Better Lives 2: Reflection on Themes
Sustainability, Diversity & Social Responsibility
Sustainability, diversity and social responsibility are among the hot topics of conversation within the fashion industry currently. These three themes are also the core values of London College of Fashion, as well as the focus of my Better Lives project.
The themes of sustainability, diversity and social responsibility are all extremely important and hold value of their own. However, sustainability is something I have been passionate about prior to this project.
Sustainability is defined as being “able to be maintained at a certain level or rate”. This applies to the world we inhabit and the planetary boundaries we are all responsible to comply with. 2020 saw the United Kingdom declare a climate emergency. Industrialisation has been a huge contributor to the current climate state of the planet Earth.
Unsustainable Fashion
Fast fashion is a term which describes fashion’s that are cheap and quickly moving in and out of style. Fast fashion retailers include the likes of; H&M, Zara and Pretty Little Thing. Most people I know will have at least one, if not several items, from these brands hanging in their closet, and this is the problem.
Fast fashion brands target consumers based on current trends and low prices, this way of producing clothing is a response to new mass production technologies and the growth in the fashion consumer market.
Not to mention the negative impact that fast fashion has on the planet, “in 2016 the carbon footprint of clothing in use in the UK was 26.2 million tonnes CO2e”, most fast fashion brands produce their products in sweatshops and factories abroad where employees are paid inhumanely low wages.
February 5th 2019 the House of Commons filed a report on Sustainability of the Fashion Industry following the ongoing damage of fast fashion buying and consuming in the United Kingdom.
Sustainable Fashion
Sustainable fashion is fashion that is produced regarding the environmental and socio-economic aspects in a responsible manner. Sustainable fashion brands include; LA Apparel and Patagonia, both of these brands adopted the use of recycled materials and organic cotton, reducing their fashion footprint.
Changing fast fashion habits and contributing to the support of sustainable and ethical fashion can be done by changing habits. Thrifting and buying pre-loved clothing is another great way to reduce your fashion footprint.
Upon further reflection of the Better Lives theme of sustainability, and research into different ways I can incorporate sustainability in my everyday and professional life. Following this, I will consider how sustainable my styling choices will be within my Better Lives styling brief as well as my upcoming projects within my practice.
References
The University of Maine (2020) Office of Sustainability. Available at: umaine.edu/sustainability/what-is-sustainability/ (Accessed: 16/04/2020).
Wrap (2017) Valuing Our Clothes: the cost of UK Fashion. Availible at: wrap.org.uk/sites/files/wrap/valuing-our-clothes-the-cost-of-uk-fashion_WRAP.pdf (Accessed: 16/04/2020)