Welcome to fashion greenwash 101..
By Dr Mark Liu
Video and audio versions of the text:
The sustainable fashion industry has a problem, it is not grounded in science and is therefore mostly “greenwash”. “Greenwash” is disinformation for fabricating a false environmentally responsible public image. Essentially it is any claim that cannot be backed up with evidence. But how do we verify this evidence? Using science, following scientific principles we can measure its impact. If sustainable fashion is not grounded in science, then it is “greenwash”.
The problem with sustainable fashion is that is grounded in philosophies that are vague and open to interpretation to anyone. Terms such as “sustainable”, “ethical” and “conscious” have no universally accepted definition. This allows companies to make them mean anything they want. On a practical level, it makes it difficult to measure the performance of companies, create meaningful goals, contracts or even laws without getting into a definition debate.
Key concepts that sustainable fashion uses to give themselves authority such as the “circular economy” are not based on science. The circular economy is the idea that we can create products and endlessly produce new ones from their waste. Unfortunately, the “circular economy” ignores the laws of physics and thermodynamics, creating an unrealistic vision of how recycling works in the real world. The circular economy is not a fully functioning scientific model that can track and measure the flow of materials, energy, and greenhouse gas emissions. It is more of a vague philosophy or metaphor that can be illustrated with brightly coloured diagrams. Entire fields of science debunk how the circular economy works, but the fields of design and business ignore this so they can sell greenwashed products and environmental consultancy.
The fashion industry combines many industries that use applied sciences. These include oil and agriculture which produces polyester and cotton. They use complex chemistry and material science to analyse the manufacturing, decomposition, and recycling of textiles. Global logistics networks track the data of energy and CO2 emissions of shipping clothing around the world. Individually, each industry requires great scientific and engineering expertise. Putting all these industries together should require super scientific expertise. Instead, sustainable fashion measures the fashion industry based on a vague philosophy, not a science, this is nonsensical!
In good conscience, I could not just stand by as we indoctrinate entire generations with a methodology that can only be used to greenwash. Science exists, it is just the design and the business industries that are reluctant to hear it. This reminded me of the time when I was trying to present my PhD research about the geometry of fashion patternmaking to a group of fashion academics. They complained that the mathematics and science used were too hard for fashion designers to understand. To test this idea, I taught the same material to a group of children, and they immediately started having fun making garments. If people in the fashion industry, media or universities are not willing to make systemic reform, I’m just going to teach this information to a new generation and anyone who is willing to listen.
There is a good reason to teach anyone who is interested. Fashion education is expensive, and it is not available to talented people who cannot afford it or choose a different career path. Fashion schools only take a small number of students and tend to choose the people with the same type of personality. Imagine harnessing the unutilised talent of all the people who never got to go to fashion school. Another reason why it is so important to teach everyone is that in reality, an accountant is going to run a fashion label, not a fashion design visionary. Reforming the fashion industry requires deep technical skills from scientists, engineers, lawyers, activists, artists, venture capitalists and politicians.
The people with seemingly boring bureaucratic jobs are the people who know how to get things done in the corporate world. It doesn’t matter if you are still in school, studying in university, working or retired. Anyone who cares about fashion and the environment can learn about the underlying science of how greenwash works. Meaningful activism is more than just waving a banner or posting on social media. It is about using your unique skills to make a difference and hopefully, Fashion is Science can inspire you to see what reforms you can make.
Together, let’s learn how fashion is science and stop the greenwash.