I never knew how bad singular-waste pollution was until I left the English countryside and relocated to a
beach-lined city.
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION
Sustainability within consumer production is a fairly new discipline within the environmental field of business. It combines economics to business, society and the environment. Businesses, particularly carbon-intensive industries, like crude oil, animal agriculture and cheap fast-fashion are starting to come round to the fact that they require a more balanced approach that minimizes risks to these areas to further enhance the quality of life of a product for a greener cleaner future.
Particularly the production of sustainable textiles and the need for a greener textile industry are convoluted with the modern-day environmental movement from the early '60s and due to the climate crisis which is scientifically high-lighting the reasons behind why these human-made greenhouse gases are harmful to the environment and why we need to address consumerism globally.
The future of fashion urgently needs to change. Fashion brands and fashion textile designers are urgently required to enrich their knowledge within the entire supply chain. Not only for ecosystems and communities too prosperous but for the entire textile manufacturing process to replace one fibre for a less toxic fibre and solution and for the entire fashion industry to find lower environmental impact solutions.
Not sure where to begin?
If you work within fashion and design or within sustainability there are thousands of globally sourced materials and textiles available, all of which carry environmental certificates and although it takes time to improve production, there are thousands of excellent innovative solutions waiting for you.
Sustainable Angle can help. They connect businesses to fashion designers with mills and fashion supply chains who produce sustainable fabrics and materials with a low environmental impact to prolong the lifecycle of a product. If you design and inspire make sure you do so with a lower environmental impact and discover more by subscribing to their newsletter.
SOCIALLY CONSCIOUS CONSUMER
Globalization, consumerism and social integrity all play a part in the clothing life cycle with globalization making it possible to produce clothing at increasingly lower prices, so low in fact that consumers post daily Instagram feed wearing disposable fashion in a virtual world where it appears to be important to wear-it-once-throw-it-away! Twenty years ago I could have related to this, but not in our current climate crisis.
This wear-it-once-throw-it-away-culture is an occupational hazard and does not maintain any ecological value. Ecosystems are there to maintain their species, communities and vital characteristics, without interventions by humans through greater ecological integrity.
It is our duty to protect our planet and species and focus on reducing human-made greenhouse gases and pollution through mindful consumerism.
There are so many wonderful sustainable brands who innovatively source environmentally friendly materials and seek out production methods to ensure everything is made to enhance the quality of life of a product for a greener brighter future it just takes a little bit of mindfulness when we shop.
THE RULE OF 4R
The way we live, particularly the way we live our lives in busy cities and communities needs to change.
We urgently need to reduce human waste pollution and question manufacturing processes and in turn regulate supply chains more mindfully and effectively try to reduce our singular-use waste at home. This is, of course, working progress for socially conscious consumers or for people trying to live a zero-waste lifestyle which not always completely achievable for some lifestyles. Thus, economically this zero-waste approach will not work for singular-use production so what can industries, governments, investors and consumers do to help?
Industries that produce singular-waste products should be more mindful of the production process, most importantly the packaging lifecycle. PET 1 or PETE 1 (Polyethylene Terephthalate) is recyclable therefore regulators should be required to enforce and encourage biodegradable or PET 1 packaging within an achievable time frame globally. This does not mean setting a date without a strategy.
The rule of 4R is a fairly easy lifestyle and lifecycle to adopt: rethink, reuse, reduce, recycle for a sustainable greener future and product. We should be reusing materials whenever possible, reducing waste and taking time to read the label to ensure we understand what we are buying. The rule of 4R is also a fun, inexpensive, creative way of thinking and it forces us to rethink and question our everyday choices every time we shop.
If individuals and businesses adopt the rule of 4R: reuse, recycle, reduce, rethink together we can work towards building a cleaner, healthier social and economic environment.
This means habitually adopting a more considerate approach to consumerism across all divisions, including the way we shop online in a digital age.
Read about Mindful consumers in a digital age click here.
Learn more about ethical, sustainable fashion and consumer behaviours below.
