Why Should You Support Sustainable Fashion?

Most people don't necessarily think of the fashion business as a problem or a solution when considering current issues, such as climate change, plastic pollution, deforestation, loss of coral reefs and biodiversity, and water scarcity.

We regret to inform you that the garment industry is unclean and significantly contributes to harm to both the environment and people.

The good news is that sustainable fashion provides innovative solutions to many of these problems.

One of the most polluting businesses in the world is the fashion one.

Shopping with products that are ethical and sustainable will benefit both the environment and the people who live there.

Fortunately, as our consumption has grown, so has our desire to become wiser consumers.

According to a study that appeared in Forbes Magazine, 87 percent of the Americans polled responded that, given the opportunity, they would be interested in purchasing goods that had positive social and environmental effects.

Customers are therefore expecting for businesses to take greater action to save the environment in general.

What exactly is sustainable fashion?

In conclusion, the sustainable fashion movement seeks to provide apparel that is created ethically and sustainably.

Sounds easy, doesn't it?

When was the last time you heard the word sustainability? Not nearly enough, we wager, especially in the fashion sector. Slow fashion is another name for sustainable clothing.

The phrase refers to fashion items that are made and created ethically using eco-friendly materials.

In other words, it is accountable for each item of clothing that is disseminated into the world and is socially and environmentally mindful.

There is a significant comparison between things produced ten years ago and today in the fashion business. Fashion items from sustainable manufacturers are produced with the environment in mind.

Natural and organic materials including cotton, wool, silk, bamboo, and cashmere are used by them.

Do you think the use of these materials has any negative effects on the environment or the natural world? Experts in textile recycling say "no" to that!

A wonderful turn of events has made sustainable clothes both necessary and fashionable.

Even today, fashion companies strive to minimise their carbon footprint and any other environmental problems from the beginning of production to the end of consumer sales.

What do you think is wonderful? Sustainability awareness is developing. People are starting to think more environmentally when making purchases and selecting their clothing.

The ultimate goal is to create a system that functions while having no negative consequences on the environment.

Being "ethical" often results in a loss of revenue, which is why businesses and brands are hesitant to practise it.

They will only change if consumers start making exclusively ethical purchases, compelling them to alter their methods or risk going out of business.

Why is sustainable fashion so important?

You might be surprised to find that one of the greatest pollutants in the world is the fashion sector.

In actuality, the sector contributes 20% of the world's industrial water pollution, second only to the oil industry in terms of pollution.

In addition, 20,000 chemicals, many of which are carcinogenic, are used in textile mills to create clothing.

The majority of those garments are made of plastic, which is causing microfibers in our oceans to become a major problem.

Sustainable fashion also implies improved working conditions, more equitable pay, and fewer unlicensed sweatshops for the individuals who manufacture these clothes.

Historically, one of the major offenders in the industry has been fast fashion. Clothes and high fashion knockoffs are created at low cost to satisfy consumer desire for new styles and trends.

Let's use the creation of a shirt as an illustration: A cotton t-shirt should be sold for a fair price. Cotton is selected, spun, woven, coloured, and then sewed and finished.

How many employees would it take to complete the project, in your opinion? A youngster may eventually work alongside the adults, in a dangerous setting, and for wages that are below the minimum wage. Fast fashion must pay a very low cost to produce this cotton t-shirt in order to sell it to you for the lowest price possible. Now, tell us why sustainable fashion is important.

It is essential to shop sustainably and understand the provenance of every item you purchase. In addition to the materials, sustainable fashion also emphasises the manufacturing process.

To assist consumers in learning more about their clothing, the word "Traceability" was developed in this manner. Additionally, ethical trade and labour rules are being improved through sustainable fashion.

The Fair-Trade Act is in place to guarantee honest, secure, and moral manufacturing practises. Additionally, it ensures that businesses spend more on safeguarding and taking care of their workers.

Aiming for sustainability is the only way to end this cycle of extinction, devastation, and pollution.

Frequently Asked Questions About Sustainable Fashion 

Why is sustainability such a crucial issue?

Living sustainably enhances our standard of living, safeguards our ecology, and protects natural resources for future generations.

Going green and sustainable is advantageous for the business and enhances the long-term effects of a focus on the environment.

Is slow fashion a viable option?

Instead of emphasising quantity, slow fashion emphasises quality—items that can last a lifetime or even decades. Slow fashion is environmentally friendly and doesn't treat items like trash.

Slow fashion is moral and considers the relationships among various factors, including human labour, the environment, and raw materials.

What would you say is sustainability?

Sustainability refers to achieving our goals without affecting the capacity of coming generations to achieve their goals. We require social and economic resources in addition to natural resources. Environmentalism is only one aspect of sustainability.

Why is eco-friendly clothing so pricy?

Businesses can produce a lot of products rapidly and sell them at a lesser price by taking shortcuts.

A sustainable supply chain requires less production and higher selling prices as opposed to the alternative. The cost of goods created in an immoral manner comes with so much harm.

The Problem: Fast Fashion

Fast fashion aims to produce fashionable clothing as quickly and affordably as feasible.

While customers may appreciate the large assortment of low-cost items that are produced practically weekly, there are many more costs that lie beneath the $2.99 price tag.

Consider a standard t-shirt. Maybe it's made entirely of cotton. It's organic. Is it really that bad?

The amount of resources required for conventional cotton cultivation is staggering. A single cotton t-shirt might require up to 2,700 gallons of water to produce, according to the World Wildlife Foundation.

To put it into perspective, that is the equivalent of 2.5 years' worth of water consumption.

Farmers wrap the plants with dangerous chemicals to safeguard conventional cotton crops.

16% of the pesticides used worldwide are used by the cotton sector.

Given the extensive resources needed to create traditional cotton, it makes sense that many fast-fashion stores have shifted to more affordable synthetic textiles.

Our t-shirt is therefore more likely than not made of a combination of cotton and a synthetic material like polyester.

Although synthetic fabrics may consume less water, they are made from dangerous fossil fuels.

Forbes estimates that in order to meet the demand for this hazardous material in rapid fashion, almost 70 million barrels of oil are required annually.

The harm continues after manufacturing.

The fact that they are, well, cheaply constructed, is one of their main drawbacks. On the other side, quick fashion items are made to be of poor quality and must be replaced after a short period of time.

Americans discard an average of 80 kilos of clothing annually, claims Newsweek.

Here, the issue of materials actually arises. Polyester won't decay, whereas cotton is natural and does so rather quickly. Polyester takes up to 200 years to completely break down.

So why is fast fashion bad?

In all honesty, there are several causes, but we believe they may be divided into three categories: the people who produce your clothes, the fabric and environmental impact of production, and the societal norm of excessive consumption.

To briefly explain:

• Planet: Oil-derived synthetic materials make up the vast majority of garments produced worldwide. This non-renewable resource has a significant negative impact on the environment. Water-intensive manufacturing processes and dyes that pollute waterways can be further problems.
• People: Far too frequently, brands focus just on the lowest possible product price rather than assuring the safety and moral behaviour of all personnel. This leads to mandatory, unpaid overtime, underpaid minimum wage, and unsafe workplaces.
• Overconsumption: Since 2000, clothing manufacturing has doubled, while demand for new garments has increased tenfold. As a result, customers buy new clothes more quickly but keep them for just half as long, resulting in an excess of clothing that is disposed of in landfills.

It seems sense that consumers are becoming more concerned about how their clothing is created and demanding change.

We need to change the way we buy clothes and the brands we support, moving away from those who produce the cheapest clothing and towards those who have transparent supply chains and are making improvements to their fabrics, employees, and packaging to ensure they are producing clothing that will last for more than just the current season.

What makes clothes sustainable?

Businesses cannot just claim that because their packaging is composed of recyclable materials, they are a sustainable brand. Unfortunately, things don't work that way.

Every element of the industry is influenced by sustainable fashion.

Sustainable fashion is only possible if every step of the production process is transparent, from the fields where the cotton is cultivated to the factories that weave it into the fabric to how shorn animals are treated.

If we want to stop fast fashion, we don't have to stop buying clothes; we just need to shop more wisely.

The goal of the sustainable fashion movement is to produce goods that are both ethically and environmentally sound.

It's wise to enquire about a brand's sustainability by posing the following two questions: Does it benefit the employees? Does it benefit the environment?

You should purchase goods from businesses that provide living wages for all employees if you wish to shop responsibly. Companies should also ensure that neither child labour nor slave labour is used. To assist ensure that employees are safeguarded, it's a good idea to check to see if this business has a fair-trade certification or something like.

Regarding the effects on the environment, search for brands that employ eco-friendly materials and production techniques. In terms of sustainable buying, quality is more important than quantity. Items that are well manufactured will last longer and are considerably less likely to wind up in a landfill after a few uses.

Greenwashing is a major concern when making sustainable purchasing decisions. The phrase "greenwashing" refers to a business that makes an effort to appear sustainable but does not adhere to the aforementioned standards.

Holding businesses accountable is a terrific approach to promote transparency. You might consider shopping elsewhere if a company uses eco-friendly keywords often in their advertisements yet won't disclose how their coats are created.

As a general rule, there is no possibility that shorts that cost less than your morning cup of coffee were produced responsibly.

Sustainable development is defined as "filling the requirements of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to fulfil their own needs" in the UN Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development.

Sustainable fashion is the only type of clothing that sustainably uses natural resources while not harming anyone. It is the only type of clothes available today.

Why Support Sustainable fashion?

It benefits the environment.

The fast fashion industry has a substantial negative influence on the environment that it leaves behind. It is safe to say that fast fashion is a serious environmental issue, from the effect that it has on landfills to the amount of energy and water that it uses to the pesticides and insecticides that are used in cotton farming to the chemicals that are contaminating the water supply and harming the health of those who are involved in the supply chain.

You can, however, refuse to contribute to the damage that the fashion industry is causing to the earth by choosing clothing that is favourable to the environment. This will, in turn, minimise the impact that you have on the environment personally.

Only 3% of the materials used in the production of garments are recycled, according to a study that was conducted in 2015. Instead, ninety-seven percent are new resources.

The annual resource intake comes to a total of 98 million tonnes, which includes the use of fertilisers to grow cotton, oil to make synthetic fibres, and a limitless supply of chemicals to dye and polish fabric.

Because they reduce the pressure placed on virgin resources and find a solution to the growing problem of waste management, recycled fibres have emerged as a far more environmentally friendly alternative in recent years.

For the sake of comparison, the production of virgin nylon consumes 70,000 barrels of oil and results in the production of 57,100 tonnes of CO2 for every 10,000 tonnes of raw material that is ECONYL®. Our swimwear is made from these materials.

Sustainable Fashion Saves Animal Lives

You may not be surprised to learn that the fashion business will kill for fashion. For instance, it's a frequent misperception that leather is a byproduct of the meat business.

This isn't always the case, though. Over 430 million animals are thought to be killed and slaughtered annually by the leather industry alone.

I won't go into further depth because this is a topic in and of itself, but if you want to learn more about animal cruelty in the fashion business, click here. There are many articles on this subject at PETA.

There is a cruelty-free alternative for almost every fashion material, and sustainable fashion brands are embracing it more and more. Examples include polyester made from ocean trash (sounds familiar, doesn't it? ), bags made from recycled seatbelts, plant-based compostable sneakers, silk made from yeast, and bio-fabricated vegan wool.

However, one of the most popular leather substitutes nowadays is made from pineapples. The fabric is made from the pineapple leaves that are used as byproduct waste during the harvesting process.

Sustainable Fashion Supports Fairer & Safer Working Conditions 

Whether you choose to believe it or not, contemporary slavery does exist. For the majority of garment workers in the fast fashion industry, reality looks like minimum earnings (if any at all), unending hours of work, appalling health and safety conditions, and a ban on worker unions.

Additionally, it's still normal practise in many areas of the sector to abuse people physically and verbally.

On the social injustices caused by the fast fashion business, there are a few educational documentaries. For additional information, read "The True Cost" or "Fashion Factories Undercover."

Eco-ethical companies promote offering their employees fair compensation, good health benefits, and compassionate working conditions. These companies' worker pay is often above average. They typically demonstrate a greater goal of ending poverty by providing economic possibilities for individuals in need.

Everybody wants to look and feel wonderful, and part of that is understanding how our garments were manufactured.

Equally important to the environment and animals are the humans and other participants' well-being.

Sustainable Fashion Teaches Us How To Love Our Clothes Again

It is just so simple to overlook the lifetime and story behind a piece of clothes when admiring it in a store.

The reality is that the industry pushes us to be disengaged. But being aware of all the drawbacks of this sector should encourage more thoughtful consumption.

one that respects people, animals, and the environment.

It's time to acknowledge how our purchasing choices affect the future of our planet, not just as a minor aspect of our contemporary lifestyles that fluctuates with the seasons, but also as a human and environmental duty.

As Anne Lappe once said, "Every time you spend money, you cast a vote for the sort of world you want," we may ultimately decide whether we want to be a part of the issue or a part of the solution.

The Effects of Fast Fashion

You've probably heard the phrase "quick fashion" a lot.

Yes, the name can provide some clues. However, let us to clarify what it really implies.

The phrase "fast fashion" describes low-cost apparel created quickly by businesses in reaction to the newest trends.

To stay up with the most recent fashion trends and designs, people frequently search for reputable businesses that provide goods at competitive prices. As a result, customers simply purchase whatever appeals to them without considering where, how, or what they are wearing.

As a result, everything has a cost. Let's examine some figures:

• According to studies, 150,000,000,000 articles of clothes are produced annually.
• The total amount of used clothing dumped in landfills every year comes to over 2500,000,000 pounds.
• There were 2,100,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions from the textile industry.
• 700 gallons of water are needed to create one t-shirt.
• 10% of the global carbon footprint is attributable to the fashion business.
• Approximately 76% of businesses are unsure of the woven, knit, or dyed fabric's nature.
• 93% of businesses don't know where the raw resources needed to make textiles come from.

Isn't there already enough harm? The use of toxic chemicals and materials, excessive water use, and a negative carbon impact are still present today.

In light of this, customers are becoming more knowledgeable and aware of the potential consequences.

The quality of eco-friendly clothing is improving, and both fashion designers and consumers are becoming more sophisticated and paying closer attention to even the minute details.

Customers have a lot of influence. By choosing to buy products from ethical companies or clothes produced from sustainable materials, you are voting for the kind of society you want to live in. You can also boycott companies that don't live up to your standards and email them to explain why.

And as a result, brands are compelled to alter their strategies.