With the opening of shopping centers, impulsive shopping has returned to the routine: we are surrounded by obsessive advertising that encourages us to make purchases. However, according to the Clean Clothes Campaign, three out of five fast fashion items end up in the trash. Landfills are cluttered with disposable plastic and garbage, and unused clothing is found even more frequently. The world’s obsession with fast fashion is leading it down a dangerous path of destruction, and the principles of sustainable fashion can help nature.
The Rule of Three Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Fast fashion items are often made from cheap and toxic materials that damage the environment both during production and after a short time. Remember how many casual T-shirts you stopped liking right after you bought them? Conscious consumption and the rule of three Rs will help in this situation: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
It’s simple: cut back on purchases, reuse items, and recycle items you no longer wear. This is how you can gradually start taking care of nature and reduce your consumption.
Reduce, or Why Slow Down
How often do you think if you really need a 5th jacket for the season and should you buy trendy but uncomfortable shoes? Answering questions like this honestly is the first thing we can do to make an informed shopping experience. Every season, new fashion trends and an obsessive desire to update the wardrobe appear, but you need to remember that new items quickly lose their relevance.
Fashion is cyclical: trendy things can often be found in the closet of a mother or grandmother, and fashion lovers from all over the world are chasing vintage accessories and clothes. This approach is not only safe for the environment, but also helps to save money.
If you do decide to make a purchase, do not rush. Try it on, take a photo, go home and think about how it fits into your wardrobe. Stylists advise you to think in advance what components your wardrobe is missing, find references of clothes that you like, and only then go shopping. These simple steps can help you avoid impulse buying.
Conscious consumption is not only about sustainability of materials, but also of values. Be responsible when choosing a manufacturer: pay attention to the principles that the company adheres to, its attitude towards employees and consumers. Business should also adhere to the rules of reducing the resources used. This requires a new approach to production – a transition to a circular economy. This minimizes waste by reusing and recovering resources. For example, at Lenovo, we use a self-locking element packaging design, which saves 19.5 thousand kilometers of adhesive tape annually.
This amount of duct tape is enough to reach the International Space Station 50 times and back. Also back in 2008, Lenovo began using packaging material that is fully recyclable, and in some countries, consumers may return packaging for reuse. All of these measures create a closed loop that conserves resources and reduces waste. According to a study by the European Commission, following the principles of a circular economy will save European industry up to 600 billion euros per year, minimize greenhouse gas emissions and reduce materials used by 17-24%. Such measures are being introduced at the level of companies and states, but consumers can and should take steps towards conscious cyclical consumption.
Reuse, or Why it is important to develop sustainable creativity
Before you say goodbye to a thing, make sure its useful life cycle is over. Perhaps she can still serve you. You can approach this question creatively: try to combine things in a new way, add an interesting detail or redo. Alternatively, it can be put aside in the most inconspicuous corner of the cabinet or hidden in a box, and after a while you can get it again: it is possible that by that time it will become relevant again.
If you are sure that the item will no longer be useful, extend its life cycle. The option to simply take it out of the house to a landfill is not suitable: by putting things in order in the closet, do not create a mess on the planet. A popular trend is to alter old jackets into a skirt or create completely new wardrobe items by stitching 2 different items. For example, an old T-shirt can be transformed in a fashionable tie-dye technique, and boring jeans will make wonderful bicycles. The main thing is to be creative.
How Recycle Can Help Create New Trends
Fast fashion pollutes the environment at all stages of production. Things from the mass market are washed and painted a lot: laundry, solvents and dyes account for a fifth of industrial water pollution. To reduce the production footprint, fashion brands increasingly recycle old clothing. Although so far these are only separate lines of large brands or niche manufacturers, the trend is rapidly developing.
