" Sustainability challenges in the apparel industry: A call to Action"

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)

The (SDG) were adopted in 2015, marking both the end of the Millennium Goals and the advancement of international cooperation in the direction of sustainable development. Following the success of the MDGs and “failure” of treaties such as The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change UNFCCC UN and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UN CBD), the United Nations member states asked themselves:?

“‘Why are these treaties falling so far short?’, and they looked over their shoulders at the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). They knew that the MDGs were quite different. The Millennium Development Goals were not a multilateral treaty. They were a non-binding and non-legal, moral or aspirational commitment of the UN member states. They were addressed not mainly to #governments but to a public mobilization of interest and awareness in the fight against extreme poverty. They were also time-bound: 15 years, for the period 2000-2015.”?

By understanding that #sustainability requires holistic and inclusive approaches with specific, time-bound and quantifiable targets, such as “reducing the the maternal mortality rate during pregnancy and childbirth by three quarters, comparing the 2015 target year with the baseline of 1990” (Sachs, 2015), the SDGs have broadened the scope of responsibility (UN, 2015). The idea that sustainability is an interdependent phenomenon represents a significant shift. Therefore, rather than only applying to nations classified as "developing," the goals must be viewed as being interconnected and encompassing all nations. The expanded scope increased focus on #privatesector involvement. In actuality, consultations with #businesses & #organizations from civil society helped to legitimize the SDGs' inclusive stance and encouraged corporate participation. Accordingly, strategies for sustainability management must evolve if sustainability is to advance, and incorporating the #sdgs into current business strategies may result in the creation of new opportunities and values.?

The SDGs and sustainability challenges within the apparel industry

Every product has a life cycle that includes stages for the extraction of raw materials, manufacturing, distribution, usage, and disposal. The longevity of #textile products varies depending on their toughness and use, with applications ranging from apparel to industrial, hygienic, agro, and geotextiles .?

Preparing raw materials is the first step in the textile #supplychain. #natural fiber (from plants or animals) and "man-made" fiber (primarily derived from crude oil) are the two main sources for the production of fiber. Following the process of turning raw materials into fiber, yarn and fabric production, as well as the creation of clothing, come next. Additionally, there are numerous methods for producing various fiber types, yarn spinning systems, fabric, and apparel technologies. The finished product is then delivered to stores where it is sold to customers, who use it before having it disposed of as waste. It shows how lengthy the supply chains are. They are also very decentralized and globally distributed, making them particularly complex. Every #industry has a unique supply chain for its product #manufacturing process, and every link in the value chain is accountable for a variety of #environmental & #social effects. As a result, all stages have an impact.

SDG 5? “Gender equality”

The SDGs that are pertinent to their #sustainability work are also determined by the specific impacts of the #textile & #apparel sector. Although it is possible to argue that all goals are indirectly relevant because they are interconnected, if goals are appropriately directed, focused efforts may contribute to higher value creation for sustainable development. The common #sdgs reported on? are #sdg5 “gender equality”, #sdg6 “clean water and sanitation”, #sdg8 “decent work”, #sdg12 “responsible consumption and production” and #sdg13 “climate action”.

The #textile and #apparel industries have historically been the first to emerge in developing nations due to their low #startup costs and capitalization requirements, as well as the fact that production does not necessitate a highly skilled workforce. A cheap surplus labor force, particularly one of young and female workers, was produced by the #industrialization of developing economies, particularly those moving away from #agriculture . Many of these workers found employment in the textile and apparel industries. The historical definition still holds true today: industrial work in the textile and garment assembly industries gives rural women a pathway into the #formal economy. Additionally, gendered wage structures are still common, which stems from the idea that women's work is supplemental rather than valued and paid according to skill. The unpaid and undervalued work of household chores and child care has not changed with shifts from agriculture to industry. Even today, women frequently work two full days at factories and mills while also working two full days at home caring for children, doing laundry, and cooking. The introduction of new #technologies in the textile industry, where men are appointed to skilled work positions while women, particularly migrant women, are given deskilled sewing jobs like stitching seams, button holes, or sew on the buttons, further solidifies the gender division of labor and wages.

SDG 6 “Clean Water and Sanitation”

#cotton is the most common natural fiber made from plants. Because it is renewable, cotton may be a wise choice for a #raw material, but it uses a lot of water. A shirt or a pair of jeans require more than 10,000 liters of #water to produce. Most water is necessary to grow cotton, and the "wet processing" steps, such as printing, dyeing, washing, and fabric finishing, come in second. Next to agriculture, the textile and apparel sectors are thought to be the biggest users and polluters of #clean water. Human #health& #ecosystems are immediately and seriously threatened by water #pollution .??

“Uzbekistan, the world's sixth leading producer of cotton, is a prime example of how cotton can severely impact a region's environment”. In the 1950s, two main rivers were diverted from the Aral Sea to provide irrigation for cotton production. As an effect the water levels in the sea today are merely 10% of the levels in the 50’s. The sea has also become over-salinized and burdened with fertilizer and pesticides from the nearby fields affecting public health in the area.

Water security in areas that produce textiles is also impacted by the dying process for textiles. The textile industry is responsible for a significant portion of the problem of water pollution, with its use and discharge of hazardous #chemicals contributing to the chemical load in the river systems. "Due to the 100 textile factories that line its shores, the Citarum River in Indonesia is considered to be one of the world's most polluted rivers. Greenpeace claims that "the adverse health effects to the 5 million people living in the river basin and wildlife are alarming," as "68 percent of the industrial facilities on the Upper Citarum produce textiles". Land occupation to produce acacia used for surface application of dye onto fabric have further proven to contaminate #rivers of which local communities rely on for #drinkingwater and irrigation.?

SDG 8 “Decent Work”

Due to its labor-intensive nature and low fixed costs, the textile and apparel industry has been regarded as a starter industry for nations engaging in export-oriented industrialization and a catalyst for #national development. Low prices, high production volumes, and short lead times are hallmarks of the so-called #fastfashion business model, which poses significant sustainability challenges to the industry. The #laborstandards have remained remarkably static over time, despite the fact that apparel companies offer potential development vehicles by bringing technological advancements to local communities. and by offering paid employment opportunities, which for some is a step out of poverty. Wages, working hours, and working conditions can all be broken down into social issues; the latter two are frequently accompanied by unsafe and unhealthy working conditions. Given the characteristics of fast-fashion production systems which push for reduction of production cost margins, workers are not paid living wages and retailers have failed to enforce minimum labor standards in the workplaces.?

SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production

Regarding the apparel industry, responsible #consumption & #production is concerned with the effects of both upstream and downstream processes, specifically the use and end-of-life stages. The following inputs are needed over the course of a textile product's life cycle: direct land used to produce fibers, indirect land used to build production- and waste management facilities, as well as landfills; freshwater for processing and cooling; energy from renewable and non-renewable sources for production, transportation, and washing; pesticides, fertilizers, and other chemicals; packaging materials; and inventories for the up keep of machines.

As briefly mentioned above, producing all fibers requires enormous quantities of chemicals and water. According to the EJF, 16% of all #insecticides used worldwide are used on cotton, which accounts for 2,5% of all cultivated land in the world. This is more than any other significant single crop has been used .However, wet processing is where the majority of chemicals are used in the production of textiles.?

"200 tons of water are used by textile dyeing and finishing facilities for every metric ton of textiles produced". Additional #energy from both #renewable and non-renewable sources is needed for cotton production. For organic and conventional cotton, different quantities and types of resources are required. In terms of biodiversity, removing intensive #fertilizers , reducing water consumption and contamination, maintaining soil quality, and requiring less energy, organic cotton is thought to be superior to conventional cotton. While not as water and energy intensive in the use phase, synthetic man-made fibers come from non-renewable resources. Additionally, they generate higher levels of greenhouse gases during the manufacturing stage, use more energy during the production stage, and have problems with waste management.?

Responsible consumption of apparel emphasizes the importance of reducing impact during the use and disposal phases. Irrespective of the type of textile, the use phase corresponds to 80% of the #carbonfootprint , while consumption of water, energy, and chemicals will vary depending upon factors such as product type, its fiber content and end-use Impact from the disposal method is dependent on a number of factors, much like the use phase. The product is either reused, recycled, incinerated with or without energy recovery, or sent to a landfill when it reaches the end of its useful life. #consumerbehavior ultimately determines how #waste is disposed of, and each option has distinct positive and negative effects on the environment. The level of consumer awareness of problems related to the production, distribution, and consumption of clothing, therefore, influences responsible consumer behavior.

SDG 13 “Climate Action”

The first test of the SDGs came when the world gathered in Paris at COP21. “SDG 13 commits all the world’s governments to combat and curb human-induced climate change. Consistent with that commitment, the same governments adopted the Paris Climate Agreement establishing the central objective of keeping global warming to well below 2°C”.?

The production of #chemical fibers consumes 0.8% of the world's annual crude oil production and requires energy in all stages of production, which results in high levels of #greenhousegas emissions even though the transportation and manufacturing sectors of the apparel industry have the most obvious climate change-related effects. The impact of climate change is also readily apparent because deforestation reduces #carbon sequestration. Viscose and rayon, two of the most popular textiles, have a big impact on the destruction of tropical forests in South Africa and Indonesia in favor of monoculture eucalyptus and acacia plantations. Then, according to Morgan (2015), "these plantations are logged and subjected to highly toxic chemical processing to create a substance known as dissolving pulp; the pulp is processed into thread, which is dyed and woven into fabric used for clothing worldwide." Deforestation causes climate change, making Indonesia one of the top emitters of greenhouse gases worldwide.

The only way to genuinely address #circularfashion , according to the sustainability hub Quantis' report on the environmental impact of the apparel industry, is to slow down the cycle of garment production and consumption. Fossil fuels also need to be phased out of all aspects of our clothing. The fashion industry's carbon footprint is equivalent to 10% of the global greenhouse gas emissions, or the footprint of the #europeanunion .?

Call To Action

#climatecrisis remains the most significant challenge for humanity. The aspirational target of the Paris Agreement, 1.5°C temperature increase over the pre-industrial era, is no longer achievable, and we know that even the current 1.3°C increase is not a level that we can live with prosperity. Textile and garment industry, which accounts for 10 per cent of total global carbon emissions according to UNEP-WCMC , has a leadership role to play to mitigate and redress.?

Resource utilisation and waste have become the next significant challenges. Textile industry has a massive waste problem. The vast used apparel dumps in the Atacama Desert in #chile or in beaches and rivers of Accra, #ghana tells the non-glamorous side of fashion.?

Though we speak about circularity, it’s a long way away. We simply cannot sustain this business model a lot longer.?

We must look into fibre consumption as well. We are stretching the limits of traditional #natural fibres, and the rapid scaling of #synthetic (or fossil fuel) fibres is not sustainable, especially looking at micro-plastic pollution they create. Shifting from virgin polyester to ‘recycled’ water #bottles sounds more sustainable than it actually is. We need true circularity to solve both our waste and fibre challenges. We also need to work on creating new types of #biofibres.?

The conversation about climate and circularity has crowded out other impacts such as water and chemicals. We are a thirsty industry, and are responsible for significant groundwater extraction, and pollution. We also use significant amount of chemicals from fibre stage to laundries. We must become better custodians of water – from extraction, purification before discharge, and also look at eliminating toxicity across the value chain.?

These may sound like insurmountable problems, and from the view of the current paradigm, they are. But they also represent a huge space for innovation! Our industry has not significantly evolved – say compared to transportation, IT or energy, and to solve the big environmental challenges we need a process of radical innovation. As the #fashion community, we must commit to reinvent how we do business.?

"Each and every one of us here today understands the complex and interlinked challenges before us. We share a steadfast commitment to fostering collective action, instigating change, and driving progress. So let's seize the opportunity before us to create a more responsible, equitable, and just industry. By harnessing our collective vision, problem-solving abilities, and collaborative spirit, I am confident in our capacity to have a significant impact. I believe we can because I witness it every day within the SAC community,"