Players Part 2

The second group contributing to Fashion's Environmental Footprint is Business. Depending on where they operate, in what area and their business structure, they may or may not have Corporate Social Responsibility Policies or CSR. As we learned last week, there are very few limits set forth by International governing bodies, so we are relying on these businesses to do the right thing.

There are some problems with this. First, a great deal of textile dying is done in developing countries where they often do not have the money or technology to act in a green manner. This results in direct toxic dumping to the water supply. Often, these countries use coal for power adding to the pollution.

China is a primary example, producing more than a quarter of the world's textiles and clothing. As we are learning with the Beijing Olympics, China boasts 16 out of the 20 most polluted cities in the world. 750,000 people die each year as a result of pollution in China.
To maintain production, China is opening two new coal fired power stations every week. As China races to compete and beat the West on their rise to economic power, CSR is not even on their radar.

Looking at developed countries we run into the "Corporation". This lovely animal was created in the early 20th century, allowing a business to be viewed as an individual with all individual rights attached. Sounds great but we have now created big businesses protected like individuals that have no conscience. They are beholden to making a profit for their stock holders at any cost. You may remember the flurry of images in the 90's of children chained to sewing machines in under-developed countries. Nike got a lot of bad press for this as did Kathi Lee Gifford, who was satirized by South Park.

There are certainly companies that have and follow CSR policies. One example that contributes greatly to Fashion's Environmental Footprint problems as a fast fashion retailer is H&M. H&M has a comprehensive series of CSR policies that cover Labor conditions, Organic Cotton, Eco-Labeling, Carbon Emission reduction and Sustainability indexes. They review their policies and efforts on a continual basis and provide transparency to consumers by posting their efforts on their public website and providing complete information to all interested parties in pdf format.

•Environmental Sustainability Index ESI preceded EPI and was measured from 1999-2005.
•Environmental Performance Index EPI quantifies the environmental policies of a country.
•Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes track the financial performance of companies following environmental policies.

While it would be virtually impossible to reduce Fashion's Environmental Footprint to zero, there are certainly opportunities in the supply chain for each business to do reduce their damage. We'll investigate the challenges and opportunities over the following weeks, months and years.

What can you do? Do some research. Check out the CSR policies of your favorite brands and support those brands that are working to reduce their environmental impact.

Till next week--

And so we begin

Fashion production has had a negative effect on the environment since the beginning. Dye and other industry run offs have ruined rivers and water supplies the world over for a start. Back in the day, Man may have not known the damage He was doing, but certainly we've known for most of my lifetime and have done little to change it.

To begin to understand the issues and think about the solutions it is important to understand the key players on the dance card today. A decision made by one player may very well effect another, so it is important to understand the interaction between the 3 to find solutions.

Let's address the first player this week: National Government & International Agreements as they pertain to the development of International Social Responsibility. Okay, I hear you screaming. But step back, take a breath and just read the VERY brief summary below.

1988 ~ IPCC - UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (1988) – This is a scientific group brought together to evaluate the risk of climate change caused by human activity. Three areas of concern are: human-induced climate change, the impacts of human-induced climate change, and options for adaptation and mitigation. These are the areas this blog will focus on. We, as individuals can certainly affect change here.

1992 ~ Earth Summit - agreement on voluntary policies. Issues included investigating: patterns of production (especially toxic components); alternative (non-fossil fuel) energy sources; expanding public transportation; scarcity of water. This summit laid the ground work for the Kyoto protocol of 1997.

1994 ~ End of quotas - Multi-fiber Arrangement (MFA) 1974-1994 leading to Agreement on Textile and Clothing (ATC)1995-31 December 2004. The MFA was adopted to limit the amount of textiles and clothing developing countries could export to developed countries thereby allowing the developed countries to adjust to increasing imports. There are all sorts of anecdotes in the Fashion industry about these quotas and I have worked for companies that found creative ways to get around them. One of the most common was to have labels with a new country of origin (with more quota available) sewn into the garments sitting at customs. Unethical you say? We'll discuss labeling in a later post. Stay tuned to find out more.

1995 ~ World Trade Organization (WTO) became the governing body for textiles and clothing. They gradually phased out the quota system as of January 1, 2005. That year, China's exports to the west increased by 100% or more. The US and EU responded by citing China's WTO accession agreement which limits growth to 7.5%/year until 2008.

1997 ~ Kyoto Protocol – Adopted in December 1997 and put into action in February 2005 the objective is to reduce greenhouse gases to prevent climate change. Limited to developed countries, some are charged with specific reductions while others are charged to monitor and report. This agreement is highly controversial and the US has not ratified it.

2007~ IPCC - UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (1988) publishes a three volume report on their findings - 1. The Physical Science Basis, 2. Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, and 3. Mitigation of Climate Change. You can review the entire document here.

2007~ UN climate talks held in Indonesia (December).

So you are one tiny person in the great big world. What can you do?

• Get the facts and educate your friends and families.
  
• Find out what your local, state and national government reps are doing about this and spread the word.
  
• Contact them to get your voice heard.
  
• Review the Presidential Candidate's position papers on the environment and cast your vote accordingly.
  

Government and International Policy can be overwhelming. Do your best to affect change in this area. I'll bring you lots of tips and tricks as we move forward to individually reduce your Fashion Footprint. Additions, corrections and comments are welcome. Get active and participate in the discussion. Till next week.

Welcome

Welcome to How Green Is Your Closet? a multiple media blog investigating Fashion's Environmental Footprint. Weekly posts, complete with tips for keeping your closet a lean, green machine every Tuesday by 10:30AM.