August 25, 2009
Green Fashion Isn't Skin Deep: Eco-Friendly Fashion Can Reduce Your Carbon Emissions
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Green Fashion Isn't Skin Deep: Eco-Friendly Fashion Can Reduce Your Carbon Emissions
Sustainable clothing might not solve climate change, but it will help.
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By Jessica Root
Brooklyn, NY, USA | Wed Aug 12 16:31:00 GMT 2009
Chris Gramly/iStock
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Some of us could care less about fashion. For others of us, what we wear is all-important—an integral part of our being. An external expression of everything we love, appreciate and wish to emanate.
Funny then how green fashion so often gets thrown to the dogs when it comes to the sustainability discussion. This could be part in parcel to the fact that it doesn’t contribute a large piece to the carbon emissions pie (transportation, commercial/residential buildings and diet do)—but the fact of the matter is that it still contributes.
According to the Organic Clothing blog, the textile and garment industries overlap with global warming in many ways—from growing the fibers, to manufacturing, distributing and transporting the clothes, to the ways we wash, clean and unabashedly discard them.
So if we’re one of those that thinks of fashion as an extension of our physical self, a piece of our identity—and our identity just so happens to be a concerned, eco-positive citizen of the world who wishes to combat climate change—should not our outfits express the same?
And if you fall into the “I could care less about clothes” category, couldn’t it be argued that if fashion doesn’t matter to you—it does matter to a warming Mother Earth?
It’s cool if you don’t care about clothes, but it’s way cooler to think and act selflessly. Here are some ways to curb climate change, stylishly.
1. Clean Clothes Greener
A study from the Institute for Manufacturing at Cambridge University found that 60 percent of the greenhouse gases generated over the life of one ordinary T-shirt originate from its typical 25 machine washing and dryings. The carbon emissions from energy used by the wash/dry appliances actually exceed the emissions from the T-shirt’s creation—from field to shelf.
The solution? Consider the cold rinse cycle your best friend. Clothes get clean without electricity-sucking hot and warm temps. Then line dry as much as possible making the dryer an emergency go-to.
2. Seek Out Sustainable Fabrics
The manufacturing process for petroleum-derived synthetic knit pieces (think polyester and nylon) requires much more energy than it does to make more natural fabrics like hemp to hemp fabric or organic cotton to organic cotton fabric. Choosing these lighter carbon options isn’t just a boon to the climate however. They’re also better feeling on the skin and less likely to off-gas harmful chemicals, contributing more positively to our health.
3. Like Local Eats, Wear Local Labels
Just like the transportation of our food accounts for a piece of the climate change pie, so does the transportation of our duds. Luxurious boutique labels nor cheap-y department store finds magically appear on store shelves. Fleets of trucks, planes and ships carry the goods to their destinations. So much of our clothes are made many time zones away. Check the labels to try and avoid China and other far-flung locales, and support local, stateside brands.
4. Find Pieces that Pull Double Duty and Ditch the Dump
So often, fashion is fleeting. Different styles for different seasons come and go so quickly it’s near impossible to keep up and subsequently keep our clothes. The temptation to ditch outdated outfits for new and improved pieces is great. What’s not great is that many of our discarded duds end up rotting in our brimming over landfills—contributing to methane, a climate change accelerator. The best way to keep this at bay is re-thinking the way we shop and splurging on pieces that will out-run short-lived fads and multi-task in the process. Nothing is sexier than a basic black T-shirt, a pair of classic denim jeans or a pair of sporty, sleek kicks that match just about everything.
5. Vote with Your Dollars: Go Vintage
While you busy finding ways to keep your clothes out of the landfills, keep others’ out of them too buy supporting thrift shops and second hand stores. Doing so is one of the easiest, most effective ways to avoid the energy costs that go into brand new clothing. Best of all, it’s the most affordable too! Dig deep to find unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that will make you hip, trendy and totally cool in the process.
