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THE NEXT BLACK
Author: biswassneha
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FASHION HEDGE
The Price of Fashion documentary which was presented by Assefeh Barrat, shown in BBC programme, that talks about the impact of fast fashion on our environment. We are consuming fashion at a rate never before seen on our planet. 100 billion garments are manufactured every year and the fashion industry continually tempts us to buy more with new ranges in the shops. But this fast fashion is taking a toll on the environment. Clothes production can cause pollution and uses lots of precious natural resources, as well as creating mountains of waste that go to landfill. Assefeh Barrat talked about was how America is one of the largest providers of cotton; the cotton produced in America is distributed all around the world. Half of the cotton produced is provided to manufacturers that make clothing. Cotton uses a lot of water and pesticides during production. The water used is only used once and not recycled and the pesticides used are full of chemicals that kill wildlife resulting on a knock on effect down the food chain. Pesticides also emit pollutants through its chemical makeup, these pollutants are a major threat to emission levels, and however, there is new technology being developed everyday with the intention of decreasing the use of water and pesticides during production. Assefeh Barrat went to America to visit cotton farmers with the purpose of finding out what farmers are doing in order to make the stages in production more sustainable and environmentally friendly.
In this documentary it also shows how in London fashion week some of the designers who took part were doing their part towards a sustainable future. Designers have been adopting a circular-looped approach within the production of their designs. Edeline Lee is one of the designer who took apart in the 2018 London fashion week, she strive towards making her practices as sustainable as possible, however, she did say that the fashion industry is not geared up to accommodate small designers as it is easier to provide a large batch of materials to bigger companies. Sustainable materials are also difficult for her to use as she has deadlines and new trends that she needs to keep up with.
In this documentary Assefeh Barrat also went to turkey, as turkey is also a major importer of US raw cotton. Turkey’s fashion industry is worth over 17 billion dollars in exports alone it’s a center for supply and manufacture of textiles and garments to the major high street retailers. She went to bursa south of Istanbul to see what happens to the raw materials like cotton in the next stage of the production process and also to see how some businesses are reducing the environmental impact of the dyeing process . During the interview we got to know few industry tries to reduce the dye cycle times and they have new system in which they try to colour match first so that they could use less energy and chemical. They are even trying to reduce the water consumption and trying to use the recycled water in the dyeing process and not to use the fresh water to reduce the waste. And over the last decades they have reduced water usage be a third and their energy bill by a quarter which helps the prices as well as resources.
Another factor touched on within this documentary was in London college of Fashion a teacher, Professor Dilys Williams say no fashion is fast whether its cultivation of fibers, oils production. She says that the only thing which is fast is the usage of the product, people are buying and discarding things very quickly. She say the long process has been sped up for one particular part which is the use phase, the idea of we only enjoy something for a very short of time is inherently unsustainable. She is teaching and challenges her students to stylize only second hand cloths with zero waste her every explanation really inspired me.
Assefeh Barrat found that fashionistas believe that sustainability is very doable as fashion trends go around in circles meaning that it is possible to keep statement pieces in your wardrobe and recycle them when back in fashion. They say that by investing in timeless classics and high quality products you can hold on to your wardrobe for a longer time, limiting the amount of new clothing you need to buy. Sustainable fashion is not just for the rich, it can be for everyone to get involved with.
In the end of the documentary Assefeh Barrat shows us the Future Fabric Expo. Many designers like Serena are being encouraged to explore the potential of totally new materials which are being created through science and technology. In Future fabric Expo materials are made out of mushrooms and apple peels waste are showcased and many other materials which are biodegradable.
Anon
(2020) Bbc.co.uk. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/n3ct5bcf (Accessed: 30 October 2020).
Clackson, J.
Clackson, J. (2018) The Price of Fashion – Assefeh Barrat | Josephine Clackson, Blogs.brighton.ac.uk. Available at: http://blogs.brighton.ac.uk/jfc18/2018/10/21/the-price-of-fashion-assefeh-barrat/ (Accessed: 30 October 2020).
BBC: The Price of Fast Fashion- youtube – Google Search
BBC: The Price of Fast Fashion- youtube – Google Search (2020). Available at: https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CHBD_enIN775IN775&sxsrf=ALeKk02XFvI-hN1TfduzbPUxx5DKadCa0Q%3A1604067667050&ei=UyGcX__FAufYz7sP3-G50AM&q=BBC%3A+The+Price+of+Fast+Fashion-+youtube&oq=BBC%3A+The+Price+of+Fast+Fashion-+youtube&gs_lcp=CgZwc3ktYWIQAzIECCMQJ1D4kwFYo8IDYInOA2gDcAF4AIABywKIAeQVkgEIMC4xMS4yLjGYAQCgAQGqAQdnd3Mtd2l6wAEB&sclient=psy-ab&ved=0ahUKEwi_u_XbwdzsAhVn7HMBHd9wDjoQ4dUDCA0&uact=5 (Accessed: 30 October 2020).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GprVaAVPEI8&t=757s
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PATAGONIA
More than 40 million people worldwide spend their days in factories, sewing garments for the apparel industry. For the vast majority of these laborers, the days are long, the pay is minimal, and the benefits are non-existent. In a growing number of factories, however, things are starting to look up. Coffee and chocolate frequently are labeled as fair trade certified, and that designation is beginning to extend to clothing as well. Patagonia, long respected as a leader in ethical apparel, has partnered with Fair Trade USA to guarantee that the workers producing its garments are being treated as people and not subject to sweatshop conditions.
Fair Trade program is one of the first initiatives the brand launched to supplement workers’ salaries and improve their standard of living. To that end, Patagonia joined the Fair Trade project, which means that –like all other companies who sell Fair Trade Certified products – it monitors the factories it works with to ensure safe working conditions in third-world countries that supply products to first-world companies.
In addition to the increase in wages and working conditions, Patagonia pays a premium for each Fair Trade Certified item that carries its label. The extra money goes into a fund managed by the workers, and they decide how to spend it. The Fair Trade Certified program also promotes measures to improve workers’ health and safety, social and environmental compliance, and encourages dialogue between workers and businesses.
Over the past three years, Patagonia has expanded its fair trade options from 10 to almost 500 styles, with 14 factories certifying that they follow the practices laid out by Fair Trade USA. These include rigorous safety standards, providing maternity leave, prohibiting child labor, and being environmentally aware.
One of the most significant aspects of the fair trade commitment is the money given back to the workers for them to jointly decide how to improve their lives. Some factories have chosen to establish a childcare center, while others have opted to receive a cash bonus that helps them stay afloat financially. This freedom of choice is an essential part of the empowerment that fair trade gives to factory employees.
Patagonia’s fair trade certified factories are mostly located in Asia, but they have expanded to the Americas as well. Nearly a third of Patagonia’s clothing offerings are certified by Fair Trade USA, giving consumers a wide array of options to purchase apparel whose origins they can feel good about.
The tragedies that takes the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of workers. It can be easy to forget the human cost that can lay behind products, which is why the fair trade designation is useful. It takes away any guesswork about the quality of life for the people creating the garments.
As Patagonia’s President and CEO, Rose Marcario, points out, purchasing fair trade certified clothing offers a way to “vote, with the pocketbook, for good values.” People are beginning to care about what their money is supporting.
Fair Trade USA has over 1,000 partners across a variety of industries who have pledged to uphold their standard of ethics. While many of the companies offer food or beauty products, Patagonia is hoping that their participation will encourage more clothing manufacturers to adopt fair trade practices.
Fair trade is a global movement that aims to empower the farmers and workers in food and fashion supply chains. It’s about better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability and fair terms of trade for many farmers and workers. Fair trade India is a not for profit that works to promote responsible consumption and production in India (United Nations SDG 12).
Devina Singh is a campaigner for Fair trade and manages the communication and outreach for Fair trade India. Her work at Fair trade focuses on raising awareness about the power we as consumers have to empower many farmers and workers, who make and grow our food and clothes. She has worked on the project to launch India’s first Fairtrade School and works with many Fair trade certified food and fashion brands to promote responsible consumption and production in India.As a human rights activist she wishes that global citizens take note of the social and environmental cost of their everyday decisions. She is determined to make businesses more accountable to their processes, the planet and it’s people in the near future and hopes that global trade becomes fairer.
Fair trade should not be a radical idea. A living wage, safe working conditions, and voluntary paid overtime should be basic tenets of employment, but too many factories around the world have shown that this is simply not the case.
It calls attention to the plight of garment industry workers as well as their own commitment to a better standard. Hopefully other companies will emulate their partnership with Fair Trade and begin to offer clothing created by people who are treated as employees ought to be.
REFERENCE: Patagonia Fair Trade program; for fair production – barrabes.com
Patagonia Fair Trade program; for fair production – barrabes.com (2020). Available at: https://www.barrabes.com/en/blog/tech/2-131/patagonia-fair-trade-program-for (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Gardner, B.
Gardner, B. (2017) Patagonia’s Fair Trade Clothing Story, No Sidebar. Available at: https://nosidebar.com/patagonia-fair-trade-clothing/ (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Jackson, V.
Jackson, V. (2017) Patagonia | Fair Trade Fleece, Blog. Available at: https://blog.thehipstore.co.uk/patagonia-fair-trade-fleece/ (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
A Fairer World | Devina Singh, Fairtrade India| 6 Assagao, 7th October, 7.30 pm
A Fairer World | Devina Singh, Fairtrade India| 6 Assagao, 7th October, 7.30 pm (2019). Available at: https://thuscritique.com/2019/10/05/a-fairer-world-devina-singh-fairtrade-india-6-assagao-7th-october-7-30-pm/ (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Fair Trade Certified™ – Patagonia
Fair Trade Certified™ – Patagonia (2020). Available at: https://www.patagonia.com/our-footprint/fair-trade.html (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Categories
SOCIAL CONSERVANCY
Alex Edmans is a professor of finance at London Business School and managing editor of the Review of Finance, the leading academic finance journal in Europe. He is an expert in corporate governance, executive compensation, corporate social responsibility and behavioral economics. He shared his TedX Talk about the social responsibility of business. In his first line asks the fundamental question.
Why do businesses exist?
To earn profit? Or to serve a purpose? For shareholders? Or for society, customers, employees and the environment?
He answers by saying that the conventional view is exclusively to earn profit. And that’s not as narrow-minded as it sounds. Because to earn profit, a company is forced to care about society. It has to make high-quality products or customers will stop buying. It has to treat its work as well or they’ll leave. And it can’t pollute the environment or its brand will be hurt. He says the conventional view is profit, and we know many companies who still see social and environmental wellbeing as nice to haves, but not keys to generating returns.
He quoted the leading economist Milton Friedman once famously quote
“The social responsibility of business is to increase profit. So just head to the land of profit and you’ll get all of these other decisions rights.”
But Alex Edmans says that this theory assumes that you can calculate the effect that ethical behavior has on your profits. In practice, you can’t reduce every decision to a mathematical calculation.
He gave the example of Marks and Spencer, the UK high street store now. Former Chairman Simon Marks had a policy where all top management had to walk around the shop floors to see first-hand how customers and workers were being treated.
And one day, back in the 1930s, on one of his visits, Simon sees a shop assistant faint. And he’s concerned. He wants to find out why. And it turns out that her husband’s unemployed and she’s not eating, so that her family can.
So the very next week, Simon introduces nutritious meals for all staff at nominal prices.
Alex Edmans asked his listeners what they think the reason behind Simon’s introduction of nutritious meals.
He says Milton Friedman would say, “Do a calculation. If I provide nutritious meals, this many workers are not going to faint. So I’m going to make this much more money.”
There’s obviously no way we can calculate that number.
Simon’s thinking was different, he will provide nutritious meals even if it costs me a bit, because he cares about his workers. He wants to make them eat well. And because it goes above and beyond, Marks & Spencer has an excellent reputation for quality and that in turn leads to profit.
We might see it’s a bit out of touch. But it’s actually not too different from the first view. It agrees that profit is good. But profit is only a by-product. It’s not the end goal. Instead businesses exist to serve a purpose, to make products that transform customers’ lives for the better, to provide employees with a healthy and enriching workplace, and to preserve the environment for future generations even if we can’t calculate the bottom-line impact of doing so. And if we do that, profits will come naturally.
He also give the example of a woman Ann Miller who in 1942 was dying in a hospital bed, stricken with Streptococcal septicaemia, which she’s caught after suffering a miscarriage. Her fever struck 104 to 106 for 11 straight days, and everything the doctors have tried has failed. Until Penicillin. Ann becomes the first American ever to be treated with penicillin and it saves her life. Merck then shared the secrets of how to make Penicillin with its competitors, so that they could do so, also saving thousands of lives in World War II. George Merck said, “We try never to forget that medicine is for the people. It is not for the profits. The profits follow. And if we remember that they have never failed to appear.”
Alex Edmans says so it just serves a purpose and the profits will follow. The idea is nice. If it were true. But where’s the evidence?
Well that’s what he set out to gather. He wanted to test whether socially responsible firms actually perform better or instead distracted from the bottom line?
In this research of his he found out that the hundred best companies to work for in America delivered stock returns that beat their peers by two to three percent per year over a 26-year period. Simply but, companies that treat their workers better, do better.
And this fundamentally changes the way that management should be thinking about their workers. We might think, isn’t it obvious that companies do better if their workers are happier? But it’s not obvious, because treating your workers well is costly.
I completely agree with Alex Edman employees should be like families they are part of the business as much as the owners are. If we treat our employees better they will feel welcomed and will feel that they are respected as much they do.
Reference:
S, P.
S, P. (2020) The Social Responsibility of Business: Alex Edmans (Full Transcript) – The Singju Post, The Singju Post. Available at: https://singjupost.com/the-social-responsibility-of-business-alex-edmans-full-transcript/ (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
Edmans, A.
Edmans, A. (2020) Alex Edmans | Speaker | TED, Ted.com. Available at: https://www.ted.com/speakers/alex_edmans (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
Why truth is not enough | London Business School
Why truth is not enough | London Business School (2020). Available at: https://www.london.edu/news/why-is-truth-not-enough-1574 (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
The Social Responsibility of Business: A Must Watch TedxTalk – Wespire
The Social Responsibility of Business: A Must Watch TedxTalk – Wespire (2016). Available at: https://www.wespire.com/the-social-responsibility-of-business-a-must-watch-tedxtalk/ (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5KZhm19EO0
Categories
MORAL FIBERS
Stella McCartney, founder of the eponymous fashion brand, being a responsible business involves managing the company’s supply chain in a way that does the least harm to people, animals and planet.
https://www.vogue.com/article/vogue-forces-of-fashion-stella-mccartney-sustainable
This touches every part of its business. “It isn’t just organic cotton – it’s organic cotton, plus wind energy, plus not using PVC, plus thousands of other little steps that eventually make a more responsible and environmentally conscious company,” says Stella McCartney herself, who admits that “In many ways we are just beginning our journey towards becoming more sustainable.”
The company, which is part of the giant Kering group, has never used leather, skins, feathers or fur in any of its products. This is not just an ethical decision, but an environmental one, Stella McCartney says, citing studies showing that the meat and leather industry is one of the most environmentally damaging in the world.
Since 2001 when Stella McCartney opened her own brand in a joint venture with Gucci Group (now Kering Group), she promoted a cruelty-free and ethical philosophy and stood against the use of leather, fur, skins and feathers in her catwalks and collections. This statement and philosophy followed by an action plan affecting every business decision while differentiating her brand from the rest of the luxury industry that surrounded her. This was a bold step at that time but the brand kept this state of mind and moved forward every year.
The brand adopted an honest and conscious approach sharing the complexity of using faux materials that are non-biodegradable, made from either acrylic, polyester, wool, and mohair. Therefore encouraging their customers to care for their items as long as possible, since luxury does not mean landfill – it means forever.
In the past few years, her name and her brand attached to it were connected to almost any sustainable fashion event, conference, innovation, and collaboration in the industry. In many interviews, Stella McCartney is aiming to lead the fashion industry to an era where she and her team challenge and push boundaries to make luxurious products in a way that fits for the world today and tomorrow: magnificent and sustainable, without any compromises.The brand main focus is to invest a lot in pushing towards circularity, innovative materials and cutting-edge technologies that decrease the brand’s environmental impact.
She uses vegetarian leather since 2013, the brand is using alter-nappa for shoes and bags. This material is made from polyester and polyurethane with recycled polyester backing. The coating is made with over 50% vegetable oil, a renewable, natural resource. By switching the polyurethanes to water-borne and solvent-free polyurethanes it’s safer for people to work with and has low energy and water intensity..
They even use cashmere though virgin cashmere represented just 0.1% of all the materials the company used, it accounted for 42% of the total environmental impact at the raw material stage – roughly 100 times that of wool. As a result of this measurement the company stopped using virgin cashmere and uses Re.Verso™, recycled cashmere made from post-factory cashmere waste in Italy. By 2016 they were able to reduce it’s impact to 11% despite using larger quantities of cashmere. The usage of this innovative material demonstrates their commitment to circular fashion and becoming restorative and regenerative.
Another key material that starts as a tree is viscose, this is why an action plan making sure that the sourcing forests are protected and enriched was in need. Every year, 150 million trees are cut down to create this fabric. As of Spring 2017 collection, all of the ready-to-wear viscose comes from sustainably managed and certified forests in Sweden. The topic of deforestation is important to Stella McCartney’s sustainable statement because it is one of the key drivers of climate change, and the cause of habitat loss for millions of species once the forests are damaged. These species would not survive once they have lost their homes.
The whole path of the company’s viscose is circular- eliminating chemicals, incorporating energy efficiency and pushing regulations. The company established a partnership with Canopy to push conservation solutions and protect the world’s ancient and endangered forests. The next step for them would be developing only recycled cellulose fibers.
As for the brand uses between 10-15% metals out of all the materials used. Most of the metals used to go into the Falabella bag chains, made from brass. Although they use a small amount of metal in their overall material usage, it has one of the highest impacts. In 2016 measurements 13% of the total environmental impact was a result of the use of metals, and the toxic process of mining copper. Copper does not break down in the environment so high levels of it found in the ground and water sources surrounding mines.
They also use organic cotton , recycled nylon and polyester which comes from round the world made out of recycled plastic water bottles. They even used first ever animal free wool and vegan silk. They respect their workers and their jobs and treats them well. The brand also reports annually a modern slavery statement according to a British law passed in 2015. Besides requiring regular reporting the act requires businesses to face transparency to ensure modern slavery doesn’t exist in their operations or supply chains. The brand also took control of its supply chain. All of these actions highlight the importance Stella McCartney puts also in the human capital that are part of her brand’s story.
As a fashion designer, Stella McCartney has always challenged the way in which things are made, actively turning to innovation in order to operate a global business built on sustainability.
Today, 53% of her womenswear collection can be considered sustainable, up from 30% in the early days. Her new menswear line is at 45%.
Fashion designer Stella McCartney is a true inspiration and she has inspired me in a lot of ways. The methods she uses like she doesn’t use any product which causes any harm to the animals and she even try to use low amount of metal or things which are harmful to the environment. I even like the way she finds new sustainable ideas for her business.
Reference: How Sustainable is Stella McCartney? | Luxiders Magazine
How Sustainable is Stella McCartney? | Luxiders Magazine (2020). Available at: https://luxiders.com/how-sustainable-is-stella-mccartney/ (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
Arthur, R.
Arthur, R. (2020) Stella McCartney On Innovating The Fashion Industry From Within, Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelarthur/2016/11/20/stella-mccartney-innovation-sustainability/#18e16bfc72cf (Accessed: 24 October 2020)
Mower, S.
Mower, S. (2016) No Oatmeal-y Shirts! Stella McCartney Talks Sustainability, Vogue. Available at: https://www.vogue.com/article/stella-mccartney-kering-lecture-sustainability (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
Stella McCartney
Stella McCartney (2015). Available at: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=48469 (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
Stella McCartney’s innovation in ethical fashion sets tone for Kering | Reuters Events | Sustainable Business
Stella McCartney’s innovation in ethical fashion sets tone for Kering | Reuters Events | Sustainable Business (2020). Available at: https://www.reutersevents.com/sustainability/stella-mccartneys-innovation-ethical-fashion-sets-tone-kering (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
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TRUE COSTS OF LIVES
This blog is written about the documentary film directed by Andrew Morgan that focuses on fast fashion . This is a story about clothing. It’s about the clothes we wear, the people who make them, and the impact the industry is having on our world. The price of clothing has been decreasing for decades, while the human and environmental costs have grown dramatically. The True Cost is a groundbreaking documentary film that pulls back the curtain on the untold story and asks us to consider, who really pays the price for our clothing?
Filmed in countries all over the world, from the brightest runways to the darkest slums, and featuring interviews with the world’s leading influencers including Stella McCartney, Livia Firth and Vandana Shiva, The True Cost is an unprecedented project that invites us on an eye opening journey around the world and into the lives of the many people and places behind our clothes.
This documentary is heartbreaking, seeing the entire workers story and all the stories behind the garment industry .And most important question are does their lives value less than clothing.
The documentary, which opens May 29 in theaters, on video on demand and iTunes, was shot in 13 countries, from the slums of Dhaka, Bangladesh, to the cotton fields near Lubbock, Texas. It includes interviews with fashion designers, factory workers and owners, cotton farmers, labor activists, academic experts on consumption, sustainability and more, to shine a light on the “perfectly engineered nightmare” that feeds shoppers’ insatiable appetites for cheap chic.
The first part of the documentary explores issues with the constant cheapening of products and lowering of prices. With a particular focus on how squeezing prices affects the 40million garment workers, their working conditions and the devastating effects cutting of costs can have, such as the Rana Plaza collapse, that claimed the lives of 1,134 on the 24th April 2013. The Ali Enterprises fire that claimed the lives of over 250 workers and Tazreen Fashions fire that killed at least 117 people.
The documentary goes onto explore the day to day lives of garment factory workers in Bangladesh, the lowest paid garment workers in the World. Some of whom are working for as little as $3 per day and cannot afford to feed their children, send them to school or offer them safe living conditions. Which leads many parents resort to leaving their children with their grand-parents in smaller villages as they feel this offers their children a better quality and better start to their life. However, means that they will not see their children often, sometimes as little as once a year. The documentary goes to explore better options for manufacturing clothing and gives the viewers insight into brands that are aiming to produce fashion more ethically. Including Safia Minney founder of the people tree, who states, fair trade is the citizens response to correcting a social injustice in the trading system that is largely dysfunctional.
The documentary also analyses agriculture within the fashion industry and interviews Larhea Pepper, who is an organic cotton farmer in Texas and managing director of the textile exchange. We learn that 80% of cotton farming in Texas uses GMO seeds, produced by Monsanto to be ’round-up’ ready. She states that organic cotton farming was, ‘no longer important, it was imperative’ after her husband passed away of brain cancer at the young age of 47. Brain cancer is an illness that is common in the agriculture industry and is linked with chemical intensive farming.
The documentary then goes onto explore the cotton farming industry in India, where farmers are often exploited by sellers of GMO seeds that are 1700% more expensive and because these GMO seeds are owned by the company, Monsanto, farmers are not allowed to harvest the seeds and are forced to re-purchase every year. We learn that a direct result of this method of farming is leading farmers into extreme amounts of debt, which is resulting in high levels of suicides in India (one every 30 minutes). Not only that, but in the Punjab region of India, known as the area using the highest number of pesticides. The contamination of the soil and water is causing cancer, mental and physical birth defects (70-80% of children) and numerous skin conditions, it makes it impossible to deny that there are direct links between this statistic and the use of chemicals during farming.
Later in the film, we see the vastly polluted Kanpur river in India. The water that flows down this river is used to tan leather cheaply using chromium. The results of drinking water, the local environment, food etc is polluted with the deadly chemical, known to cause extreme health problems and cancer, resulting in death.
One of the final issues touched on is mental health of the consumers. We learn that studies have proven that the more materialistic people get, the less happy they are contradictory to the messages that are fed to us by the advertising industry. With a whopping 80billion pieces of new clothing purchased each year (400% more than twenty years ago), which contribute to the 1 million tonnes of textiles thrown into landfills each year (many of which are made of synthetic materials derived from oil, meaning that they will sit there for hundreds of years). I can’t help feel that we are all being conned.
Despite the grave environmental and human effects of fast fashion, which are laid out in great detail, the film suggests we could be on the verge of a turning point.
What we need now is a greater awareness of what’s a stake. It’s not just brainstorm time, because there has been pioneering already. To use a business term, now we’re ready to scale. You don’t have to love fashion any less. Celebrate the beauty and artistry of clothing and invest in things you really love and will wear and take care of a long time. That in itself is sustainable. And through this documentary I have learned people’s life costs more that filling the void with stuffs.
Reference: The True Cost
The True Cost (2020). Available at: https://truecostmovie.com/about/ (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
‘The True Cost’ documentary tallies global effect of cheap clothes
‘The True Cost’ documentary tallies global effect of cheap clothes (2015). Available at: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-true-cost-cheap-clothes-documentary-20150528-story.html (Accessed: 24 October 2020).
Categories
GREEN CARE
The eco-friendly movement is becoming prevalent in our modern society. People are ditching plastic straws, eating more plant-based foods, but one of the most groundbreaking changes we’ve seen is in the cosmetics industry. For some time, cosmetics have been abandoning animal testing and single use plastics for a more eco-based products and packaging. One company that has exemplified this movement is Lush Cosmetics.
Lush Cosmetics is a UK based company which is known for many things colorful bath bombs, soothing lotions, rejuvenating face masks. However, one aspect that Lush strives to work toward is sustainability. Each product, ingredient, and packages are carefully considered based on this idea. Lush aims to set itself apart from just a green cosmetics company. They put together charities, funds, and campaigns involving sustainability, animal rights, and benefits for the countries that grow their ingredients.
Lush Cosmetics is known for being one of the first companies to unite makeup and environmental responsibility. All of Lush’s makeup and body products are vegan and made with the environment in mind.
Not only their products but also their packaging is highly environmentally friendly. The company makes it clear that the goal of Lush packaging is to eliminate as much packaging waste as possible and keep any material usage to a minimum. At least half of their products can be purchased without any packaging, such as their soaps, bath bombs, and shampoo bars. By weight, 90% of Lush packaging is made from recycled materials.
Lush cosmetics retail chain and has announced that it is to introduce new in-store packaging made from 100% recycled coffee cup fibre and becoming the smart packaging initiatives across the globe.
The company Lush has teamed with up James Cropper 3D Products to create a bespoke piece of packaging for its solid bath oils, aimed at enhancing the customer shopping experience in a practical and sustainable way. The product will be made using Colourform, which is described as “a sustainable alternative to plastic and other packaging materials”, with Lush’s packaging comprising 100% recycled coffee cup fiber from James Cropper’s own recycling plant.
The collaborative approach ensured that the creation met aesthetic requirements while overcoming potential technical challenges, such as the material’s ability to withstand the moisture of products. Even they are sincere considerations around waste, single use materials and functional design. The outcome is a slick, sustainable, lightweight, and transportable box to allow the customer a ‘pick-and-mix’ experience with the products.
The reusable packaging was introduced online and to major U.K. stores in September 2017, with a global rollout following.
Lush cosmetics are also no longer using palm oil due to environmental concerns over its production. Lush has launched a palm oil-free soap, a two-pronged campaign to make consumers aware of the impacts of palm cultivation on tropical forests and encourage other consumer-products companies, including Procter & Gamble, Unilever and Nestle, to reformulate their products using alternatives to palm oil. LUSH is also selling a tree-shaped soap called “Jungle”, one hundred percent of the proceeds from which will be donated to the Rainforest Foundation, a group that campaigns for indigenous rights and rainforest conservation. LUSH is also partnering with the Rainforest Action Network (RAN), an activist group, to convince other companies to source their ingredients responsibly.
Lush has committed to removing all traces of mica from its products over concerns that it is unable to guarantee that the mines which extract the product are free from child labour. Lush should also promote on equality on skin tone . Promote that every skin tone is same and beautiful.
Reference: Lush to remove mica from all products over child labour fears
Lush to remove mica from all products over child labour fears (2014). Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/lush-removes-mica-child-labour (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Is Lush Cosmetics at the Front of Sustainable Cosmetics?
Is Lush Cosmetics at the Front of Sustainable Cosmetics? (2019). Available at: https://medium.com/@npcbayshore1/is-lush-cosmetics-at-the-front-of-sustainable-cosmetics-17c8711b3606 (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Butler, R.
Butler, R. (2009) LUSH cosmetics launches campaign against palm oil, Mongabay Environmental News. Available at: https://news.mongabay.com/2009/08/lush-cosmetics-launches-campaign-against-palm-oil/ (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Ruggeri, A.
Ruggeri, A. (2017) LUSH Introduces a New Biodegradable, Reusable Packaging Made of Recycled Coffee Cup Fibre – Swedbrand Group, Swedbrand Group. Available at: https://www.swedbrand-group.com/blog/lush-introduces-a-new-biodegradable-reusable-packaging-made-of-recycled-coffee-cup-fibre (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
CSR at Lush: The biggest independent green cosmetic company | Justmeans
CSR at Lush: The biggest independent green cosmetic company | Justmeans (2010). Available at: http://www.justmeans.com/blogs/csr-at-lush-the-biggest-independent-green-cosmetic-company (Accessed: 26 October 2020).
Categories
ECO CONCIOUS CULT
The documentary about the world’s unsustainable addiction to fast fashion presented by the Blur- bassist Alex James has won a prestigious film award. ‘Slowing Down Fast Fashion’ was today named the Winner of the Best Fashion Documentary at the London Fashion Film Festival.
The documentary, supported by Fashion Revolution, The Campaign For Wool and The Woolmark Company, shows how short-term satisfaction has become a threat to our long- term environmental survival.
English musician Alex James became familiar with the term “fast fashion” during his days on tour. Rockstars are constantly being sent new clothing, with no addression of the environmental factors. James found this outrageous and began avoiding Fast Fashion from the beginning, by negotiating whether new pants and socks were necessary. The first step to solving a problem, is acknowledging that you are part of it, as he did. With that, he began his exploration of fast fashion.
In the film, Alex James, the bassist for Blur who also has a cheese-making business on his family’s farm in the Cotswolds, in southwestern England, is on a mission to learn about fast fashion, which began in the Nineties when high-street stores began copying trends from the runways, and the possibilities offered by sustainable fashion.
He interviews the reformed shopaholic Elizabeth Klein, and together they visit various shops looking at labels. They point to the materials the clothing is made from; the various countries it comes from, and the low price points, and address low wages earned by garment workers.
Klein pointed out by saying we as consumers have been trained to think that to pay more is a rip off, when really the only reason that they are able to sell for this little amount of money is because they sell so much of it and the garment workers are paid so little.
Alex James compared fast fashion to food. He says it’s like when we buy a top for the same price as a burger and you think you’ve got yourself a bargain, he tell us to ask yourself, how can it be so cheap? he says in the film. He also raises the issue of retailers looking for faster and more cost-effective ways to produce clothing as they incorporate cheaper fabrics and labor into their products.
Alex James also interviews various shoppers in the film, asking them if they knew where their clothing was manufactured or what the materials were made of. A majority claim they don’t know or they are not sure. He speaks with Pamela Nell, a psychology expert who sees retail therapy as an instant fix, like a drug, and it will work for a little while and then it will stop working, and then we have to go buy something again to get that quick fix.
In the documentary shows a slip where James Alex directs the viewer to a “Keep away from fire” tag on a garment. He then performs an experiment to show the difference between acrylic and wool. He chose two identical sweaters, one acrylic and one made from wool, and set them both on fire. The acrylic sweater automatically caught fire, melted and stuck to the floor. The wool sweater began to burn but it did not catch fire. This shows the difference between the quality, and while the acrylic would have been cheaper, it’s quality was terrible. This highlights the importance of focusing on fabrics and materials which are good quality. This will not only keep you safer in such situations, but also will have a better financial outcome for the buyer in the long run. Rather than being forced to purchase new clothes every week as a result of cheap quality, you will get more out of your money by spending it on clothing with longer lives.
In the end, we need to ask ourselves, is participating in this industry worth it in the long run. What’s the solution to this problem ? According the documentary I have learned we can always research provenance, buy less and buy natural, look at labels and know fabrics, think about who made it think about where it will go, buy quality, no matter the age, repair the clothes you love, buy from charity shops, Upcycle.
REFERENCE : Marfil, L. and Marfil, L.
Marfil, L. and Marfil, L. (2016) Fashion Designers, Brands Appear in ‘Slowing Down Fast Fashion’ British Documentary, WWD. Available at: https://wwd.com/eye/parties/fashion-designers-brands-slowing-down-fast-fashion-documentary-vivenne-westwood-christopher-raeburn-10417082/ (Accessed: 25 October 2020).
Alex James: Slowing Down Fast Fashion Summary
Alex James: Slowing Down Fast Fashion Summary (2020). Available at: https://letclotheslivelong.org/2020/09/06/alex-james-slowing-down-fast-fashion-summary/ (Accessed: 25 October 2020).
Blur Bassist Alex James’ fashion film SLOWING DOWN FAST FASHION wins Best Documentary at London Fashion Film Festival
Blur Bassist Alex James’ fashion film SLOWING DOWN FAST FASHION wins Best Documentary at London Fashion Film Festival (2020). Available at: https://www.thefancarpet.com/movie_news/blur-bassist-alex-james-fashion-film-slowing-fast-fashion-wins-best-documentary-london-fashion-film-festival/ (Accessed: 25 October 2020).
Categories
ONE OF A KIND
Anokhi is a Hindi word which translates to ‘Unique’. Anokhi Museum was curated to represent the traditional art forms of hand printing by showcasing its history, process, and techniques. The museum also wants to create awareness about the unique art and educate the new generation on taking it up. The Anokhi museum building is the 16th century Haveli situated on the outskirts of Jaipur near the Kheri gate of Amer Fort. The dilapidated Haveli was purchased by the founder of Anokhi, Mr. John Singh in the 1970s and the restoration work started on it. The Haveli was restored in four years under the guidance of heritage architects using skilled craftsmen to bring it back to its original grandeur.
The Havel housed a hand-embroidery unit for the local women until the year 2005 where it was open for visitors as Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing. With its efforts to restore the art and craft form, the museum earned a UNESCO award for ‘Cultural Heritage Conservation’ in 2000.
The Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing, which opened in Jaipur in 2005 and touts itself as the only museum in India dedicated to the art of hand-block printing, gives a rare peek at the work of Indian block print artisans like Ullakhan.
Exhibits of the Anokhi Museum spread over three floors display the intricate workmanship and painstaking process of different styles of hand-block printing.
The founders of Anokhi, the popular Indian retailer of block-printed clothes, to create a venue to learn about the history and techniques of the craft, rather than showcasing a collection of antique textiles. (Anokhi clothes are also sold in Britain, Japan, France, Mauritius and Spain through various distributors.)
Technological advances and fast fashion are leading to the threat of these traditional craft forms. But Anokhi Museum however has documented and continues to document the work by traditional communities and how to preserve them. The team is always looking for new craftsmen and techniques to develop new garments in the main workshop on the outskirts of Jaipur. The exhibits in the museums share the story of these communities.
In Anokhi hand printing on textiles using various tools is one of the most traditional forms of art, which involves decorating cloth or garment with a print pattern. The print pattern uses natural dyes from the backyard making it one of the most sustainable practices. Indian printing techniques are diverse which includes: Bagru, Bandhani, Dhabu, Kalamkari, Ajrakh, Leheriya, Sanganeri, and Batik.
Hand block printing is dependent upon clean, mineral-rich water to create colours from natural dyes. Due to pollution in the river, the only freshwater resource in towns which make this art, the mineral content changes which ultimately changes the end colour on the garment. The withering of colour from the garment is also faster.
Though water filtration systems are effective, however, it takes the environmental concern to establish the system. Not all craftsmen understand the importance of setting up in expensive filtration systems for their small scale craftsmanship process. While the chemical balance in water doesn’t affect the printing process, the overall well being of river water affects this water-dependent process. The craftsperson in Anokhi needs to have pride in his or her work to continue and the work needs to be respected.
Anokhi not just use sustainable organic dye and fabric it also preserve traditional techniques of printing and craftsmanship .They also gives hand embroidery works to the local villager women. They value the tradition of the craftsmanship .
REFERENCE: About Us
About Us (2020). Available at: https://www.anokhi.com/anokhi/about-us.html (Accessed: 10 October 2020).
Anokhi Museum Jaipur, where Fashion meets Sustainable Textiles – Explore with Ecokats
Anokhi Museum Jaipur, where Fashion meets Sustainable Textiles – Explore with Ecokats (2020). Available at: https://www.explorewithecokats.com/anokhi-museum-jaipur-where-fashion-meets-sustainable-textiles/ (Accessed: 10 October 2020).
Categories
MUST OR MADNESS
Consuming things we need creates a demand that the planet can’t cope with. Over consumption is a situation where we do not need certain things but we desire it, we think those things will make our life easier. We are taking too much stuff from nature, make it into stuff so we can use it. We use from chemicals to plastics to fertiliser to smart phones to meat and then dispose of it carelessly into the atmosphere, the oceans and the land and creating a large amount of pollution.
It’s a generally accepted fact that we all have been over-consuming for quite some time. The planet has had enough of our habits, and a lot of people have become fed up with clutter on a personal level. Even we started realizing the there are few things in my life which we over consume. I want to showcase few of my things which I over consumed in past years and how I am trying to control my habits.
WATCHES :
Watches is one of the product which I over consumed in my past years it wasn’t like all the watches are new or all I have brought, there are few which are even 10-12 years old and few of them are gifts from friends and family. But still the watches are in a good state and it works perfectly. Therefore I don’t need to buy them but when I see new watches advertisement or in magazines I feel like buying it so it’s causing consumption or desire to consume. When I realised that stopped buying or researching about new collection of watches and used my watches more. I even share it with my sister and even gave away one of my watch to my cousin.
LIPSTICKS:
My second over consumption is lipsticks, so I didn’t have this much collection of lipstick before. I started buying so many lipsticks once I was introduced to an online app. I started spending more time in the site it gave me an odd satisfaction seeing so many variety of products and I started buying more. One day I was going through all my lipsticks and realised that all my lipstick shades almost same. After realising that I have so many lipsticks that’s also of same kind of shades I stopped purchasing any more, and the once I already have.
DEODORANT:
My Sister has lot of deodorant. She does to gym and then office so she needs deodorant but then she started over consuming it. She wanted different and variety of fragrances. Then one day while using her deodorant I pointed out the one of her deodorant is about to expire in a month and most of the bottle is still left. Since then she stopped purchasing so much and started using the products and even shared it with me and my cousins and always keeps a check on expiry dates.
This were few of the over consumption stories which I have experienced in my life. Sometimes I think the best way to put the brakes on our greed would be to halt the trash pickup and temporarily close donation centres so that citizens would have to face and think about the amount of waste we generate. We sweep our mess under the rug of faraway landfills and can blissfully live in an out-of-sight-out-of-mind relationship with our waste.
Green Care Glory 