Session Lead: Alina Osmunson

Description: A discussion defining ethical fashion and the various sectors that encompass it.

Participants: Tim, Ellie, Nelly, Jen Herman, Mike

Followups:  Some notes and links from the presentation listed below.

Ethical Fashion can be examined through three categories: Labor, Environment, and Design.

1. LABOR
Ethical Fashion takes into account the manufacturing and production process with regards to PEOPLE, namely using Fair Trade practices to end exploitation and overcome poverty through trade.  Read more at the recently sold Ascensiononline.com. I am particularly interested in the utilization of women’s sewing co-ops in India, Bangladesh, and throughout Africa where native handicraft techniques are infused into modern design.

2. ENVIRONMENT
a. The entire production process, from the farm to the store to your closet considers its impact on the environment.  Regarding fibers, ethical fashion or eco-fashion utilizes organic fibers in order to eliminate the use of toxic chemicals.  Read more here. Cotton is particularly controversial as it requires huge amounts of water and pesticide to yield successful growth.

b.  Alternative fibers are also used such as bamboo, hemp, linen, nettle, and sustainable manmade textiles like Tencel and Modal.  Detailed descriptions are available here.

c. Recycled fibers include the re-use of textiles, upcycling and buying vintage.  I recently featured an awesome designer out of the UK, who was featured in Estethica during London Fashion week, on my blog.  Lu Flux is a great example of ethical fashion that uses salvaged textiles.

3.  The last important element of Ethical Fashion is applicable to all products that seek to mitigate social and environmental harm; great DESIGN.

a. Great design encourages durability, timelessness, quality, and discourages needless consumption of fast, cheap fashion–one of the main contributors to waste, environmental damage, and poor labor practices in the fashion industry.

Thoughts to consider:

1. The U.K. has a ton of resources for ethical fashion and a whole lot more government support.  The U.S. should ramp up efforts to encourage ethical fashion research and support for designers and entrepreneurs.  Capitalizing on Philadelphia’s historic position as the manufacturing town of yore, how can Philadelphia become more involved in this burgeoning trend?

2.  The debate: With this “trend” of sustainable living, which encourages less consumption, does it ultimately work with fashion, a market driven by consumable, ostentatious, rapid in/out change? How will fashion evolve?

a.  The U.K.-based sustainable development think tank, Forum of the Future, recently partnered with Levi Strauss & Co. on a scenario program that investigates what fashion will look like in 2025.  It’s super fascinating and I will present more detailed coverage on my blog shortly.