7 Eco-Friendly & Sustainable Ideas to Embrace Your Fashionable Side, Without a Big Budget #Ethicalfashion #Fashion #Sustainability #Environment #Eco

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#Fairtrade, changing fashion trends, eco fashion, eco-friendly, environment-friendly, Environmental awareness, environmental consciousness, environmental impact, Environmental initiatives, environmentalism, environmentally responsible, ethical consumerism, Ethical consumption, ethical fashion, Ethical lifestyle, Ethical Living, Fashion, fast fashion, recycle, reduce, reuse, sustainability, sustainable, Sustainable consumption, sustainable fashion, sustainable lifestyle, sustainable living

Written by Sohini Dey for http://www.thebetterindia.com/

In this blog, the author has written an excellent piece on steps that you and I can take to support a movement towards slow and sustainable fashion:

Full article from: http://www.thebetterindia.com/98881/slow-sustainable-fashion/

“Promoting fair wages and minimal waste, slow and sustainable fashion demands change in the way we perceive clothing”

A friend of this writer once said, “I will just have to reconcile with children in sweatshops making the clothes I wear; after all, who can argue with cheaper prices more affordable.” Needless to say, the listener was horrified. With increasing awareness, more people are now making an effort to live less wasteful lives—yet we sometimes fall woefully short when it comes to clothing choices.

This is the age of fast fashion—trends change every few weeks, or less, and brands keep up by churning out new designs at alarming speed.

Fashion has, over the years become associated with excess and frivolity but beneath the surface the simple fact is that clothing is essential to our lives. There is much to value about fashion (and that is a subject for an entirely different article) but some of its trends and practices can certainly be changed for the better.

Slow fashion is slowly (pun intended) taking over, and its principles are simple—fair wages, eco-friendly fabrics and practices, and minimal to zero waste. But it does demand change in the way we perceive clothing.

From keeping your shopping habits in control to knowing about the supply chain of your favoured brands, a conscious interest in your clothes—and their makers—not only has a positive impact on the environment but also the communities engaged in the production of clothing. Here is what you can do to be part of the slow and sustainable fashion movement.

1. Reduce your wardrobe to only what you need and love

To begin with, keep your shopping habits in check. Retail therapy may be happiness-inducing, but its long-term effect usually includes a pile of unused clothes in our wardrobes. Instead, shop with discretion and buy only what you need or like enough to wear often.
If an occasion demands an ensemble that you will never wear otherwise, consider borrowing or use clothing rentals, an emerging trend that some suggest will pose a grave threat to fast fashion brands in the future.

2. Your choice of materials makes a difference

Take cotton for instance, a crop that is both water- and chemical-intensive. In the ongoing drought across numerous states of India, cotton farmers are among the hardest-hit.

However, organic cotton is gaining ground—not only does it require less water but also substantially less chemicals. On the other hand, Ahimsa or vegan silks are becoming popular as conventional silks raise questions about boiling silkworms to produce the threads. Handspun khadi and traditional techniques are being revived and internationally, bamboo, recycled fabrics and hemp are becoming popular over synthetics.

3. Say no to sweatshops, breeding grounds of labour exploitation

Cheap clothing always a welcome addition to wardrobes, but it often comes at great human cost. In 2013, Rana Plaza in Bangladesh collapsed in a heap, killing 1,134 people all of whom were making clothes for international brands under strenuous conditions. And this is not a stray incident—news reports frequently bring the exploitative working conditions in sweatshops to light.

If a brand, no matter how aspirational or abounding in gorgeous clothes, is repeatedly in the news for malpractices, ditch them for fair-trade labels or factories that conform to regulations for workers safety and other standards.

If enough people refuse to invest in such brands, the industry will be compelled to regulate the measures for workers’ welfare.

4. Ask this: Who made my clothes?

The previous point naturally leads to this one. Remember that prices aren’t the overriding factor in determining whether your clothes are sustainable or not — a great deal of luxury products aren’t always ethical and many surprisingly cheap products often are. It is important to check the supply chain of the brand you purchase from and most importantly, pose the question, “Who made my clothes?”

5. Buy local, and support fair-trade and craft clusters that practice sustainable techniques

Buying local keeps your carbon footprint lower—after all, your clothes haven’t travelled the world to reach your wardrobe. Second, it is a means of sustenance for local weavers and artisans. India is home to countless handlooms and crafts and unfortunately, many of them are dwindling. These karigars need patronage and support for their craft traditions to continue. Many shoppers are ditching big brands for handlooms and old techniques are being revived by designers and organisations to be relevant in contemporary times.

6. How you use your clothes affects your carbon footprint

Washing and drying your clothes might keep them clean, but also increases your carbon footprint and reduces the lifespan of your clothes drastic. Now the solutions: use non-toxic detergent, hand wash as much as possible and remember that air drying is better than the spin tub.
Most of all, wear your clothes more than once before washing. In a tropical country, this can be challenging especially in the heat, but choosing airy fabrics and air drying them can solve the problem to some extent.

7. Finally: recycle, upcycle and donate

While many of us are increasingly conscious about the immortality of plastic, landfills are also choked by immense quantities of clothing.While organuc fabrics are bio-degradable, synthetics may not be so. There’s also the questions of plastic and other non bio-degradable items that make their way into clothing via buttons, zips and other fixtures.

Instead of tossing old clothes, considering repairing them or donating to someone in need. A number of NGOs and other organisations can make use of old clothes in crafting refurbished products as well.

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[Article Round Up] The True Cost of Fast Fashion: Continuing the Conversation #fastfashion #ethicalfashion #fashion

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#buyethical, #Fairtrade, Artisans, Change, Cheap Labour, consumerism, developing countries, Educating Ethical Fashion, Effect of Fashion, ethical consumerism, ethical fashion, Ethical fashion movement, ethical products, ethically-made, fair wages, Fashion, Fashion industry, Fashion's Effect, fast fashion, social change, Social consumerism, social impact, socially-made, Supply Chain, sustainability, sustainable, sustainable fashion, sustainably-made, third-world countries, Working conditions

The following article was posted by Shannon Whitehead on The Blog on HuffPost Style:

“”People aren’t going to care until it hurts them personally.”

That was the last comment in the closing discussion of The True Cost movie screening I co-hosted in Boston this summer.

The documentary has been sweeping film festivals and fashion media across the world with a no-holds-bar narrative of fashion’s effect on people and planet.

As I sat in the audience that night, surrounded by 100+ students, designers, entrepreneurs, mechanical engineers and concerned consumers, I could see and hear the emotions around me.

There’s something about watching a female garment worker being beaten with a club on the streets of Phnom Penh that can really grip you.

As strong as the emotions were, though, some of the most insightful comments in the post-discussion focused on how we will respond now that we’ve seen the footage and the movie is no longer playing in front of our eyes.

“We’re so detached,” one audience member said. “It’s just so hard to care about people on the other side of the world who you don’t know. Especially when there are so many other problems in the world.”

This sentiment resonates with many consumers: When there is so much to fight for in this world, how do you choose your battles?

When you’re the mom in Missouri with four mouths to feed and the cheapest store is a Wal-Mart, how do you say ‘no’ to the five dollar t-shirts that your kids will grow out of in a few months?

When you’re the university student drowning in debt, how do you make ethical fashion a part of your lifestyle?

In an ideal world, the industry execs profiting off of cheap labor would choose to change things on their own. Then consumers wouldn’t have to make a choice — it would either be ethically-made or not made at all.

But that’s not the reality we live in. The reality is that the fashion industry is a 3 trillion dollar a year business and only two percent of apparel companies source from suppliers that pay their workers a fair and living wage.

The reality is that industry giants can claim negligence because they don’t technically “own” their factories and thus don’t have to take responsibility for fair compensation.

The reality is that until consumers start making demands and asking for change, the fashion industry has no reason to clean up its act.

We’ve heard all of this before. It’s a classic chicken and the egg. A vicious cycle of rock bottom prices and consumer expectation that it should be this way. We expect the five dollar t-shirt — I’d even go so far to say, we feel entitled to it.

And that’s where the root of the problem lies. On the surface, the issues are obvious to us: pay the workers a better wage, change the supply chain, improve working conditions.

“…But I still want clothing to be cheap.”

We deflect the responsibility with the same negligence that fast fashion shareholders deflect it.

There’s nothing I can do as one person. The problem is too great to solve. The issues are too complicated. There is someone more qualified to tackle this. There are only so many hours in a day…

Why should the medical student in Boston care about the garment worker in Bangladesh?

Maybe the answer lies in actually remembering, as True Cost director Andrew Morgan says, that there are people behind the clothes we wear.

Maybe if we saw that with a different stroke of luck in the gene pool, it could be us in front of that sewing machine — we wouldn’t be so apathetic.

I don’t have the answer. Or a solution. The best I can do is lead by example and encourage others to do the same.

The best you can do is to start asking questions, educating yourself, sparking non-judgmental conversations with your friends while doing whatever you can to shine light on yet another fundamental flaw in our society —

That when it comes to the bottom line, the underdog never wins.—

If you haven’t seen The True Cost documentary yet it’s streaming on Netflix for free right now.”

A great post on an important topic!

Is Whole Foods Helping Grow Eco-Friendly Fashion? #Ethicalfashion #Ethicallifestyle #Eco

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#buyethical, #Fairtrade, Change, consumerism, eco fashion, eco-friendly, Environment, environmentalism, ethical consumerism, ethical fashion, ethical products, ethically-made, social impact, sustainability, sustainable, sustainable fashion, sustainably-made

Following the footsteps of many large grocery and general big box retailers, farm-to-table leader Whole Foods Markets (WFM) has recently embraced eco-chic. The North American retailer, which sells organic and sustainable foods, is now pushing ethical fashion into the mainstream market with T-shirts, yoga ware and other fashion products. Similar to Joe Fresh, a subsection of Canadian food distributor Loblaw Companies Ltd., Whole Foods is setting up The Lifestyle Store adjacent to its West Hollywood location.

With this announcement, WFM hopes to embrace the market of customers willing to pay higher prices for ethical clothing. Going above and beyond what other large retailers such as H&M are doing, which includes increasing wages for workers in developing countries or releasing specific ethical fashion lines, the company has made a serious investment into the ethical fashion movement.

However, a lot of questions arise from this recent news. Will organic and sustainable fashion see the growth that its food counterparts have seen over the last few years? What happens to the grass-roots or local start-ups who have toiled to bring the movement to the point it has reached thus far? Will higher prices ensure a positive sustainable impact on the lives of producers?

Will organic and sustainable fashion see the growth that its food counterparts have seen over the last few years?

Consumers are becoming more aware about the negative impact of fashion, which includes cheaper materials/quality, cheap labour that results in a lower quality of life for the producers that make the fashion, and cheaper factory overhead that results in poor working conditions. This has resulted in a desire to support ethical fashion, which has slowly begin to translate into consumer figures.

What happens to the grass-roots or local start-ups who have toiled to bring the movement to the point it has reached thus far?

The key to pushing the movement forward is the larger retailers working with the smaller, local organizations to bring ethical fashion to the mainstream market. It is only through this cohesiveness that a sustainable change will arise in the consumer market. It is a combination of small retailers and larger retailers that will encourage competition, diversity and progress in the marketplace.

Will higher prices ensure a positive sustainable impact on the lives of producers?

Ethical fashion is valued at higher prices in order to provide workers with fair wages and better working conditions, and to create fashion in an organic and environmentally-friendly way. The idea consumers may have to adjust to is choosing quality over quantity, and realizing the value in the social/environmental good that comes from ethical fashion.

Beyond these, there are a lot of questions that the success or failure of The Lifestyle Store will help determine. Will such a venture be sustainable when it comes to mass-production? Can companies such as WFM keep prices at an affordable, competitive level, while still adhering to the promises they make consumers? It will be the performance of a big box ethical fashion retailer that will truly help us understand the answers to such questions. Just like food, fashion is a perishable good and with the recent focus on fast fashion, it is more perishable than ever. Through sustainability, social responsibility and transparency, will a larger retailer such as WFM translate their mission into a success in the apparel market? Time will tell.

Fashion trends Forecasting #Fashion #Ethicalfashion

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#Fairtrade, 2013 Fashion, Colours for 2013, eco fashion, Environment, ethical fashion, ethical shopping, Ethics in Fashion, Fashion Forecast, Fashion trends 2013, social change, Styles for 2013

We’ve been researching, analyzing and taking a look at some fashion trend forecasts, and here are some insights for you:

Men: Long t-shirts, blanket woolen jackets, crisp button-front shirts, drop-crotch pants, zip front blouson jackets

Women:

• Boy Meets Girl: Mannish overcoats (mohair), best pinstripes, slouchy trousers, oversized coats, double-breasted jackets
• The rebel: Chiffon-plaid, zips, chains, vinyl, leather and studs
• Excess: Folk-inspired florals and painterly prints and patterns
• Skirt lengths: mid-calf, slightly flare at the knee
• The Warrior: Sheath dresses with lots of shape, long robe, strong-shouldered suits and velvet pyjama pants
• Dark: Dark make up colours, capes, cloaks, high necks and toe-grazing hems, in opulent textures and grand silhouettes

Colours: bright accents against muted tones, unusual combinations, black, burgundy, purple, gold, turquoise, grounded slate grey, tawny brown and midnight blue (read more about colours here: http://www.fashionising.com/trends/b–fall-colors-2013-winter-colors-27647.html).

While shopping for your clothing and fashion accessories, follow the trend and tips we gave you in our previous blog Dress Ethically, Easily and never forget to look ethics behind your purchases. Happy ethical shopping!

[Article Round Up] Ethical fashion: Looking good while doing good! #Ethicalfashion #Ecofashion

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#buyethical, #Fairtrade, Artisans, Change, consumerism, developing countries, Environment, environmentalism, ethical consumerism, ethical fashion, ethically-made, fair trade, Fairtrade Fashion, Fashion, organic, Social consumerism, socially-made, sustainable, sustainable fashion

“After tackling coffee, chocolate and other agricultural products, the fair trade movement is now making inroads into the world of fashion. The philosophy behind fair trade is that business can—and should—be done in an ethical way that considers the environment and the people who make the products we consume. Now, the “ethical fashion” movement has adopted these ideas and is helping to changing the lives of many in the developing world, as fashion journalist Yoshiko Ikoma saw firsthand on a recent visit to Nepal.”

Read more: ajw.asahi.com/article/globe/economy/AJ201212090034

Social Enterprise Label In Europe: Hope for the Future or Hopeless Failure? #Socent

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#Fairtrade, #SocEnt, charitable donations, Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR, Europe, organic, Social Enterprise, social entrepreneur, Social Entrepreneurship

An interesting issue is being debate in Brussels, as part of the Social Business Initiative: What is Social Enterprise? As the European Parliament debates a voluntary label system for social enterprises, this answer to this question is becoming imperative. Proponents of the voluntary labelling system, such as Philippe Boulland, a French MEP for the European People’s Party, argue that the label “could enhance the competitiveness of European industry by motivating responsible consumers, attracting investment and fostering a European social welfare model.”

However, one journalist argues that there are three critical reasons this initiative will fail:

1. Differentiation: According to the proposed system, there is little difference between social enterprise and corporate social responsibility, which are 2 different concepts. While, social enterprise ties in social purpose into its business model, corporate social responsibility is an add-on that companies use to house their charitable donations and such projects. Companies that aren’t actually social enterprises could attempt to get this label, thereby confusing consumers.
2. Localisation: The proposal treats economic activity in all parts of Europe as the same. In reality, different regions in the vast European Union (EU) treat social enterprise differently. Therefore, the platform needs an element of localisation.
3. Demand: The writer argues that this label ignores the success of labels such as Fairtrade and organic food, which developed out of consumer demand, whereas this label is developed through more top-down approach. The companies that want to be involved with this label need to prove their success and demonstrated their values are good for the public.

All of these concerns with the labelling system make sense. A labelling initiative needs to consider how it differentiates from things like CSR, which are not social enterprise activities, localisation and how this impacts the treatment of social enterprise in different regions and demand for such a label. To address some of these concerns, the commissioning group wants to conduct studies to evaluate the potential of the proposed label.

What do you think?

Fair Trade or Not Fair Trade? That is the question. #Fairtrade #FairtradeUSA

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#buyethical, #Fairtrade, Artisans, Change, Coffee’s certification criteria, corporate interests, developing countries, eco-friendly, Environment, Environmentally conscious, environmentally resposible, ethical consumerism, ethical products, fair trade, Fair trade community, Fairtrade Coffee, Fairtrade USA, Green Mountain Coffee, organic, social impact, socially responsible, socially-conscious, Starbucks, third-world countries

Fair Trade USA’s recent decision to allow corporate coffee exporters to become certified under their brand has caused an uproar in the fair trade community.

Why?

This move towards encouraging corporate interests is considered a “stab in the back” to many smaller importers and roasters, an abandonment of the principles that make the certifying body valid.

But there are two sides to every story…

In the end of the day, Fair Trade USA is a business, and like every business – it has to consider its bottom line, in addition to its principles and morals. By allowing the likes of Starbucks and Green Mountain Coffee to become certified, Fair Trade USA made a whole lot of profit. Just as any other for-profit social enterprise, Fair Trade USA can use these profits to further create social change by using the economy to fund “good” coffee plantations?

While large-holder-produced, non-organically certified coffee does do more damage to the environment, the organic certification doesn’t necessarily mean an importer is environmentally and socially responsible. Many smaller plantations actually do very little to be socially and environmentally conscious, and many of certifications do not outline what practices they require for a farmer to become certified. At the end of the day, the consumer doesn’t know what he or she is paying a premium for. How do we know what kind of standards are being set and what really differes a smaller “organic” plantation from a larger “less organic” one? As I found in one article:

“If we, as buyers, are not informed about what exactly this certification entails, then we are in no position to pooh-pooh Fair Trade USA for taking on a bigger client. If you really feel a social responsibility to your products, find out your coffee’s certification criteria. Then you can proudly buy a coffee that endorses women small-business owners or uses profits to send rural children to school, or whatever it may be. But don’t get hung up on whether Starbucks is a member of the team.”

So how do we fix this issue? Should fair trade certifiers be clearer and more rigid with their standards? Should corporations be allowed to join the fair trade movement? How do we really know who is making the best impact?

Move over iPhone, the next big thing in technology: the Fairtrade Phone #Technology #Fairtrade

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#Fairtrade, #technology, Apple, Cell phone, communication, Environment, environmentally-friendly, Fair Labor Association (FLA), fair trade, Fair trade movement, Fairphone, GSM Association, Mobile technology, Phone, smart phone, sustainability, sustainable

26% of executives admit to sleeping with their smart phone.

75% of Americans admit to using their cell phone while in the bathroom.

According to the GSM Association (the world’s leading body of mobile operators and device makers), mobile industry revenues are expected to rise to $1.9 trillion in 2015.

Cell phones are a big industry that impacts all of our lives and depending on who you talk to, this impact can be a positive or a negative. Yet our complaints about a lack of communication skills in the “smart phone generation” and using cell phones at the table seem petty compared to the slavery, exploitation, and pollution involved in the production of the cell phones we use.

As we become more concerned with the impact our consumerism has on the environment, the race is on for the world’s first Fairtrade certified phone. Naturally, some big contenders come into mind for who could produce this phone and one of them is Apple, who recently announced their intent to be the first tech company to join the Fair Labor Association (FLA). This action would be a huge step for the fair trade movement as many companies would fully suit in attaining such certifications.

However, another smaller company, Fairphone, is creating waves in this area. Fairphone’s goal is to create a cellphone that is made entirely of parts produced and utilized without harming individuals or the environment. The world’s first fully environmentally-friendly and socially-conscious cell phone.

While Apple might have the technology and capabilities to create an incredible phone, Fairphone seems to be clearer on what their goals are with this project. However, if Apple is to succeed in creating the first Fairtrade phone it will be a remarkable step in encouraging other companies to follow the behemoth down this path to sustainability.

[Article Round Up] Fairtrade KitKat Row #Fairtrade #Nestlé

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#buyethical, #Fairtrade, #SocEnt, Cadbury, Change, Coca farmers, developing countries, ethically-made, fair trade certification, Fairtrade labelling, Fairtrade terms, Kitkat, Mars, Nestlé, social impact

An investigation by BBC’s Watchdog programme outlined how currently leading manufacturers such as Nestlé, Cadbury and Mars are allowed to mix up the Fairtrade beans with others from non trade sources, and yet still label the finished product as Fairtrade.

Read the full article here: http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/9981651.Fairtrade_KitKat_row/

[Article Round Up] Fair Trade Changes Lives – Can it Preserve Culture? #Fairtrade #4change

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#buyethical, #Fairtrade, Fair Trade Certified, Fair Trade premium, Fair Trade. Fair Trade USA., organic coffee, Preserve Culture

As October is Fair Trade Month, we found this interesting article on the impact of fair trade on local culture.

“This is the fifth article in a series on “The Future of Fair Trade,” written in collaboration with Fair Trade USA. A 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization, Fair Trade USA is the leading third-party certifier of Fair Trade products in the United States…

… Over the past year, author Kelsey Timmerman has traveled around the world meeting the people who catch, pick, and grow our food while conducting research for his upcoming book, WHERE AM I EATING? AN ADVENTURE THROUGH THE GLOBAL FOOD ECONOMY. During his travels, Kelsey met farmers whose lives have been deeply impacted by Fair Trade.

Today, to celebrate Fair Trade Month, he shares a story about an extraordinary culture in Northern Colombia that Fair Trade is actually helping to preserve.”

Read the full article here: http://www.triplepundit.com/2012/10/fair-trade-lives-preserve-culture-2/.