Confronting The Climate Crisis With Next Generation Fashion Brands

Waste is prominent in the fashion industry, largely a consequence of overproduction, overconsumption, and inadequate end-of-life solutions. The industry urgently needs to take more meaningful climate action, contributing to 10% of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. Never has it been more important for the sector to prioritise its environmental initiatives and sustainability efforts. Climate catastrophes are becoming more prevalent, with Pakistan floods, East China heatwaves, and European droughts only a few examples.

However, there is a new generation of brands that are providing shoppers with more sustainable alternatives to combat the climate crisis. The recently released Fashion Transparency Index provides a useful glimpse of the difficulties the industry confronts and must address as a whole to lessen its impact - as well as some of the areas where it has been successful thus far. Fashion brands can create fashion in a way which is most considerate of humanity and the environment by developing a sustainable value chain, utilising low-carbon materials, donating to environmental projects, and most importantly adopting a circularity strategy.

Sustainable Fashion Is Not A Product, It’s A Practice

The fashion industry is projected to generate 92 million tons of textile waste each year. It is also estimated that textile waste would rise by 60% between 2015 and 2030. Fashion leaders have incorporated sustainability strategies in recent years, including sustainable supply chain management (SSCM). However, even with present solutions in place, the industry is on a trajectory that will contribute to irreparable damage to the environment.

Brands must reduce the environmental effect of their entire supply chain to build a more environmentally conscious industry. This will necessitate a holistic approach to SSCM by focusing on two critical areas: reducing the indirect impact produced by upstream and downstream operations, and re-evaluating garment design to improve the effectiveness of present sustainability measures. These initiatives, if implemented at the industry level, will drastically reduce the fashion sector’s environmental impact, and create a more sustainable industry for all involved.

Underwear brand Peachaus has decided to collaborate with four production partners who offer a range of ecological credentials, from responsible chemical management to the uptake of renewable energies. It has also ensured that the supply chains of its direct suppliers are visible. Most of its production is done in Portugal, while the majority of its materials are acquired in Europe. Another advantage is that localised supply minimises transportation emissions.

Become An Active Citizen Through Your Wardrobe

The fashion industry is heavily reliant on petroleum-based synthetic materials like polyester and nylon. Manufacturing these materials produces substantial amounts of emissions; for example, producing one polyester t-shirt releases an estimated 5.5 kg of CO2, while producing an organic cotton t-shirt generates half as much. Every stakeholder in the value chain has a role to play in advancing decarbonisation and bringing about meaningful change in the fashion industry.

Lerins London employs low-carbon materials including grape-leather, recycled cork, rubber, and marine plastic in their sneakers. Every pair sold also raises funds for the World Land Trust. This organisation, whose patron is Sir David Attenborough, is on a mission to prevent deforestation and maintain and manage global ecosystems sustainably. As a consumer, you are then not only supporting a sustainable product, but you are also supporting a purpose that goes beyond fair consumerism. All businesses should be focused on more than selling goods and services, especially if the product is causing harm to the environment.

The Environmental Preservation Movement Is Fashionable

A circular fashion industry is characterised as a regenerative system in which clothing is circulated for as long as its maximal value is maintained, before being safely returned to the biosphere. Products in a circular model are planned and created with the next use in mind. The transformation from a linear to a circular paradigm necessitates that all fashion contributors cease working in silos and begin cooperating closely with one another. Fashion brands will flourish if they comprehend the impact of their merchandise and are thoughtful and critical of their work.

Making fashion circular encompasses greater support of designs that emphasise longevity and recyclability, encouraging consumers to purchase less, and establishing end-of-life solutions from the outset. Omnes excels at this. Not only does the brand utilise largely recycled or biodegradable materials, but it also lowers textile waste throughout the manufacturing process, develops its merchandise to be easily recyclable at the end of its life, and maintains a recycling program.

Sustainable Fashion Is Not A Trend But The Future

Creating a global fashion industry that values people above profit and conserves and restores the environment is not only an endeavour for fashion brands. As consumers, we have so much power to change the world by just being careful in what we buy. And keep reminding yourself of the mindful words of Vivienne Westwood — “Buy less. Choose well. Make it last.”