Blog 2-Themes Reflection
In preparation for this blog post, I began thinking about the Better Lives themes whilst watching each lecture. Overall, each lecture made me think about one particular issue and that is how bad the circumstances and the world around us truly is. That you think perhaps situations could be getting better but in reality, very little is actually improving. Looking at the Better Lives themes more intensely will hopefully inspire me to act and change the way I work in the future. The fundamental themes that I have studied are sustainability, diversity and social responsibility.
Beginning to look at sustainability, it is indisputable that it has become a large trend throughout the fashion industry and a lot of independent sustainable brands are beginning to emerge into the industry. However, as always, fast fashion is still a huge problem the industry (and world) faces and personally I think large brands that contribute to fast fashion in a huge way such as Zara, Misguided, Topshop and many others should at least start to recognise the damage they are causing. Also, I believe that the idea of “retail therapy” (“the practice of shopping in order to make oneself feel more cheerful”) is another issue and a way that people aren’t being sustainable with how they consume.
Looking at diversity and doing enough research into the topic, I’ve realised there really isn’t enough diversity throughout the fashion industry. Personally, I believe that diversity should be essential in any workplace and definitely should be executed more often. The fashion industry in particular is still failing to show diversity and inclusivity within advertisements and runways albeit it is getting better however there is a very long way for the industry to be deemed as “diverse”.
After acknowledging the previous two themes, you can then apply them into an act of social responsibility. Without being sustainable or using diversity in your work, you simply cannot be socially responsible for whatever you do in society. This is why social responsibility is so important because it shows what and how our actions can affect the beautiful world, we live in.
These three themes of the Better Lives unit have in fact somewhat changed my idea and view on how I’d like to work in my future practice in whatever job I get. Sustainability, diversity and social responsibility are all developing throughout the fashion industry and there is hope that perhaps one day that same industry, that has had many problematic encounters, will in fact change for the better. I know my future practice within this ever-changing industry will.