Designing Sustainability Into Fashion
Fashion is a big part of our lives, whether we like it or not. For younger generations it is even more so, as the rise of fast food fashion brings to retailers the latest trends at the blink of an eye. This is worrying in terms of the environment, as garments are increasingly seen as disposable assets that can be replaced at very little cost for the consumer in developed countries but with a massive price tag for exploited workers and ecosystems. But things have started to change.
According to BSR, an organization that provides sustainability services and which has just completed 20 years in business, since the sweatshop scandals of the 1990s fashion brands and retailers have felt the pressure to implement factory compliance monitoring programs. They either do it independently or through initiatives such as Better Work and Fair Labor Association.
The organization added that to tackle issues related to its environmental footprint, many brands have reacted either individually or as part of an industry-wide scale with initiatives such as Sustainable Apparel Coalition and NRDC's Clean By Design. Some brands have taken one step further and tackled the problem at its root, which is on the design level. BSR mentions Polish brand Blessus which uses panels and zippers to create garments that can be reconfigured into multiple outfits to increase their longevity. Longevity is key because if a piece is made with sustainable materials but is worn only a few times, then the environmental benefit of a greener material is cancelled by its disposability.
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Antonio Pasolini is a Corporate Social Responsibility writer for Justmeans, Antonio Pasolini is a journalist based in Brazil who writes about alternative energy, green living and sustainability. He also edits Energyrefuge.com, a top web destination for news and comment on renewable energy and Elpis.org, a recycled paper bag/magazine distributed from health food stores in London, formerly his hometown for over a decade. He is also a happy herbivore.
