How Learning About Fast Fashion Grew My Interest in Climate Change
Life remains the same until one day, something changes. Something sparks, and you find yourself passionate about something you didn’t know existed.
What I Learned About Fast Fashion From a Documentary
This was how I felt after watching The True Cost, a documentary covering the behind-the-scenes of a 2013 factory collapse in Bangladesh. I was always interested in fashion — from the influence of YouTubers to watching every episode of What Not To Wear. And, maybe it’s because I’ve always looked younger that I’ve realized how what I wear affects my confidence and how others perceive me.
In high school, I would pick out my outfit the night before, spending time on Pinterest trying to figure out what to wear, even though I had plenty of clothes. However, after graduating high school, I grew impatient with how long this process would take.
Photo by Hannah Morgan on Unsplash
The True Cost taught me about the overproduction of clothes and its impacts on the planet and people. It made me feel guilty that I had never thought about where my clothes came from. In an advanced technological world, I had always assumed machines made everything.
But rather than wallow in guilt, I’ve found hope in change and learned about the power in our purchases and the stories we share. Yes, much of the change that needs to happen is at a corporate level, but I don’t think that should detract us from our impact as individuals.
How to Learn More About Fast Fashion
As Fashion Revolution Week comes to an end, here are three ways you can get involved to continue to spur change:
Continue to educate yourself by watching documentaries, reading articles, and researching before purchasing something.
Donate to organizations like The Fashion Revolution or the Clean Clothes Campaign, which are working to end environmental exploitation and improve industry working conditions.
And lastly, but certainly not least, use your influence to bring light to this world of fast fashion. Don’t undermine your abilities to make an impact on those around you.
As I’ve spent the past 5+ years learning more about the industry, I also want to highlight the excessive greenwashing advertised, which adds to confusion when researching brands. For a while, I let my guilt get to me, and it became stressful as I hesitated to purchase anything without doing a massive amount of research or buying it secondhand.
What Can You Do to Make a Difference In Climate Change?
I recognize purchasing from smaller brands is often more expensive and that thrifting can be overwhelming, especially when searching for a specific item. Today, I try to support local and conscious brands, but the key is to, in general, consume less.
After learning about fast fashion, I began to see how every aspect of climate change and environmental injustice intertwine, encouraging me to think more about how my actions affect others.
This is part of how my climate story began, and I hope it inspires you to think about what yours might be. From fast fashion to big ag to ocean acidification, there are numerous topics to delve into.
If fashion is what you’re curious about, here are a few resources:
And if you haven’t joined the club yet, you can do that here: