Blog Post 1: Society Lecture
During these two weeks I attended several lectures and Society by Katelyn Toth Fejel that discussed Society in relation to Fashion and Sustainability really stood out to me.
The lecture started off with the question: “What do you think of when you hear the words Social and Fashion together?” Most people would think of Social Media as it has become the most popular medium over the years. Platforms, such as Instagram, influence people on a daily basis. Unfortunately, Instagram can lead to greater consumptions as it can create pressure to buy the latest trends every season and consequently buying more clothes than actually needed.
Generally, the way we dress is based on experiences and how we identify ourselves in relation with others, therefore Katelyn Toth Fejel consideres dressing as a Social Act, since we create and express our identity.
When talking about a social issue that can be associated with the Fashion Industry Fast Fashion comes up. The increasing access to cheap clothing for consumers can promote a ‘throwaway’ clothing culture. The conditions in which those cheap clothes are made are horrible as workers are underpaid and being exploited. Specifically, fast fashion pollutes our environment and wastes earth’s resources. More and more people are aware of this model and try to combat it by shopping more sustainable or participating in environmental movements, such as Fashion Revolution. However, there are still so many people buying clothes for example from Primark or H&M, even though they are aware of were they are coming from. Obviously, it depends on the income as some people cannot afford to buy more sustainable clothing. In the lecture some strategies to resist fast fashion are mentioned, such as borrowing, sharing and swapping clothes through Social Media. Subsequently, Katelyn Toth Fejel discusses the issues society structures have. One scary fact was that 100 Billion garments were produced in 2015, even though only 7 Billion people are living on the planet. Because of this fact, I hope that there will be a limit for producing clothes. Additionally, the average person buys 60% more clothing than 15 years ago, but only keeps them for half as long. All of this, illustrates the scary truth of fast fashion and really underlines the fact that we have to change our lifestyle, because as Katelyn Toth Fejel explains we only have about ten years to change our lifestyle and reduce resource use and waste by 75% to 90%, otherwise we will face major disasters around the globe.
The lecture really shaped my thinking as it is shocking that we only have this short amount of time to find a solution. At the lecture we were suggested to calculate our ecological footprint. My result was that I would need 2 earths. This really pushes me to change my way of living. Throughout these lectures we have been told that we have a voice to push for change. Even though it seems difficult at first, I do believe that one voice can touch millions of people and as a consumer we still have the responsibility and the position to change our shopping behaviour. As a fashion student, I want to push for sustainability and hope to be part of the change in the Fashion industry.