How to make a difference in fashion?

October 2014Nicola Millson

Falmouth University

Agenda

• Understand the landscape – So what?• Useful creativity techniques - How do we think

differently? • Mega challenges – How does this all apply?• Reflection – Now what?

Challenge 1: What makes these garments special?

Patagonia

• We measured the environmental impacts of selected articles of clothing and published them on The Footprint Chronicles®.

• We worked with an outside auditor and an in-house corporate responsibility specialist to establish the working conditions and pay for every person who sews a Patagonia garment.

• We learned how to make fleece jackets from recycled plastic bottles and then how to make fleece jackets from fleece jackets.

• We examined our internal use of paper in catalogues, the sources of our electricity, the amount of oil we consumed driving to work.

• We support employees with medical insurance, maternity and paternity leave, subsidized child-care and paid internships with non profit environmental groups.

• We gave one percent of sales to grassroots activists as part of our effort to balance the impact we have on natural systems – and to protect the world on which our business, employees, and customers rely.

• Addressing the modern challenge of growth and consumption. “Don’t Buy This Jacket.”

Rapanui

• The business aims to make a genuine contribution to sustainability. Rapanui’s secret formula is in a question: “What if David Bowie was an eco warrior?” After all, Bowie managed to convince millions of men to dye their hair, put on makeup and dress themselves in high heels and tight trousers, It happened. That shows the power of fashion, its ability to change lifestyle, behaviour and buying actions. Rapanui plans to use the same secret ingredient, the power of cool, to do some good.

• At Rapanui we design and make casualwear in line with the latest trends, but from more sustainable materials. We use ethically accredited factories that are powered by wind and solar energy - and by using cutting edge 'eco-textiles' Rapanui creates products that have a unique natural softness and feel when worn. The result is clothing that looks great, feels great and improves the world we live in.

• Whilst the organic, ethical and low carbon approach to our supply chain is important to us, our real contribution to sustainability has come from our work towards traceability - basically making new ways to help consumers find out where clothing comes from, how it is made, and therefore starting conversations between shoppers, brands and their suppliers. Using our trace mapping tool, at Rapanui you can find out exactly where our products come from and how they were made: From the seed being sewn, picked, spun and transported: It is traceability from seed to shop.

• We also realise that not everyone has time to trace the origins of every product they buy, so Rapanui is also working with UK MEPs to develop a potentially industry-changing eco labelling system to summarise the detailed and often confusing information on clothes packaging, and to make it easy for consumers to shop quickly with a conscience. This ability to make a quick informed choice is something missing from, but entirely compatible with, the high street. It’s fast, easy and free – and it means that consumer buying power works with sustainability. This work has gained national recognition in the press and at awards ceremonies.

“Fashion is like no other medium, in that you literally dress yourself in what you believe in.

Rapanui gives people a choice to vote with their wallet for ethical fashion. We want to use the power of fashion to make eco cool, and design

traceable, transparent products that let you shop quickly with a conscience.”

Elvis and Kresse

• What can we do to prove value, change perception, and respect these resources?

• We must transform it, make it desirable or useful in and of itself; something you would want even if it were not recycled, even without the ethics.

• We dream of a time without landfill, when everything is recycled or composted. Between now and then we know there are far too many incredible materials that will either languish under ground or suffer the indignity of incineration; when that happens we lose, we lose quality, narrative, and the opportunity to do something great. So we intercede, choosing story laden materials of incredible character, and do everything we can to ensure their second life is as long as possible.

Who cares? Why do we need to make a difference?

So what's wrong with fashion, anyway?

What can be done?

What is being done?

New Materials New Business Models New Mindsets

New Design New Social Consciousness New Consumerism

Puma Rice Husks

Fashion Rentals

From second hand to vintage

Ze o ze modular shoes

Recycled and special employment

Built to last

Where do business and sustainability

meet?

Business Model Canvas

Value Chain

DesignSource

Produce

DistributeRetail

Consume

End of life

Design

Source

Produce

Distribute

Retail

Consume

End of life

Challenge 2: Arrange your product

heros against one of these two frameworks:

What is missing?What else could be done?

What are the limitations of each framework?

Where is the biggest impact?

Systems Change

• Numbers: Use less chemicals• The size of buffers: Only produce where there is lots of

water• Infrastructure: Divert polluted water to a cleaning plant• Length of delays: Allow time for lake to recover from

pollution• Information flow: Measure amount of pollution• Rules of the system: Incentives, punishment, constraints• Power to add, change, evolve, or self-organize system

structure: New collaborations• Goal of the system: Get rid of dye vs protect the lake • Mindset: Business is more important that nature• Transcend paradigms: Natural fabrics

*Example: Releasing chemical dyes into the lake

Challenge 3: Arrange any 6

ideas in order of impact

Examples

• System: Swishing, Re-use, Re-cycling, Up-cycling, Closed loop• Organisation: Fashion revolution, Ethical Fashion Forum, Fair

Trade, Fashion Future Awards• Measures: Materials Sustainability Index• Process: Transparency, less washing, plusminusnoll (no pre-

production), people tree, who made my pants• Materials: Organic, chemicals, catalytic clothing• Business Models: Mud Jeans• Mind-sets: Look behind the label, Who made your clothes,

London Fashion Week, Longevity (Stewart and Brown)• Paradigm: Don’t buy this jacket, Viviene Westwood – law against

ecocide, reduce mass production

How do we think differently?

4 creativity techniquesSteal• Food packaging – potato starch• Printer /car assembly - modular

Trends• Wearable technology – powerful

clothing• 3d printing – less waste• Transparency – clear relationships• Natural fibres

Look backwards• Nettles used – natural fabrics• No zips - dematerialisation

Think like nature• Shark skin• Cradle to cradle• Longevity

Think like Nature

Closed loop supply chain

Cradle to cradle design

Renewable materials

No toxins

Collaborative models

Efficiencies built in

Mega-challenges!

Challenge1: • A delivery company is getting rid of 10 000 uniforms to landfill. How

could you divert this waste and create something valuable?

Challenge 2: • I’ve been invited to present at the global eco-fashion awards. I need a

dress. Please can you create one with consideration to the environmental and social impact it may have throughout its total life span

Challenge 3: • You have been appointed to reform the fashion industry in the UK to

be more sustainable – what would you do?

10 minute presentation

• Evaluate on: – Holistic view of sustainability– Use of four creativity techniques– Impact

Reflections

• What did you find most interesting? • Where was your thinking challenged?• What have you learnt?• What will you do differently?