Reflect Lecture of Sustainable fashion and culture
To be honest, I was unfamiliar with the word ‘Sustainability’ at first. However, with the recent few stories of Better lives, this concept has gradually influenced my perception of fashion and made me think about its connection with both the fashion industry and the environment of earth.
After listening to the lectures, I started to question myself that are fashion and environment two different things? In fact, the manufacturing process of clothing is a huge industrial chain, not only just what we see on the surface but also about designers, models, and of course, customers.
According to IFA Paris, the whole fashion industry is the second most polluting industry in the world, just after the oil industry. For example, harmful chemical dyes are washed through clothes and flow into rivers and the sea. Cotton fields account for only 3% of the global agricultural area. The pesticides used the account for a quarter of the worldwide total. Later, when cotton was converted into clothing, more chemicals were used. Not only that, with the rapid changes in the trend and the development of fast fashion culture, but people are also buying and changing new clothes more and more frequently, and in the long run, it has become a huge vicious circle.
Therefore, I am increasingly aware that ‘Sustainability’ is so essential to the fashion industry and the society as a whole. However, many customers may consider sustainable brands to be very expensive, well beyond their budget. In the era of pursuing large numbers and fast times, highly competitive clothing brands will use low prices as selling points to attract customers. However, there may be different interpretations of ‘cheap’ and ‘expensive’ in the long run. We can’t just measure by price, because many times, cheaper clothing may hide higher environmental costs. Therefore, fashion, as a part of people’s lives, needs to exert its influence to convey the concept of ‘environmental friendliness’ and ‘moral fashion’ to the public, not just thinking about creating and making money. As Vivienne Westwood puts it: “Buy less, well choose, make it last.”
In conclusion, although the industry involved in fashion is too broad, and personal influence is too small. But I always think that ‘fashion’ can be called that the one of the ways to protect the earth. When each of us can make small changes in our lives, or even reflect on our habits that may damage the environment, that then could affect the people around us. We all can influence the environment silently, but it isn’t straightforward for us to know immediately. Although achieving sustainable fashion is a slow process, with the rise of more and more sustainable brands, celebrities’ calls, and passing on such ideas to the public, I believe that more and more people will devote to sustainable fashion ranks.
Reference:
“Buy less, choose well, make it last. Quality rather than quantity. That is true sustainability” – Vivienne Westwood. 2018. “Buy Less, Choose Well, Make It Last. Quality Rather Than Quantity. That Is True Sustainability” – Vivienne Westwood. [online] Available at: <https://sustainable-style.com> [Accessed 18 February 2020].
IFA Paris. 2018. The Fashion Scene: Is Sustainability In The Fashion Industry Real?. [online] Available at: <https://www.ifaparis.com/media/news/2018/fashion-scene-sustainability-fashion-industry-real> [Accessed 18 February 2020].