Climate change in fashion

‘Ethical fashion’ is the dark side of fashion a number of designers are beginning to recognise, from slogan tees, to Sustainable Fashion policies adopted by many brands, such as H&M’s ‘climate goal’. The fashion industry remains the second largest industrial polluter worldwide, second only to oil and the industry accounts for 10% of global carbon emissions, according to J. Conca writing for Forbes, 2015 (article titled ‘Making Climate Change Fashionable – The Garment Industry Takes on Global Warming’) [1]. Vivienne Westwood is a radical designer who frequently delves into the politics of climate change, (Westwood is a well-known activist after all) predominantly bringing to light the effects of fast fashion: “we have wasted the earth’s treasure and we can no longer exploit it cheaply” Westwood pleads. Conca reported that Americans on average throw away 70 lbs of clothing per person each year, and the same fast fashion garments produce over 400% more carbon issues per item per year, compared to long term fashion items.

One of Westwood’s most forward environmental statements came whilst speaking at Zaladno’s Bread & Butter preview, surrounded by haute couture aficionados. “Don’t buy anything” Westwood told the crowd, vowing to end her ‘summer sales’. Westwood also announced a hold back on business expansion, “I have decided to not expand any more. In fact I want to do the opposite,” she told The Observer. "I am now more interested in quality rather than quantity”. On a separate occasion Westwood has stated the threat of climate change has become her priority, and according to The Guardian “she is keen to promote Greenpeace’s work to protect the Arctic” [2]. Her plea for the environment includes using disturbing scientific research: “the status quo will kill us. People don’t realize how quickly we are marching towards a possible mass extinction. Once the global temperature goes up beyond two degrees, you can’t stop it. Current predictions are that we will see a rise of more like 4C or 6C, which would mean that everything below Paris would become uninhabitable.”

A designer to join Westwood’s appeal for the planet is Yuna Yang. Yang hopes her SS18 collection titled ‘Save the Earth’ raises awareness about climate change. The sudden interest in the environment has sprung from recent political news of the US President Donald Trump: “when Trump decided to exit the Paris Agreement, I was very confused” Yang told NBC News, “climate change is a fundamental issue” [3].

Donald Trump announced America are withdrawing from the agreement in June, leaving with only ‘Syria and Nicaragua for company outside the global agreement’ according to J. Walters for The Guardian, 2017. The accord was implemented in 2015, with more than 200 countries pledging to limit emissions from fossil fuels, however Trump believes the accord gave too much favour to China. Trump’s view of climate change is almost laughable – laughable if the impending issues were not so shocking. On one occasion Trump has brushed global warming off as non-existent, as “it snowed over four inches this past weekend in New York”, whilst another occasion the President stated that “the concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive” ... yikes. Anyway, back Yang’s delightful collection. Her ‘Save the Earth’ collection is manufactured in New York (a few blocks away from her design studio), using “Korean silks, recycled organic cotton, and hand beading from India” Yang reported. “I feel honoured and excited to be able to contribute to jobs here, where I am based”. Like Westwood, Yang does not wish to expand her business unsustainably.

It is not just climate change that designers should solely focus on, but the ethics that surround their manufacturing process. Sweat shops and child labour have been issues needing immediate attention, however the demand for fast fashion means they are overlooked. Many big-name brands import their garments from factories in third world countries, such as the Rana Plaza in Bangladesh. In 2013, the Rana Plaza building collapsed killing 1,135 people in ‘the country’s worst industrial disaster’, reported The Guardian [4]. The collapse of the complex sparked for greater safety, pressuring the Bangladesh government and the fashion brands who trade in Bangladesh to set up two consortia: the ‘Accord on Fire and Building Safety’ as well as the ‘Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety’. The two organisations cover more than 2,000 factories according to The Guardian [4], and following the Rana Plaza incident the Bangladeshi government are now using their own inspectors, (supported by the International Labour Organisation and funded by the EU) inspecting and ensuring improvements are made in another 1,500. The fashion brands we know and love to have used the Rana Plaza include Mango, Matalan, and Primark, Primark being the only company to have paid a significant amount to those affected by the collapse (£7.3 million according to Clean Clothes).

Although Vivienne Westwood’s ‘CLIMATE’ tee seems like a minuscule step towards sustainable fashion, the conversations sparked in the fashion world are encouraging fashion brands to join forces against unsustainable fashion. Companies such as Kering (owner of Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, and Balenciaga), Marks & Spencers, Nike, and Levi Strauss & co announced during Climate Week 2017 they are joining the Science Based Targets initiative, reported Apparel Magazine [5].

[1]: https://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/?toURL=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2015/12/03/making-climate-change-fashionable-the-garment-industry-takes-on-global-warming/&refURL=https://www.google.co.uk/&referrer=https://www.google.co.uk/

[2]: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/feb/08/vivienne-westwood-arctic-campaign

[3]: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/designer-yuna-yang-s-new-york-fashion-week-runway-platform-n800266

[4]: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/may/31/rana-plaza-bangladesh-collapse-fashion-working-conditions

[5]: https://apparelmag.com/these-six-fashion-brands-joined-climate-change-initiative