Do you ever wonder what the future looks like? Let’s be honest, at one point, we all thought about the possibility of flying cars. And how nice would it be if we had robots do all the chores for us, tutor us with school work… or do our homework, but you didn’t hear this from me :)
When it comes to the future, the sky is the limit. However, it is the choices we make today that create the future that we are dreaming of.
The Same Concept Goes for the Fashion Industry:
Fashion is arguable the most inconsistent industry for the fact that it’s constantly changing since trends come and go. With social media, it is not getting any better, leading consumers to adopt and move on from fashion trends so much quicker than before. And to appease their customers, brands need to keep up with the forecasts, causing fast fashion to escalate exponentially at a catastrophic speed overall. If we don’t act now, then when?
According to Fashion Industry 2030: Reshaping the Future Through Sustainability and Responsible Innovation, the number of clothing items produced each year has doubled since 2000 and exceeded 100 billion in 2014 (Rinaldi 2019). Nowadays, consumers buy at lower prices and a greater variety of more items of clothing. As a result, the environmental footprint has increased dramatically, mainly happening in raw material production and manufacturing in developing countries.
Three Main Negative Impacts:
- Discharge of pollutants and water consumption (79 million m3 /year of water consumption)
- Production needs very high levels of energy and thus plays a role in climate change (1,715 million tons/year CO2 emissions)
- Health risks associated with handing chemicals: 10% of textile-related substances are of potential concern to human health, and that 8% of dermatological diseases are due to the clothing we wear.
What Does This Have to do With You, You Might Ask:
Maybe being fashionable is not what you want, but for sure everybody cares about what they look like in some way, shape, or form.
It doesn’t matter if you’re someone who just wants to be comfy in sweats and hoodies or someone who spends hours planning their outfit the night before, every one of us is surrounded by fashion and it’s affecting us all.
Some People Might Argue:
Not everyone has the means to afford sustainable clothing because they are often more costly than cheaply-made items. Everyone wants the best bank out of their buck. I get that.
I’m a college student, I don’t have the money to splurge on a $50 tank top when I can just get a $10 one from somewhere else.
However, other options are available to you. Thrifting, buying second-hand, and reducing your waste are some ways you can be more responsible. Even being mentally aware of the issue of fast fashion and thinking about how you might contribute to it, is a good start.
As for businesses and producers, it is important to be transparent and traceable to the market.
Here are Four Ways They Can Approach this:
- Improve working conditions of employees in the raw material production and manufacturing stages
- Incorporate aspects such as use, reuse, and recycling into business practices and be more mindful of the environmental footprint production has throughout the entire process
- Spread awareness and encourage consumers towards more intelligent and ethical consumption
- Ensure that consumers receive accurate and relevant information about the social, environmental, and health risks of what they buy
Citation: Rinaldi, F. R. (2019). Fashion industry 2030 : Reshaping the future through sustainability and responsible innovation. ProQuest Ebook Central http://ebookcentral.proquest.com
