V2_DRAFT - Unit 1 - Sustainable Fashion Course

Unit 1 The Impact of the Fashion Industry on Our Environment

Project reference number: 2022-2-DE04-KA220-YOU-000101981

This is the perfect course for you!

Are you aware that the clothes in your wardrobe have an impact on the environment?I imagine you've heard of Fast Fashion, but are you familiar with the term Slow Fashion?Do you want to learn about sustainable fashion to change your lifestyle?Sustainable fashion is not just a trend—it's a revolution in how we think about what we wear. As we become more conscious of our environmental footprint, our approach to fashion is transforming. Join us as we explore the powerful connection between sustainability and style—because fashion can be both beautiful and responsible!

Begin this new journey through Sustainable Fashion!

START

Fashion Industry

Slow Fashion

Chemicals Usage

Carbon Footprint

Resources

TextileWaste

Objectives

Water Usage

Index

Know data on water consumption, carbon footprint, chemical use and textile waste.

Learn about the differences between Fast Fashion and Slow Fashion.

Understand the relationship between fashion and its impact on the environment.

Objectives

One of the most polluting industries on the planet

Fashion Industry

FAST FASHION!

What is causing these problems in the textile industry is...

The fashion industry is the second most polluting industry in the world, after the oil industry.The textile sector is worth more than $2.5 trillion and employs more than 75 million people around the world (Remy et al., 2016).Despite this good economic news, the constant creation of trends and the rapid obsolescence of fashion play an important role in the high consumption of natural resources, the relentless consumption of water and pollution, and the emission of greenhouse gases, which is damaging the environment (Fashion & Environment, n.d.).Environmental damage increases as the industry grows.

Fashion and Textile sector

Fast Fashion

Fast fashion refers to the production of cheap, fashionable clothes that are inspired by the latest catwalk trends or celebrity styling, and quickly converted into affordable garments to meet consumer demand. The aim is to bring novelties to market as quickly as possible, allowing shoppers to purchase them while they are still on trend. However, these garments are often discarded after just a few wears, feeding the idea that repeating an outfit is a mistake and that to be fashionable it is necessary to wear the latest trends as soon as they emerge.This rapid production and obsolescence of garments, the abundant use of natural resources, water and chemicals have a significant impact on the environment (Nikolina, 2019).

(UNtoday, 2020)

On average, women earn 60-70% of men's wages.

60-70%

of employees in the garment industry are women.

80%

Up to

The global fashion industry's estimated worth is $2.5 trillion.

Each year, around half a million tonnes of plastic microfibers resulting from the washing of textiles are estimated to be released into the ocean.

It is estimated that 100 billion items of clothing are produced each year, 20% of which go unsold.

< 1 %

of material used to produce clothing is recycled into new clothing.

Greenhouse gas emissions from textiles production is at 1.2 billion tonnes annually higher than emissions of all international flights and maritime shipping combined.

of freshwater are needed on average to produce 1 kg of cotton enough for a pair of jeans.

10.000 litres

Up to

200 years

Discarded clothing made of non-biodegradable fabrics can sit in landfills for up to 200 years.

FAST FASHION

(Fashion & Environment, n.d.)

400% more clothes are produced now compared to 20 years ago.

11 kg textile waste is generated per person per year in the EU in average.

At least 50% of clothes in our wardrobe are not worn.

7 times in a average, a garment is worn before being thrown away.

52 micro-collections per year are released by fast-fashion brands instead of the usual 2 seasons.

How many micro-collections of clothes are produced on average per year?

Do people wear all the clothes in their wardrobe?

How many times does a person wear a garment before throwing it away?

How much clothing waste does one person generate?

Is the amount of clothing produced the same as it was several years ago?

Fast Fashion - Data

Fast Fashion - The effect of the best-known brands

Launches 10.000 new products a day

Launches 12-16 fashion collections annually

Launches 24 new collections per year

Traditionally, fashion brands have launched 2 fashion collections a year, spring-summer and autumn-winter, nowadays, fast fashion has changed this.

Info

As consumers we have so much power to change the world by just being careful in what we buy.

Emma Watson - actress and environmental activist

Water Usage

Are you familiar with these textile processes

The textile and fashion industry uses approximately 79 billion cubic metres of water per year, which accounts for 20% of the wastewater generated annually (Niinimäki et al., 2020).Industrial textile processes such as scouring, washing, bleaching, sizing, dyeing, and finishing, use a lot of fresh water and leave a lot of wastewater with different chemicals like inorganic finishing agents, surfactants, chlorine compounds, salts, total phosphate, and polymers and organic products (Rather et al., 2019).More than 8000 different chemicals are used in the textile industry (Nimkar, 2018).

Water Usage in the Fashion Industry

Water consumption for cotton production

2700 litres

Approximately of fresh water!!

Approximately how many litres of water does it take to produce a cotton T-shirt?

Carbon Footprint

The countries with the highest CO2 emissions in the world due to the textile industry

The Fashion industry is responsible for 8-10% of global CO2 emissions, mainly due to its long supply chains and energy-intensive production methods (Leal Filho et al., 2022).It is estimated that 2 out of every 3 tonnes of CO2 produced is associated with the production of synthetic textile fibres.It is estimated that the production of a cotton T-shirt produces 2.1 kg of CO2, while the production of a polyester T-shirt produces a total of 5.5 kg of CO2 (Niinimäki et al., 2022; Kirchain et al., 2015).

Carbon Footprint of the Textile Industry

Water consumption for cotton production

Drag the numbers to the correct definition!

Solution

Carbon Footprint

Scouring

Fast Fashion

C. It is essential in preparing the material for subsequent stages of production, such as dyeing, bleaching, or finishing.

B. It is the total amount of greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide, that are emitted directly or indirectly by an individual, organization, event, or product.

A. It is a business model in the clothing industry characterized by the rapid production of high volumes of low-cost, trendy garments that mimic the latest fashion trends.

Match each term with the correct description

in the Textile Industry

Chemicals Usage

Environmental impact

From the production of fabrics to dyeing and finishing, the fashion industry uses a multitude of chemicals that unfortunately threaten the health of our ecosystems. Textile industry uses around 15,000 different compounds throughout its production chain (Niinimäki et al., 2022). Several chemical compounds present a risk to human health. The contact of clothing with the skin can cause dermatitis, urticaria, eczema... Inhalation during textile manufacturing may cause respiratory disorders (Brookstein, 2009; Malinauskiene, 2012).In Europe, certain dyes are banned for sale because they can cause cancer.

Chemicals in the fashion industry

The uniforms were removed from employees and tested. They were found to contain a dye banned in the European Union due to its suspected carcinogenicity, and tributyl phosphate, an irritant compound.

In 2011, an Alaska Airlines flight attendant suffered a dry cough after receiving a new high-performance synthetic uniform. She subsequently developed a chest rash, followed by migraines, mental confusion, tachycardia and blurred vision.

– Lisa Williams, Patagonia’s Chief Product Officer

The most environmentally sustainable jacket is the one that’s already in your closet.

Textile Waste

This is mainly due to the difficulty of textile recycling due to the presence of different materials in the same garment. Multifibre textile garments are very difficult to recycle!In addition to this waste, textiles also generate microplastics!(Allon, 2022; MacArthur, 2017)

Only 15% of the total

What percentage of discarded textiles is recycled?

101 million tonnes!

How many millions of tonnes of textile products end up in landfills every year?

Between 7 to 10 times

How many times on average does a person wear a garment before throwing it away?

The accelerated consumption of fashion brought about by fast fashion has meant that people are constantly throwing clothes into landfills.

Generation of Textile Waste

Microplastics are tiny plastic fragments less than 5 millimetres in length that represent a potential threat to the ocean and its aquatic ecosystems.35% of the microplastics released into the environment come from the washing of synthetic garments; during this process, the textile fibres rub against each other, causing some of them to detach from the garment and be washed away by the wastewater.It is very important to read and follow the washing instructions on garment labels to avoid the generation of these microplastics (European Parliament, 2023).

What are microplastics?

Laundry symbols

Check this trick!

The fight against Fast Fashion

Slow Fashion

the opposite of Fast Fashion. Slow Fashion is more than just a trend or a method, it is a way of thinking and understanding fashion from a conscious, ethical and respectful perspective towards the environment, workers and consumers. The care of the production processes is encouraged, seeking to guarantee the quality of each product created so that they are durable and sustainable over time.Recognising its relevance and impact as a production model is essential for the future of truly sustainable fashion (Hill, 2023).

Slow Fashion is...

It uses slower production times, as well as slower garment restocking times.

Trying to bring its brands to zero waste.

Limited and timeless productions.

Its workers are paid a fair wage.

It works on reducing the carbon footprint generated by each garment.

The garments are quality, durable and long-lasting.

SLOW FASHION

Design different outfits for the ReFashionized models!

Go to the wardrobe

Go to the wardrobe

How many outfits can you design?

Examples of Fashion Brands Promoting Slow Fashion

LOWER ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Timeless Designs

Consumer Awareness

MORE DURABLE GARMENTS

Small Batch Production

Focus on Sustainability

Ethical Production

HIGHER PRICES

Higher quality MATERIALS

Production in Low-Wage Countries

Short Product Lifespan

ALWAYS ON TREND

LOW QUALITY MATERIALS

Negative Environmental Impact

High Availability

Low Prices

Mass and Rapid Production

VS

SLOWFASHION

FASTFASHION

The first Textiles Recycling Expo

Discover these fibres from oranges!

Social Media’s Impact on Fast Fashion

Sweets made from textile waste?

Resources

1. Affat, S. S. (2021). Classifications, advantages, disadvantages, toxicity effects of natural and synthetic dyes: a review. University of Thi-Qar Journal of Science, 8(1), 130-135. https://www.iasj.net/iasj/download/984e577eef3c4ef4
2. Allon, G. (2022). The fashion industry's dirtiest secret. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/fast-fashion-christmas-shopping-clothes-returns-shein-zara-waste-mountain-2022-12
3. Brookstein, D. S. (2009). Factors associated with textile pattern dermatitis caused by contact allergy to dyes, finishes, foams, and preservatives. Dermatologic clinics, 27(3), 309-322. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.det.2009.05.001
4. European Parliament. (2023). The impact of textile production and waste on the environment (infographics). News. European Parliament. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/headlines/society/20201208STO93327/the-impact-of-textile-production-and-waste-on-the-environment-infographics
5. Fashion & environment. SustainYourStyle. (n.d.). https://www.sustainyourstyle.org/en/whats-wrong-with-the-fashion-industry#anchor-environmental-impact
6. Hill, M. (2023). What is Slow Fashion? Good On You. https://goodonyou.eco/what-is-slow-fashion/
7. INDITEX. (n.d.). Sustainability. https://www.inditex.com/itxcomweb/en/sustainability
8. Kirchain, R., Olivetti, E., Miller, T. R., & Greene, S. (2015). Sustainable apparel materials. Materials Systems Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, 1-34.
9. Leal Filho, W., Perry, P., Heim, H., Dinis, M. A. P., Moda, H., Ebhuoma, E., & Paço, A. (2022). An overview of the contribution of the textiles sector to climate change. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 10, 1419. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2022.973102
10. MacArthur, E. (2017). Foundation A New Textiles Economy: Redesigning Fashion’s Future. London, UK.
11. Malinauskiene, L. (2012). Contact allergy to textile dyes. Clinical and experimental studies on disperse azo dyes.
12. 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. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-020-0039-9

References

13. Nikolina, S. A. J. N. (2019). Environmental impact of the textile and clothing industry: What consumers need to know.14. Nimkar, U. (2018). Sustainable chemistry: a solution to the textile industry in a developing world. Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry, 9, 13-17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogsc.2017.11.002 15. Rather, L. J., Jameel, S., Dar, O. A., Ganie, S. A., Bhat, K. A., & Mohammad, F. (2019). Advances in the sustainable technologies for water conservation in textile industries. In Water in textiles and fashion (pp. 175-194). Woodhead Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-102633-5.00010-516. Remy, N., Speelman, E., & Swartz, S. (2016). Style that’s sustainable: A new fast-fashion formula. McKinsey Global Institute.17. UNCC, U. (2018). Helps Fashion Industry Shift to Low Carbon. United Nations Framework on Climate Change, Bonn.18. UNtoday. (2020). The “fast fashion” business model. https://untoday.org/the-fast-fashion-business-model/Music Source: Music by FASSounds from Pixabay.

References

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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Fashion Evolution towards Sustainability

This work is licensed under a

The project is co-financed by the European Commission through the Erasmus+ Programme Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them. Project Number: 022-2-DE04-KA220-YOU-000101981

For a party

To go study

Place here your election

For a date

For a party

To go study

Place here your election

For a date

(INDITEX, n.d.)

2030 / Use only textile raw materials that have a lower impact (newly created, recycled fibres and from organic or regenerative agriculture).2040 / Zero net emissions, reducing at least 90% of its carbon footprint compared to 2018.

2025 / 100% linen and polyester from preferred sources.2025 / 25% reduction of our water consumption in its supply chain.2025 / Reach three million people in the supply chain through the Worker at the Centre strategy.2030 / 5 million hectares protected, restored, regenerated, or under other forms of biodiversity enhancement management.

Is Zara sustainable?

The brand wants to become more and more sustainable and transparent, which is why the following challenges have been set:

Fashion Industry

Total flight and maritime transport

10%CO2

5%CO2

Water consumption for cotton production

The transport industry is currently being heavily criticised for its CO2 generation.Textile industry generates twice as much due to the mass production of clothing.

HERE IS THE EXPLANATION OF ALL THE ICONS!

DO NOT DRYCLEAN

TUMBLE DRY

DO NOTDRYCLEAN

DRYCLEAN

IRON AT MAX. Tª OF 150°C

DO NOT IRON

BLEACH IF NEEDED

DO NOT BLEACH

MACHINE WASHABLE 30 IS MAX. Tª

HAND WASH

Not washable

Machine washable

Office, Retail, Distribution Centre

Finished Product Assembly

Material Production

Raw Material Processing

Raw Material Extraction

The majority of global water use in the fashion industry is related to cotton cultivation. It is estimated that current textile production uses 44 billion litres of water per year for irrigation (about 3% of global irrigation water use), and 95% of this use is related to cotton production. Cotton crop accounts for 88% and 92% of the total water used to produce a T-shirt and a pair of jeans, respectively. Cotton has the highest water demand of any fibre used in fashion (Niinimäki et al., 2020).

Water consumption for cotton production

Stylist Stacy London shares tips on cleaning out your closet, including the important questions you should be asking yourself

Tips For Cleaning Out Your Closet!

(UNCC, 2018)

Due to the relocation of production to low-cost developing countries, the industry will produce 1.2 billion tonnes of CO2 per year.

Turkey

China

Pakistan

India

Bangladesh

Vietnam

The presence of toxic compounds in industrial wastewater poses a risk to marine fauna, as well as to humans feeding on these animals. Wastewater can also contaminate irrigation systems in agricultural fields.The undesirable colour of textile waste water and the presence of suspended solids cause turbidity in the water, which may impede the correct photosynthetic process of the aquatic flora and thus alter its life cycle (Affat, 2021).

Many people cut the labels off their clothes before wearing them, which is a big mistake because they don't know how to take care of them afterwards. Here is a solution to save the instructions on your mobile phone.

1. Take a photo of your clothing label with your iPhone.
2. Open the image and click on the "Info" icon.
3. Then click on "Look Up Laundry Care".
4. And the care instructions will appear!

@Allegrashaw gives you 23 outfits ideas combining very few garments, they will be useful to go to school, to a date, even to go out to a party!

Do you know how to combine your wardrobe garments with each other?

Here is an example!

Are you prepared to turn heads with your style?

You don't need to have too many clothes in your wardrobe to create endless outfits. This is our model's wardrobe and he needs you to design 3 different outfits, to go on a date, to go to a party and to go to the university to study.Simply click and drag the clothes and accessories you like to create your outfit. Don't forget to drag and drop your chosen plan too!Finally, take a screenshot and post your outfits on your social media by tagging @refashionizedproject and using the haghtags #Refashionized and #MyRefashionizedoutfit to check out the styles of other students around the world!

Due to the fast production of garments, certain characteristics are required in the team and the company:

Fast production chains

• Ability to pick up on upcoming fashion trends.
• Ability to quickly adapt production lines to new trends and designs.
• Use of advanced technology for design, production and inventory management.
• Strong relationships with suppliers who can deliver materials quickly.
• They produce small quantities of products initially and, depending on demand, produce more or recall the item quickly, minimising risks and adapting to consumer preferences.

In-organic

Synthetic

Man-made Fiber

Natural Fiber

Mineral

TEXTILE FIBERS

Regenerated Man-made

Animal

Vegetable

TEXTILE MATERIAL PROCESSING

Here is an example!

Are you ready to dazzle with your style?

You don't need to have too many clothes in your wardrobe to create endless outfits. This is our model's wardrobe and she needs you to design 3 different outfits, to go on a date, to go to a party and to go to the university to study.Simply click and drag the clothes and accessories you like to create your outfit. Don't forget to drag and drop your chosen plan too!Finally, take a screenshot and post your outfits on your social media by tagging @refashionizedproject and using the haghtags #Refashionized and #MyRefashionizedoutfit to check out the styles of other students around the world!

(H&M, n.d.)

(H&M, n.d.)

It uses innovative and sustainable materials such as: lyocell, recycled wool, recycled polyester, organic and recycled cotton, the grape leather, orange fiber...

H&M's sustainable measures

Let's innovate

Let's close the loop

Bring any unwanted garment or textile, of any brand and in any condition, to one of their shops and you will receive a voucher for your next purchase.