The Circular Economy in Fashion: From Cradle to Cradle

Fast Fashion and Its Impact

Fast fashion’s “take and throw away” model contributes to pollution, consumes large amounts of water and energy, and generates waste. It can also rely on unsafe or unfair working conditions.

The collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh, where more than a thousand people died, is a reminder of the human cost behind cheap clothing.

Circular Fashion

Circular fashion offers an alternative by keeping clothing and materials in use for as long as possible, reducing waste, and supporting fair wages and safe workplaces. It encourages durable, timeless clothing that can be repaired, reused, resold, rented, or recycled.

Ways to Support Circular Fashion

• Buy fewer, better-quality clothes designed to last.
• Choose timeless styles over short-lived trends.
• Repair clothes instead of discarding them.
• Buy second-hand, or resell or rent clothing.
• Recycle worn-out garments and support upcycling, which gives old clothes a new use.
• Look for lower-impact materials, such as organic cotton, recycled fabrics, and mushroom leather.
• Support brands that take sustainability seriously and are transparent about their choices.

Brands and Examples

The video highlights brands applying circular principles, including Stella McCartney, Eileen Fisher, H&M, and Pangaia. Their examples include:

• Stella McCartney: Mushroom leather and recycled cashmere.
• Eileen Fisher: The Renew program.
• H&M: Clothing collection and recycled-cotton jeans.
• Pangaia: Clothing made with seaweed- and recycled-plastic-based materials.

The video argues that style and sustainability can go together.

Notable location: Rana Plaza in Bangladesh. Named speaker: None.