Fast Fashion
Illustration by Eve Liu
The Monster in the Closet
When was the last time you went through your closet and couldn't find anything to wear?
When was the last time you found faded, misshapen, or worn clothing that you’ve only worn a few times?
Do you have any clothing that you have kept for five years or longer but never want to wear?
Fast fashion is an unsustainable clothes manufacturing strategy that creates low-cost items quickly in response to the newest fashion trends. "Fast" is the essential word here. In order to profit from a rapidly changing market that relies on speed, fast fashion companies produce to keep up with what’s popular rather than taking the time to manufacture garments sustainably.
The fast fashion trend means clothing brands are now producing almost twice as many clothing collections per year than they were before 2000
People are buying more new clothes. The average American consumer purchases one new item of clothing every 5.5 days. That’s 5.5 items of clothing per month, or 66 items per year. People are using clothes less: the average piece of clothing is worn 36% fewer times now than it was 15 years ago
Who Is Paying for Fast-fashion?
How much did the fast-fashion clothing in your closet cost you? You can calculate this if you’ve kept your receipts. However, there is another expense that goes unnoticed behind each dress, jacket, pair of trousers, or shirt: the cost to the environment. As The True Cost (2015) documentary puts it, "Fast fashion isn't free; someone somewhere is paying."
“Cheap fashion is really far from that. It may be cheap in terms of the financial cost, but very expensive when it comes to the environment and the cost of human life. ”
Each stage in the life cycle of clothing has an environmental impact, from the cultivation of fibers through the numerous manufacturing sequences involved in converting fibers to fabric and the dyeing and finishing of garments for delivery to consumers.
The fashion industry is the second-largest industrial polluter after aviation, accounting for 8-10% of global carbon emissions and nearly 20% of wastewater. Many types of pollution, including water, air, and soil contamination, are caused by clothing manufacturing materials and crops, fibers, and production procedures and distributions.
To achieve "fast" and "fashionable" trends, fast fashion companies compromise the efficacy and sustainability of their production procedures. As a result, the fashion industry produces a substantial carbon footprint and is a major source of greenhouse gases. Fast fashion clothing also commonly includes synthetic chemicals and materials, microplastics, and non-sustainable colors. What's more, the disposal of items after use, as well as the emission of effluents, have important environmental consequences.
Carbon footprints are a unit of measurement for the impact of human activities on the environment in terms of CO2 equivalents; they are measured in kilos or tons.
Take jeans for example. A pair of jeans' life cycle is separated into two parts: the production stage and the use of the pants until they reach the conclusion of their life cycle. If we review the environmental cost of jeans, then we see:
To grow the one kilo of cotton required for one pair of denim jeans, 10,000 liters of water is needed. It would take the average person 10 years to drink that amount of water.
The process of making one pair of jeans produces roughly 33.4 kilograms (73 pounds) of carbon, which is similar to driving a car for more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) or watching 246 hours of television on a large screen.
Up to 15 dyeing vats with potentially toxic chemicals are used in traditional denim (indigo) dyeing, and the use of synthetic indigo and sulphury dyes pose serious effluent problems.
The production stage accounts for around 59 percent of the climate change impact, while the usage of jeans and the end-of-life process account for the remaining 41%.
The fast fashion industry has created material prosperity for humanity, but it also consumes a great deal of energy, resulting in significant CO2 and other greenhouse gases emissions. This industry should find a low-carbon strategy to achieve sustainable development in order to safeguard the environment for human survival.
Rethink Your Wardrobe
Sustainability is a growing phenomenon in the world of fashion. Fashion buzzwords include 'eco-chic,' 'environmentally conscious,' 'ethical consumerism,' 'sustainable fashion,' and 'clothes with a conscience.' All players, from designers to manufacturers and customers, must participate in order to make the clothing business more sustainable.
As consumers, what we choose to wear has a greater impact than we may realize. We can play a valuable role in addressing climate change by eliminating carbon from our closets. This begins with "Purchasing less, choosing wisely, and making it last," as proposed by British designer Vivienne Westwood.
1. Buy less and buy better
Buying less is challenging, and it may be even more difficult if we begin by placing a rigid limit on the amount of clothing we own. Instead, we must recognize that clothing isn't only about buying what we want; it's also about owning what we already have.
We may rediscover affection for the clothes we currently own by using our imagination to combine and style items in new ways. Additionally, we may seek to assemble a capsule wardrobe: a collection of approximately 10 to 50 useful pieces of clothes that can be combined to create infinite ensembles.
We can reduce the environmental effect of manufacturing by extending the life of each garment. The key to shopping better is to invest in a quality wardrobe composed of long-lasting materials. It's not about spending more money; it's about investing more time. This includes time spent researching manufacturers and materials, learning how to identify high quality items, and making mindful purchases. It entails slowing down the clothing-purchasing process, one approach to taking the "fast" out of "fast fashion."
2. Buy second-hand or rent
Contributing to the circular economy by buying secondhand or renting items is the easiest approach to reduce your fashion collection's carbon footprint. Secondhand clothing is becoming increasingly fashionable due to its environmental benefits. Renting clothes is also a rising business. This is a fantastic alternative, especially for garments we won't be wearing for a long time or on a regular basis.
3. Repair and reuse
The majority of us purchase or obtain clothing that we never wear. We must consider how to repurpose old garments and give them a new lease of life. We may use our creativity to combine items or recycle and donate what we don't use.
Another option is to repair damaged clothing or decide to wear items for a longer period of time. Fashion tends to follow a cyclical pattern. Clothing must now be made, worn, repaired, and reused in a cyclical fashion. Thrifting provides discarded clothing a new lease on life and keeps pieces out of our already overburdened landfills.
4. Invest in sustainable fashion brands
Far too few enterprises are addressing all aspects of sustainable development even those employing buzzwords like "eco-friendly" or "sustainably-made". And while complete sustainability may seem impossible, small actions can take us there. We should support businesses that are open about their present labor practices and long-term sustainability aspirations as consumers.
Fashion brands that cater to an increasing number of eco-conscious customers are also experiencing changes. There are a variety of ways to assess your favorite brands' real environmental development, from international standards and certifications to third-party evaluations like the Fashion Transparency Index or the Good on You eco-rating. Supporting sustainable fashion brands can also mean supporting designers who are promoting sustainable practices.
Challenging present economic structures and drastically rethinking how we purchase and use clothing is the path to a sustainable future. This means buying fewer things. It also entails putting pressure on our fashion industry to provide more environmentally friendly products.
References:
Magnin, C., & Hedrich, S. (2019). Refashioning clothing’s environmental impact. McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/sustainability/our-insights/sustainability-blog/refashioning-clothings-environmental-impact
Niinimäki, K., Peters, G., Dahlbo, H., Perry, P., Rissanen, T., & Gwilt, A. (2020). The environmental price of fast fashion. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, 1(4), 189-200.
Remy, N., Speelman, E., & Swartz, S. (2020, August 19). Style that’s sustainable: A new fast-fashion formula. McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/sustainability/our-insights/style-thats-sustainable-a-new-fast-fashion-formula
Amutha, K. (2017). Environmental impacts of denim. In Sustainability in denim (pp. 27-48). Woodhead Publishing.
Karthik, T., & Murugan, R. (2017). Carbon footprint in denim manufacturing. In Sustainability in Denim (pp. 125-159). Woodhead Publishing.
Niinimäki, K., Peters, G., Dahlbo, H., Perry, P., Rissanen, T., & Gwilt, A. (2020). The environmental price of fast fashion. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, 1(4), 189-200.
UN Alliance aims to put fashion on path to sustainability | UNECE. (2018, July 12). The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). https://unece.org/forestry/press/un-alliance-aims-put-fashion-path-sustainability
UN Helps Fashion Industry Shift to Low Carbon | UNFCCC. (2018). United Nations Climate Change. https://unfccc.int/news/un-helps-fashion-industry-shift-to-low-carbon
United Nations Environment Programme. (2018). Cleaning up couture: what’s in your jeans? UNEP. https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/cleaning-couture-whats-your-jeans
