ClassX Video Lessons Youtube Channel ClickView Fast Fashion: The Environmental Impact | Geography, Life Skills
The Atacama Desert, known for its stunning landscapes, has unfortunately become a massive dumping ground for the fashion industry’s waste. Piles of discarded clothing are so extensive that they can be seen from space. This waste not only harms the environment but also disrupts the local ecosystem, once home to unique plants and animals. The fashion industry is a major contributor to such environmental disasters. But how did we reach this point?
To understand the environmental impact of fast fashion, we need to trace the journey of our clothes from production to disposal. Dr. Rebecca Van Amber, a professor specializing in textile and apparel sustainability, explains how disconnected we are from the clothing production process. For instance, cotton production is complex and resource-intensive. It requires significant water, machinery powered by oil, and various chemical treatments. After harvesting, cotton undergoes cleaning and processing before being spun into yarn. Additional treatments like dyeing and finishing further increase the environmental footprint. This entire process demands a substantial amount of energy and resources.
The fashion industry accounts for about 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Shockingly, every second, a garbage truck’s worth of textiles is either burned or sent to landfills. This waste exceeds the combined emissions of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Over 60% of fabric fibers are synthetic, meaning they take thousands of years to decompose. While thrift stores offer a way to reduce waste by buying second-hand clothes, simply donating old clothes isn’t a complete solution.
Many people believe that donating clothes to charity is always beneficial. However, much of what we donate ends up being exported overseas, where it is often unwanted. It’s crucial to be mindful of what we donate, ensuring that items are still wearable and in good condition. If an item is trash to you, it likely won’t be a treasure for someone else.
Addressing the fast fashion crisis requires sustainable solutions, such as adopting a circular fashion model. A circular economy aims to keep resources in use for as long as possible. Instead of discarding garments at the end of their life, we should find ways to reuse or recycle them. Repairing, sharing, or repurposing clothes extends their lifespan and reduces waste. The ultimate goal is to minimize the need for new clothing production.
We can all contribute to solving the fast fashion problem by repairing clothes, sharing them with others, and buying second-hand. Most importantly, we should focus on buying less. By making conscious choices, we can help reduce the environmental impact of the fashion industry.
Investigate the impact of textile waste in a specific region, such as the Atacama Desert. Prepare a presentation to share your findings with the class, highlighting the environmental and social consequences. Consider proposing potential solutions to mitigate these issues.
Choose a garment from your wardrobe and trace its lifecycle from production to disposal. Document the resources used, the environmental impact at each stage, and the potential for recycling or repurposing. Share your analysis in a written report or visual infographic.
Participate in a workshop to calculate the carbon footprint of your clothing choices. Use online tools to assess the emissions associated with different fabrics and production methods. Discuss strategies to reduce your personal fashion footprint with your peers.
Conduct an audit of a local clothing donation center. Evaluate the condition and usability of donated items, and interview staff about the challenges they face. Present your findings and suggest improvements to ensure donations are more effective and sustainable.
Engage in a design challenge to create a garment or accessory using only recycled or repurposed materials. Collaborate with classmates to brainstorm innovative designs that adhere to the principles of circular fashion. Showcase your creations in a class exhibition.
**Sanitized Transcript:**
– The Atacama Desert. This mesmerizing landscape has become an unwitting victim of the fashion industry’s insatiable appetite for cheap, disposable clothing. Mounds of textile waste have transformed the serene desert into a dumping ground so large, it’s visible from space. These discarded garments, once cherished, now contribute to an environmental crisis with dire consequences for the environment and the local community. Once a haven for unique flora and fauna, it now faces irreversible damage, and this is just one of the many environmental disasters primarily due to the fashion industry. How did we let this happen?
To understand more about the environmental effects of fast fashion, let’s go back to the start where our clothes actually come from. This is Dr. Rebecca Van Amber. She’s a college professor who focuses on textile and apparel sustainability, and she loves fashion.
– “I think this is kind of the problem with clothing. It’s an ordinary everyday item, and we’re so disconnected from the production of how it’s made that people, I don’t think, truly value it how it should be. For something like cotton, it’s hugely complex. Obviously, you’re planting the cotton, you need a lot of water to grow it, and then there’s the harvesting. Think of all the machinery. There’s a lot of oil and petroleum that you need to run the machinery, pesticides, or other treatments. But once it’s actually harvested, there’s a huge amount of cleaning that happens, and then there are huge numbers of processes to align the fibers. You need to make sure they’re all in a row before you can then spin it into a yarn. You can also dye the cotton if you’re making it into something like denim. There might be treatments to the surface of the denim, whether it’s stone washing or sandblasting, and then the use phase. So the entire garment, from conception all the way to the use phase, is hugely energy and resource-intensive.”
– The fashion industry is responsible for around 4% of the world’s global greenhouse gas footprint, with the equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles being landfilled or burned every second. This is more than France, Germany, and the United Kingdom combined. Additionally, over 60% of fabric fibers are synthetics, which are largely non-biodegradable and can take thousands of years to decompose. Thankfully, thrift stores allow us to buy unique clothes that are stylish and help reduce the amount of waste. So, we should just donate our old clothes, right?
– “It’s a really common misconception that I think all of us make. You think, ‘I’m going to do the right thing. I’m going to put it in the charity bin,’ and you assume that it’s going to end up on the floor, and that’s not entirely true. A lot of what we donate to charities ends up being exported overseas, and it’s so problematic now that many of these countries don’t want it either; they don’t want our waste.”
– “It’s not that we should never give to thrift stores; it’s that we should be more mindful of what we’re donating. Only donate old clothes that you could still wear. That means no broken zippers or pilled sweaters. If it’s trash to you, don’t count on it being someone else’s treasure.”
– “It’s very much that out of sight, out of mind mentality. You know, it’s made overseas, we don’t see how it’s made. It comes here, it’s a beautiful product, we wear it, and then it goes off overseas and ends up in a landfill again.”
– “Seeing those images of piles of discarded clothing, that’s the kind of stuff that really haunts me. And to see all of this discarded clothing ending up there is really horrifying.”
– Like many of the problems that contribute to the climate crisis, the solutions require sustainability and immediacy. In the specific case of fast fashion, circular fashion might just be the key.
– “A circular economy is the idea that when we produce items, they can be cycled through, and so we’re trying to recover as many of the resources as possible. The garment is produced and it goes to the consumer, and then it possibly ends up in the landfill at the end of its life. What we want to do is really sort of close that loop and ensure that when the garment comes to the end of its life, it goes back into the resource cycle where it can become useful again. The best option is always to wear something and use it as long as possible. Can you repair it? Can you give it to a friend? Can you remake it into something else? Can you make it into rags if it’s suitable? So the longer you use the garment, that is the best option; use it for as long as possible. Putting it in the bin should be the absolute last option.”
– We can all help by repairing, sharing, and buying second-hand clothing, but most importantly, buying less. If you liked this video, you can find it and many more at clickview.net. Sign up for free today!
Fashion – The prevailing style or trend in which something is made or done, especially in the context of environmental practices and innovations. – The fashion of using biodegradable materials in packaging is gaining momentum as companies seek to reduce their environmental footprint.
Waste – Materials or substances that are discarded as no longer useful or required after the completion of a process. – Effective waste management strategies are crucial for minimizing the environmental impact of industrial activities.
Sustainability – The ability to maintain ecological and resource balance by avoiding depletion of natural resources to ensure long-term environmental quality. – Sustainability in agriculture involves practices that protect the environment, public health, and animal welfare.
Carbon – A chemical element that is a fundamental component of organic compounds and a key factor in the Earth’s climate system. – Reducing carbon footprints is essential for mitigating the effects of climate change.
Emissions – The act of releasing substances, particularly gases, into the atmosphere, often contributing to pollution and climate change. – Governments worldwide are implementing policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from industrial sources.
Recycling – The process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects, thereby reducing the consumption of fresh raw materials. – Recycling programs in urban areas have significantly decreased the amount of waste sent to landfills.
Resources – Natural materials or substances that are used by humans for economic gain and survival, such as water, minerals, and forests. – The sustainable management of resources is critical to ensuring their availability for future generations.
Ecosystem – A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment, functioning as a unit. – The health of an ecosystem can be assessed by examining the diversity and abundance of its species.
Circular – Relating to a system or process that is closed-loop, where resources are reused and recycled to minimize waste. – The circular economy model aims to design out waste and keep products and materials in use for as long as possible.
Impact – The effect or influence of one thing on another, particularly in the context of environmental changes and human activities. – The impact of deforestation on biodiversity is a major concern for conservationists.
