. The term “sustainability” has become a buzzword and has turned quite a few heads. Consumers today are taking a closer look at the kind of things they are consuming - whether it’s food, the chemicals they put into their bodies or just making better purchasing decisions to create a cleaner environment through the clothes they choose to wear every day.
Every time a fashion brand decides to make a commitment to offset its carbon emissions, it explains why it matters to do so. Whenever journalists write stories about activists protesting outside Fashion Weeks, they explain the need to do so. After all, there are just so many issues deserving of our attention these days. So here are a few harrowing yet commonly repeated facts:
Nearly 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions come from the infamous fashion industry, which is way more than maritime shipping and aviation industries combined. The apparel and fast fashion industry produce and sells about 80 to 150 billion garments a year globally.
Overflowing Landfills
Endless amounts of clothing end up in landfills or incinerators within years of being made. It is becoming crystal clear that this fashion industry has become
Almost three-fifths of all clothing produced ends up in landfills or incinerators only within years of being made. It is definitely clear that the fashion industry has become quite a mess. If you take a few moments to ponder over these facts, an estimated range of 150 billion garments a year is mind-boggling. It is a tremendous cause for concern and needs to be addressed urgently and instantly. The most common estimates for fashion’s greenhouse gases emissions can vary by a billion tonnes, which is a colossal margin of error. Saying around three-fifths of clothing will be dumped within a set of “years” is a meaningless and banal statement.
Poisoned Aquatic Life
If you glance at any environmental statistics, something seems to be going horribly wrong. From poisonous rivers in Indonesia and Bangladesh to old clothing littering the shores of East Africa to microplastics in drinking water. But as long as we have vague information from these sources, we will only get vague action from governments and brands to fix the problem. This is why we need to change our habits and take over sustainable fashion in the long run.
What it means to Women
Many professional women today are taking more interest in fashion than ever. They are not only paying attention to the quality of their garments but also to their entire supply chain, the production processes and the product afterlife. This means that sustainability is seeping deep into the consumers mindsets and people are making conscious choices to change habits in the long run. They have become more aware of the fact that the word “sustainable fashion” does not always mean the retailer uses transparent processes to develop their garments.
As we already know, the biggest culprits in the fashion industry is “Fast fashion”. It is the clothing that is produced cheaply to meet the demands for hotter and newer styles. However, these practices are putting our precious environment at risk.
What many consumers and brands don’t realize is that sustainability in the long run, does not only mean using bamboo based fibres and slapping the term “sustainability” on the hangtag. The true essence of sustainability comes when the entire supply chain of the bamboo is sustainable. We are highlighting bamboo because it has become so prevalent in the marketplace and we are told about the benefits of using these materials regularly. But we can never truly achieve an ecosystem of using these bamboo-materials or true sustainability when we are still reading about water contamination, deforestation and water shortage. Big business farming always putting small farmers out of their livelihoods is the opposite of sustainability.
Consumers and brands have to understand that a supply chain in its own ecosystem must be thoroughly sustained and supported indefinitely in order for the world to truly undergo an environmental impact. We must develop, design and manufacture into that premise.
Published by: Ryan Williams/ 2020-02-28