Ethical Myth Buster
Welcome to the big, complicated world of ‘Ethical Fashion’. The term comes with a mixture of negative and positive connotations, both true and false. This mismatch of information can become very confusing however, don’t fear we are here to help!
For those of you new to ethical fashion- Welcome! Ethical fashion means different things to different people and here at Conscious Wardrobe we are developing our own definition that ensures the delivery of the most ethical brands to you.
As a starting point Ethical Fashion is an umbrella term that describes the design, sourcing and manufacturing of clothing that “maximizes benefits to people and communities while minimizing impact on the environment”. As you can probably tell Ethical Fashion is still very broad and with no set industry standards it can be hard to trust everything you read. We are aiming to provide some transparency behind ethical fashion and are starting by busting some ethical fashion myths.
Myth 1: It doesn’t affect me so why should I care?
Fast fashion is one of the leading contributors to environmental pollution. According to Alternatives Journal’s article, “How the Fashion Industry is Picking up the Threads After Rana Plaza” an average of 2700 liters of water are needed to produce just one cotton t-shirt. That same amount of water could hydrate you for 2 and a half years! The water used in production then makes up 17-20% of total industrial water pollution, approximately 5, 640, 000 Olympic sized swimming pools of water pollution from the textile industry in just one year. Then there’s the fossil fuel emissions emitted to get the t-shirt to the buyer. An average t-shirt travels 35, 000 kilometers, equivalent to a trip around the world before finding a home.
All of this contributes to the record breaking temperatures of 2015. According to the World Meteorological Organisation, the “global average surface temperature in 2015 broke all previous records by a strikingly wide margin, at 0.76±0.1° Celsius above the 1961-1990 average.”
It won’t be long until we are all feeling the effects of mindless pollution.
Myth 2: Without fast fashion people in developing countries would be jobless
Ok so this one isn’t completely a myth. While yes, in Bangladesh alone the fashion industry employs 3.5 million workers and provides 80% of the country’s total export revenue, these facts are only superficial.
The wealth generated by this sector has contributed very little to improving the quality of life for garment workers. Workers, many of whom are women with children, earn below the minimum living wage and are forced to work 14-16 hours in appalling conditions that pose a massive health risk to them and their co-workers. Just look at the Rana Plaza factory collapse of 2013 where the 8 story garment factory collapsed, killing 1130 and injuring thousands more.
Perhaps the reason that t-shirt is only $5 is because someone else is paying for it.
Myth 3: Hard to find and untrendy
As word spreads more and more people are becoming aware of the above hard hitting facts and ethical fashion is developing accessibility and appeal.
Australia has a variety of screening and grading processes available such as Ethical Clothing Australia, Fairtrade Australia, Oxfam Australia, Good On You and Shop Ethical application.
While at the moment ethical clothing is primarily sourced online, such as Alas the Label, and Ariella, the terms ‘ethical’ and ‘sustainable’ are entering mainstream shopping malls with H&M launching their Conscious Foundation and David Jones moving towards improving their environmental impact.
Ethical fashion is moving from being an exception towards being a necessity as public knowledge and opinion changes for the better. Jump on board before it’s too late!
Myth 5: It’s way too expensive
While yes, compare the cheapest fast fashion brands with any clothing line that has spent time and money producing a sustainable product, there will be an obvious price gap. However, this doesn’t necessarily make ethical fashion completely unaffordable.
It’s all about changing your way of thinking. Is the initial cost worth improving environmental impact, others quality of life and obtaining a long lasting product and nasty free product?
There’s a reason costs are higher. For example, Jasmin Malik Chua explains why organic cotton is pricier in her Tree Hugger article, “It may seem counterintuitive that sustainable crops such as organic cotton, free from the trappings of GMO, chemical pesticides, and synthetic fertilizers, would actually cost more to grow, but the truth of the matter is that these toxic shortcuts are precisely what enables farmers to keep their costs down. Harvesting organic cotton is also more labor intensive because it's done without the use of chemical defoliation aids.”
Myth 6: One person’s purchases won’t slow fast fashion
You may be just one in a crowd, but your actions will have massive impacts. Think about how much water was used just to produce one t-shirt!
You also never know the influence you can have on the people around you. Share with them what you have learnt and they might take your advice on board!
Conclusion: The team here at Conscious Wardrobe were first interested in ethical clothing when we learnt about the massive social and environmental impact our past consumer habits had. We believe people should know where their clothes are coming from and what’s behind the glitz and glam of cheap and constantly changing fashion.
We want you to be able to make a well informed decision that allows you to protect yourself, your loved ones and humanity from harm.
