Let’s talk about fashion. Essential for clothing the human race. An instrument of self-expression and individuality. However, the textile industry - responsible for producing fashion - is one of the world’s most polluting industries. The 5th largest CO2 contributor according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Society's recent obsession with “fast fashion” is only accelerating the detrimental impacts on the environment. What’s fast fashion, you ask? Basically it’s what the large majority of us wears. Cheap clothing that seems to have made it’s way from the runway to the stores in the blink of an eye. It’s typically sold at one of these fine retailers: Forever 21, H&M, Zara, Tobi, Primark, etc. All leaders in fast fashion. As American’s we have increased the amount of clothing we buy by 60% just in the past ten years! It’s not because we’re spending more - it’s because the clothes we are buying are cheaper.

With that in mind here are some alarming numbers:

80 billion new, virgin garments of clothing are being made every year worldwide.

However, the world’s population is 7.4 billion. And over 80 percent of that population lives on under $10 a day. That means an overwhelming minority of the world partakes in massive over-consumption, contributing to massive amounts of pollution.

20 percent of the earth’s water pollution can be traced back to the textile industry. Even more shocking, a Ted Talk titled “A Wardrobe to Die For” sites that a single pair of jeans can use anywhere from 11,000 - 20,000 liters of water to produce. If you’ve heard the saying “Water is the next gold.” then the gravity of this should start to sink in.

As fashionista(o)s, it’s our job to question where our clothing comes from and what its impacts on the environment can be. THRIFT SHOPPING IS ALL THE RAGE. Not only do you get high quality items for crazy bargains, but you do not partake in the grossly overconsuming nature of fast fashion. If you choose not to thrift shop, it is just as important to put thought towards the new garments you purchase. It’s so paramount to make quality purchases on items that will last you longer amounts of time. Buying clothes that might very well fall apart after three washes only serves to contribute to the massive waste problem facing our planet.