Sustainability- a buzzword thrown around by fashion insiders, but what exactly does it mean? Sustainability, in simple terms, means to sustain something over a long period of time. As a policy, sustainability concerns itself with economic, social, and environmental betterment. When narrowed into fashion, sustainability means taking socio-economic and environmental-friendly approaches to the production, distribution, and consumption of fashion products.

Environmental Issues

The fashion industry, if charged on all counts of contributing to water waste, carbon emission, wildlife endangerment, and oceanic microplastic pollution would be found guilty. According to the BBC, the global fashion industry contributes ten percent of global carbon emissions and twenty per cent of water waste. The World Economic Forum (WEF) reported the fashion industry as the second largest water consumer. Thirty-five percent of oceanic microplastic pollution came from the fashion industry according to International Union for Conservation of Nature.

How do these come about? Let’s explore fast fashion. As the name depicts, fast fashion is, yes, fashion that is fast. Or in the world of the fashion brand Zara, twenty-four collections in a year. Fast fashion brands have been criticised for the excessive amount of collections that are put out each year.

To put this in perspective, the global fashion industry acknowledges two major fashion seasons in a year: spring/summer and fall/winter. Every time, designers release a resort collection. Some designers also make couture. So, a designer who checks all these would make about five collections per year. Even that is considered excessive. This contributes to the aforementioned problems, including pollution and waste.

Cheap toxic chemical dyes are used in colouring clothes. Wastewater from dyes is discharged into local drainages and linked to the ocean. These toxic chemicals have a direct impact on aquatic lives and even human lives, during the production of these clothes and consumption of dietary fish. 

Research published in Springer stated that eighty billion clothes are sold each year. Five hundred thousand used clothes are exported from the United States annually as second-hand clothing. The clothes that cannot be sold become waste.

The method of production also keys into the problem. Most of the clothes made today are either made with natural fibres or synthetic fibres. Cotton, wool, and silk materials all make up the natural fibre family. These materials required less toxic production techniques. The raw materials are got from nature and require very little processing. Natural fibres are biodegradable; this means that they are capable of decomposition. On the other hand, there are synthetic fibres. Polyester is a synthetic fibre. Due to how cheap it is, some brands opt for synthetic materials to cut the cost of production. Synthetic materials require a chemical reaction to be made. Coal, one of the materials used in the production of synthetic materials, causes air pollution during production. Petroleum, another raw material used in the production of synthetic fibres, produces harmful gases like carbon monoxide. Even as a finished product, polyester is non-biodegradable. It is unable to decompose.

Manufacturing, small or large scale, requires a certain amount of water usage. To process a material, even at the most-sustainable level, a surplus amount of water would be required. The jean company, Levi’s, produces some of the best-selling trousers in the world. Everybody has owned a pair of jeans by Levi’s at one point in their life. A study shows that it takes two thousand, three hundred and eighty thousand litres of water are used in the production of one pair of jeans by Levi’s. Another six hundred and fifty litres of water are estimated for consumer care. 

However, with calls for sustainability, the company is now taking action by recycling water. They have also been coming out with innovative ways of reducing water waste.

Socio-Economic Issues

The global fashion industry is about three trillion dollars and makes up two percent of the world’s gross domestic product. Fashion can be fun and political and powerful. Fashion has defined a generation of superheroes; from batman to spiderman. Their costumes are just as much of a statement as their powers. Fashion creates millions of jobs around the world. Yes! Yes!! Fashion is wonderful. But fashion can be cruel and exploitative.

A warehouse, filled with machines, hundreds of workers, long hours, poor working conditions, and very little pay. This paints the picture of a sweatshop, but this is dominant in places like Bangladesh, China, and Colombia. Although less dominant, it still exists in parts of North America and Europe. Fast fashion companies use sweatshops in Asia. Some have set up in-house sweatshops to meet demands. According to The World Count, sweatshop workers get paid about three cents per hour. In 2013, an eight-story building in Bangladesh fell killing over three hundred and fifty people, leaving 1000 people injured. The factory workers had been warned of a crack in the building which they ignored. Five months before that, 112 people lost their lives in a fire in Dhaka. There have been several sweatshop incidents, over the years, caused by negligence and inhumane working conditions.

In Nigeria, there are local artisans living in rural areas. These artisans barely speak English. They have no formal education. And they do not know anything about business. Their skills are passed down from generation to generation. These artisans are skilled in varieties of fabric making; they hand-weave Akwete, Aso oke, and hand-dye Adire. Some designers source them out, soliciting their services. In the end, these artisans are poorly paid. These artisans make impeccable works for some fashion brands who position themselves as luxury brands while being paid less than five percent of the selling price.

The big question has been, who is to blame: producers or consumers? If the producers do not manufacture so many, consumers would not buy. If the consumers did not want so much, the producers would not manufacture. Consumerism has grown by 400% in the past two decades, according to Green Pop. 

The celebrity culture has keyed into this. The culture of wear-once and discard. Social media influencers frown on the idea of repeating clothes. Wearing an outfit more than once is ruled as a cardinal sin. It also does not help that fast fashion makes it easy to buy more for less. This definitely increases consumerism; buying clothes not because they are needed but because they are wanted.

Consumerism is, also, aided by e-commerce. Once upon a time, one needed to leave the house to buy products. Now, with several taps, one could furnish an apartment without leaving a room. One could also stock an entire wardrobe through online shopping. A subtle addiction that most have, but no one talks about.

Way Forward

Equal pay might begin a movement towards equitability and sustainability. Companies in developed nations keep flocking to developing nations for cheap labour. One reason why companies in developing nations keep supplying cheap labour is to beat the competition. It’s the survival of the one who can cut costs the most. Companies in developed nations misuse these opportunities because they know that poverty creates desperation. A simple way to solve this is for unions to set an equal price for all. Trading within a developing nation will, therefore, require equal pay regardless of who one chooses to trade with.

Also, Under the EU law on Unfair Commercial Practices, trading is regarded as unfair and considered a criminal offence if it contains false information, omission, and unusual commercial intent. Developing nations could adopt and implement a law focusing on bringing equity and sustainability to traders.

Consumers have a major role to play. Demand pushes supply. The less demand there are, the less fast fashion brands would manufacture. A reuse and recycle personal policy might go a long way in curbing excess consumption of fashion. Mindful shopping based on need rather than want. Having a minimalistic approach to spending is also a good way. Buy clothes that can be re-worn and restyled. Consumers should also hold their favourite brands to a standard: who made your clothes? How much were they paid? And with what materials?

Companies should opt for innovative ways to manufacture their products. Alternative materials can be sourced. Choose natural rather than synthetic. Take waste into consideration. Take the worker’s conditions into consideration. Can the time of production be shortened to save energy? In what ways can pollution be reduced? Are the workers being paid well? Do we really need twenty-four collections in a year? Make policies to restructure how goods are manufactured and redistributed.

Transparency and accountability are the best ways to go about ensuring sustainability in the fashion industry. Deliberate actions and policies to ensure a sustainability-first approach to sourcing, manufacturing, distribution, and consumption.

The timeline of fast fashion and its direct impact on the environment begins with the production.