The fashion industry generates over $1 trillion in revenue annually but also contributes significantly to environmental problems. Fast fashion has led consumers to dispose of clothes after only a few wears, flooding landfills with over 1 million tons of textiles annually in the UK alone. Cotton and polyester production uses massive amounts of water and chemicals. Alternatives like hemp, linen and pineapple offer more sustainable options. Emerging technologies around catalytic clothing, 3D printing and wearable tech point to more eco-friendly futures for the fashion industry.

1. Christian Smith

2. Outline
The State of Fashion
Fashion and the Environment
The way Forward

3. We only have one…

4. The state of fashion
Global fashion and luxury sector generated revenues of
$1.334.1 billion in 2008
UK fashion industry directly contributed some £21billion
to the UK economy in 2009 and some £16billion
through other industries
In the UK, it employees nearly a million people and is
the 15th largest industry alongside food and beverages
Between 2002 and 2006, there was an increase of 33%
in the amount of clothing bought

5. Fast Fashion
“…the culture of "fast fashion" encourages consumers
to dispose of clothes which have only been worn a few
times in favour of new, cheap garments which
themselves will also go out of fashion and be discarded
within a matter of months.”
(Select Committee on Science and Technology, 2008)

6. More visits, more sales
Topshop and Esprit now restocking their stores with
new products every four to six weeks
Zara, new stock enters as often as twice a week while
some fashion houses may offer as many as 18
collections a year
Inditex - Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka,
Stradivarius, Oyosho, Uterqüe and Zara Home

7. The waste
average person goes
through about 35kg of
textiles a year, most of
which is clothing and is
thrown away within a
year of purchase
in 2005 this resulted in 1.2
million tonnes of clothing
going to landfill

8. Under Pressure
rise of the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China)
from mere producer and supplier countries
rise in oil prices and unrest in the Middle East has made it
more problematic to transport goods around the world
has also increased the price of oil based materials on which the
industry has a remarkable reliance beyond transportation
costs
polyester and nylon
women’s tights, zips, flip flops, fake fur and sneakers
viscose is a plant based material made mainly from wood
pulp but the high water use combined with the emissions
from the chemical processes needed to dissolve the
cellulose and create the filaments make it an equally
damaging material

9. A very Thirsty industry
the textile industry is the third most water intensive industry
in the world
the cotton industry evaporates 210 billion cubic meters of
water while at the same time polluting 50billion cubic litres
This figure represents 3.5% of global water usage for crop
production
60kg of water is used to create a cotton t-shirt, from
cultivation of cotton through to production
An additional 45kg is discharged as waste per kg of output
Does not take into account the use of water once owned by
the consumer.

10. The aral Sea
Aral sea now just 15% of its
original size
loss of water also affects the
livelihoods of all those using
the sea, which was at one
time home to 24 native
species of fish providing
40,000 tonnes of fish a year
surrounding biodiversity
severely damaged with only
an estimated 15-20% of the
Tugai Forests remaining –
home 29 plants species
endemic to central Asia

11. Aral Sea now(ish)

12. A pair of jeans and a shirt
Jeans Shirt
1 kg of final cotton textile, one
requires 11,000 litres of water
therefore 2700 litres for 1 cotton
shirt.
45% is irrigation water consumed
(evaporated) by the cotton plant
41% is rainwater evaporated from
the cotton field during the
growing period
14% is water required to dilute the
wastewater flows that result from
the use of fertilisers in the field
and the use of chemicals in the
textile industry

13. This is where we are!

14. Alternatives/Diversification
Flax - The plant from which cellulose linen fiber is obtained. Linen
is used in apparel, accessories, draperies, upholstery, tablecloths,
and towels.
Nettle - This plant grows in almost all types of soils and it requires
very little fertilization because the minerals are not leached out of
the ground. Can be more finely woven than cotton and can have
the gloss of silk. The fiber is hollow and this makes it possible for
nettle fabric to breathe and be insulating at the same time
Lenpur - novel textile fiber from a renewable resource: cellulose
carefully selected from the branches of special trees. main
differences in Lenpur compared to other cellulose fibers is its
softness, its absorption capacity, its ability to release dampness
(as a yarn or fabric), its deodorant properties, and its absorption
characteristics

15. Alternatives/Diversification
Milk - liquid milk is dried and its proteins extracted. The separated
proteins are then dissolved in a chemical solution and placed into a
machine that essentially whirls the fibers together. The fibers can then
be spun into yarn and woven into fabric. Milk fabric holds dye, is
breathable and it captures the moisture to make skin tender and
smooth like after taking a milk bath.
Banana - The raw materials come from the stem that farmers leave in
the garden after a banana harvest. The tree stalks and leaves are
removed and processed into a pliable fibre. Different layers of the stem
yield fibers for specific uses: the outer layer's fibers are generally used
for tablecloths while the third layer makes the finest, silkiest fabric,
suitable for kimonos and saris.
Fish Skin - Fish skin is regarded as industrial waste: after it’s separated
from the filet for consumption, it normally gets thrown out. But now the
skins are dried, bleached and eventually turned into leather. Fish skin is
extremely versatile—it’s lightweight, warm, durable, thinner and softer
(yet stronger!) than cow and goat skin.

16. Alternatives/Diversification
Flax - The plant from which cellulose linen fiber is obtained. Linen is used
in apparel, accessories, draperies, upholstery, tablecloths, and towels.
Lyocell/Tencel - is naturally derived from cellulose which is extracted
from managed trees. It is one of the softest and most elegant fibers
available.
Hemp - A long and very strong ‘base’ fiber, hemp fiber has been used for
thousands of years to manufacture clothing. Its rapid growing qualities
and resistance to most pests make it an ideal organic crop. Hemp has
natural anti-mildew, UV protection and thermodynamic as well as
hypoallergenic properties.
Pineapple - Pineapple fiber or Piña is a strong white or creamy cobweb-
like fiber drawn from tall leaves of an indigenous pineapple plant. The
fiber is hand stripped from the leaves in lengths of about 18 inches to 3
feet, sun-bleached, hand knotted and spun. As piña fiber recovery is only
about 1%, it can take six months to gather enough fiber to produce two
pounds of spun piña.

17. Alternatives/Diversification
Bamboo - Bamboo is the fastest growing wooden plant in the
world; it grows in many different countries and climates. Its quick
growth (up to 3-4 feet a day) and its resistance to bugs and
sickness make it an ideal eco crop. However, there is a lot of
debate on whether the processing of the bamboo plant into
fabric is truly sustainable. Bamboo fabric is made of 100% bamboo
pulp fiber. The fabric is naturally antibacterial and eco-friendly. It
breathes easier, is cooler than cotton in warm weather and has
been said to feel like a cross between cashmere and silk.
Soy - An eco-friendly fabric made from a by-product of soybean oil
production. It’s a sustainable textile fiber made from renewable
and biodegradable resources. It’s part of an effort to move
consumers away from petrochemical textile products and turn
waste into useful products.

18. Blue sky thinking
Catalytic Clothing - explores
how textiles can improve
ambient quality and came up
with the world’s first air-
purifying dress,

19. And jeans

20. Wearable Technology

21. 3D Printing

24. A message from kate moss

25. Thank You
Contact:
christian@inclusi.co
Website:
www.inclusi.co