As sunny summer days return in the northern hemisphere, you may be looking to refresh your wardrobe. The allure of a whole “new you” is pervasive, and the foundation of many a successful marketing campaign, The Conversation reported.
Indeed, as the weather changes and we spend more time outdoors, you may need lighter summer clothing. However, before you run out to H&M, it is worth considering how you can sustainably add to your wardrobe while limiting its carbon footprint.
Sustainably adding to your wardrobe involves questioning your needs and taking your time shopping for each piece to understand how and where it was made — the antithesis of the fast fashion which has come to dominate global shopping trends.
These four tips can help you build a more sustainable wardrobe.
Fast fashion refers to the rapid production and distribution of clothing to reflect the latest trends. Since the early 1990s, technological improvements, lower costs of production and streamlined supply chains have significantly shortened fashion cycles. Clothes today can be made and sold to consumers at a low price within just a few weeks of being designed.
Two seasons — autumn/winter and spring/summer — were common in the Western fashion industry just a few decades ago. Nowadays, some retailers offer tens of small seasons a year. This constant churning of trends pushes consumers to update their wardrobes frequently by encouraging disposability.
While easier on the wallet, the consequences of the fast fashion industry are myriad. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, the global fast fashion-dominated clothing and textile sector is responsible for two to eight per cent of all global carbon emissions and nine per cent of annual microfibre pollution to oceans.
In addition, fast fashion uses about 215 trillion litres of water annually, the equivalent of 86 million Olympic-sized swimming pools. Moreover, workers are often exploited in inhuman conditions for little pay while shareholders pocket skyrocketing profits.
In response to these criticisms, a growing number of fast-fashion retailers, such as H&M and Zara, are claiming to take steps towards reducing their environmental footprint. These outlets claim, for instance, that they have replaced synthetic fibres and polyester, made from oil and petroleum, with natural and recycled ones.
However, the ubiquity of greenwashing across the fashion industry makes it hard to tell if these claims have any weight.