The Fast Fashion F*k up
“Buy less, choose well, make it last.” — Vivienne Westwood
It’s no surprise that the fashion industry in Australia has the SECOND largest number of consumers in the world, totalling an average of 27kgs of new clothes per year (per Aussie). Shockingly 23% of the clothes purchased end up thrown away in landfills and dumps. As the landfills essentially fill up, what can Australians do to to help minimise this impending crisis and save the fashion industry from a fast fashion plight.
Fast fashion has always been the first choice when it comes to shopping. It is affordable, versatile and widely popular for its ability to keep up with fashion trends. Fast fashion has become the ‘norm’ as it allows for the largest amount of consumers to shop frequently and caters to their personal style.
As good and convenient as this sounds, fast fashion is seeing a large number of socioeconomic and environmental problems. Cleanup.org states that “Every 10 minutes, Australians dump 15 tonnes of clothing and fabric waste. That adds up to 800,000 tonnes, or 31 kilograms per person, every year.”. With each year the fast fashion lowers their costs of clothes but the negative effects on the environment are increasing.
The fashion industry is one of the highest polluting industries. The fast fashion industry is actively contributing to a number of increasingly damaging issues to our environment; greenhouse gasses, deforestation, harmful toxins and micro-fibers are regularly increasing in severity.
The demand for fast fashion is increasing the production, manufacturing and transporting of goods and therefore using a lot of energy to do so, this is creating an excess of fossil fuels which therefore is negatively impacting our earth's quality. “if the demand for fast fashion continues to grow at its current rate, we could see the total carbon footprint of our clothing reach 26% by 2050.” Says Greenpeace Journal ‘unearthed’.
Alongside this, deforestation is a large issue that the fast fashion industry plays a large role in. The livestock used for their wool are being overgrazed which is causing the quality of soil to decrease, land decline and the extinction of plant species. The need for land and space to build plantations and factories are also causing extinction of rainforests and tree field areas.
Microfibers and toxins are also another extremely harmful side effect of fast fashion. Microfibers are washed away each time you rinse or wash your garments, these harmful microfibers are absorbed by aquatic life, which in turn is then ingested by us, introducing harmful microplastics into our systems and nature. Similarly when we wear a garment, the chemicals / toxins that have been used to dye / create the garment are then absorbed by our skin and then expunged into our seas and water when washed. Essentially poisoning our blood streams and waterways.
The Fast Fashion Industry obviously is very harmful to our environment but it also is very harmful a lot closer to home. The people behind the producing of these items are also a victim to the awful treatment of the fast fashion industry. And No, i’m not talking about the multi millionaires who own the clothing label and merely cash in the rewards, i’m talking about the mistreated employees who are exploited and underpaid for their work. The fast fashion industry houses some of the most inhumane working conditions. The workers are made to work long hours for low pay in sometimes dangerous conditions. Thousands of world known fashion names all support the mistreatment of their workers; Boohoo, missguided, forever 21, Urban outfitters, Victorias Secret and Shein, to name a few, are all a few big names that support or turn a blind eye to underpayment of their workers, dangerous working conditions and child labour.
Curious how sustainable your wardrobe is? Take these quizes to find out.
So you’ve taken the quizes and have an idea of where you’re at in terms of your sustainability, but what can you do to help?
The CONVERSATION.com has created a simple 6 steps to having a more sustainable wardrobe.
STEP ONE: Educate yourself — Simply put, do your research. Read blogs (like this one), take quizzes, watch videos, know your stuff and form your own individual opinions on the matter.
STEP TWO: Buy for longevity — When purchasing clothes, think of “how long will this item last?”, how long will it be in trend for, is the material strong and durable, is the sizing best for me. This way you will reduce the need to throw out and re-buy similar items over time.
STEP THREE : Restyle your wardrobe : rotate your closet every so often, mix and match garments to create new exciting outfits and style them in different ways to get the most out of the items already in your closet.
STEP FOUR: Repair Damages — alter and fix any old clothes that have torn over the years, make sure you are getting as much use out of them as possible. Altering is a great way to restyle and add some new details to old wardrobe basics.
STEP FIVE: Shop vintage — this one is the most fun step in my opinion. Recycling fashion is a great way to minimise your footprint and a great way to score some unique one of a kind pieces.
STEP SIX : Shop locally — Buying from a local store means the supply chain is considerably smaller.
Fast Fashion is growing in Australia everyday but if we all come together and educate each other on the issue we can all work together to reduce the negative impacts it is having on our earth. It won’t be easy but it definitely isn’t impossible.
Still Curious ? Check out these sites for more on Fast fashion Issues and how you can help.
sources
Aburam, A. (2021, May 7). The Worst Fast Fashion Brands You Need To Avoid. Eluxe Magazine. https://eluxemagazine.com/fashion/nastier-fast-fashion-brands/
Closing the clothing loop: pushing for a circular economy in fashion. (2020, July 15). Ethical Consumer. https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/fashion-clothing/closing-clothing-loop-pushing-circular-economy-fashion
Fashion and Clothing. (2021, April 15). Ethical Consumer. https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/fashion-clothing
How much do you know about sustainable fashion. (2019). FASHION QUIZ. https://www.tryinteract.com/quiz/how-much-do-you-know-about-sustainable-fashion/
Lees, S. (2019, March 21). Six simple ways to fill your wardrobe with sustainable clothing. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/six-simple-ways-to-fill-your-wardrobe-with-sustainable-clothing-109854
Magazine, P. (2021, April 7). What’s Wrong With Fast Fashion? Pebble Magazine. https://pebblemag.com/magazine/living/whats-wrong-with-fast-fashion#greenhouse
Ser, A. N. A. K. K. K. (2019). How fair is your fashion? Public Radio International. https://interactive.pri.org/2017/fair-fashion-quiz/index.html
