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The re:wear glossary
This glossary is a non-exhaustive, open-source reference list for re:wear @ The Fashion Pulpit, a new podcast series by The Fashion Pulpit.
re:wear believes that the use of language in relation to fashion and wear is too often hyper-focused on “production” and “consumption”, resulting in a passive relationship between the wearer and their clothes.
This glossary hopes to reconfigure the way we think about clothing and consumption, and inspire a new language for the wearing of clothes.
This running list is accessible to all and will be updated each time an episode is uploaded. Sources of definitions are specified and linked accordingly.
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TermEp #DefinitionElaborationSource
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The AnthropoceneAccording to Rebecca Tamas, the Anthropocene is defined as the start of a period of time where human action and exploitation resulted in the material change of the environment.In Strangers: Essays on the Human and Nonhuman, Tamas states that the Anthropocene only shows the visible appearance of systems of inequality that have existed throughout history.

Some examples are (Tamas, 2020):
Growth of Western economic power through the exploitation of the Atlantic slave trade
The violence of colonial oppression
The viciousness of global patriarchy and female silencing
The abuse of natural resources by industrialists and landlords

We should ask: How does the state of Anthropocene relate back to the fashion system?
On Watermelon, Strangers: Essays on the Human and Nonhuman (2020), Rebecca Tamas
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Biomaterials3‘Biomaterial’ is a term used to indicate materials that have non-specific biological association.Biofabricate X Fashion For Good: Understanding "Bio" Material Innovations: a primer for the fashion industry" Report (2020)

Access here: https://fashionforgood.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Understanding-Bio-Material-Innovations-Report.pdf
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Biofabricated Materials3Biofabricated materials are produced by living cells (e.g. mammalian) and microorganisms such as bacteria, yeast and mycelium.Examples of biofabricated materials would include fermented biosynthetic & biofabricated ingredients and bioassembled materials as below.

Biosynthetic:
Biosynthetics are synthetic polymer materials comprised, in whole or in part, of bio-derived compounds. These compounds can either be made with an input of biological origin (biomass), and/or where the process is performed by a living microorganism.
Examples include: the fermentation (of sugars, GHGs etc.) or the catalytic conversion of biomass to create precursor chemicals for synthetic polymers such as nylons, polyesters and polyurethanes.

Biofabricated ingredients:
Biofabricated ingredients are building blocks produced by living living cells and microorganisms e.g. complex proteins like silk or collagen. They need further mechanical or chemical processing in order to make a macroscale material structure.
Examples include: fermented recombinant silk which then has to be spun into a fiber, or processed to form a sheet material.

Bioassembled:
A bioassembled material is a macroscale structure that has been grown directly by living microorganisms such as mycelium or bacteria.
Examples include: mycelium or microbial cellulose leather alternatives.
Biofabricate X Fashion For Good: Understanding "Bio" Material Innovations: a primer for the fashion industry" Report (2020)

Access here: https://fashionforgood.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Understanding-Bio-Material-Innovations-Report.pdf
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Circular FashionAs opposed to the traditional; ‘take-make-use-dispose’ model, circular fashion aims to keep materials, products and resources in use for as long as possible.

The goal is making sure that no new resources are extracted to make new clothing.
However, we have to be extra cautious with this term (like sustainability) as the concept is baked with assumptions about the resource-saving benefits of the circular design process. Very often, “circular fashion/economy” become buzz phrases for fashion companies to give themselves a “halo of sustainability” (Fast Company, 2021), without responsibly following through with the concept. Circular fashion strategies (e.g. rental and resale) have yet to be backed with substantial data and analysis to prove that they are less resource intensive.

Simply put, it shouldn’t be regarded as the only solution in building a more responsible fashion system - a radical culture shift is equally, if not more, crucial.
Adapted from The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with Centre for Sustainable Fashion (CSF) https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/circular-economy

New Standard Institute @nsifashion2030
https://www.instagram.com/p/CQvrpZ7N88y/

Academic paper (open access) https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/abfac3/meta

Renting clothing is worse for the planet than just throwing it away, study shows,
Fast Company article (2021)
https://tinyurl.com/fastcompanyrental
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Climate EmergencyThe declaration of the gravity of climate crisis and the imminent global consequences of human-made climate change.Urgent action is required to reduce or halt climate change and avoid potentially irreversible environmental damage.

Has to be followed by emergency response and radical system changes in the patterns of economic growth and culture of consumption.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/climate-emergency/climate-emergency
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Clothing wearersThis is all of us. Regardless of our level of interest in style and dress as forms of expression, everyone wears clothes and therefore inherently participates in the fashion system.

See also: definition of wear.
When we consider ourselves as wearers, rather than consumers, wear becomes a daily ritual for us to reclaim agency as decision-makers within the system.
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ConsumptionThe use of products and services in exchange for a financial transaction that generates profit for those who invested in their production and provision.To imagine a different system, we need to shift the perception of ourselves and each other from being exclusively identified as consumers to recognising that we are all users and contributors to society, culture & environment.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability#consumption
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Decolonising FashionActively decolonising fashion is being accountable for the intersections of race, class and gender, in geographical areas once colonised and left destabilised by colonial forces. To decolonise fashion is to recognise the structures of power imbalance that remain prevalent in the ways we demand a more sustainable fashion system. This means that the sustainable fashion narrative cannot be purely a consumer act - it has to interrogate where true agency lies (still with brands).

Sustainability can be easily co-opted by brand activism if narratives do not include the voices of marginalised communities, and demand for change in the way companies extract and exploit raw materials and labour. (Read more about #wokewashing here: https://www.ensemblemagazine.co.nz/articles/fashion-charity-and-activism)

Takeaway: Why is ‘voting with your dollar’ an inherently flawed and unfair argument when it comes to advocating for fashion sustainability?
The sustainable fashion movement has to take into account differences in socioeconomic backgrounds, access to disposable income, race and gender inequality, as active ways of unlearning colonial structures still prevalent in today’s fashion system.

Read more on What does decolonisation look like in practice: https://www.adimay.com/2020/09/decolonizing-fashion/

Read more on how colonisation continues to be embedded in fashion:
https://remake.world/stories/news/colonialism-in-fashion-brands-are-todays-colonial-masters/

Definition adapted from Aditi Mayer, sustainable fashion blogger, photojournalist and labour rights activist.

https://www.adimay.com
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Degrowth“Degrowth is a radical and egalitarian socioecological transformation project that aims to decolonise the social imaginary from the pursuit of endless growth.”“Degrowth seeks an equitable downscaling of throughput with the consequent guarantee of well-being (Mastini et al.). Its hypothesis is that GDP can decrease and, despite this, quality of life can improve.

Degrowth [also] rejects the idea that the deployment of renewable energy alone is sufficient to displace fossil fuels in energy production, given that, for instance, the discovery of oil as an energy source has not replaced coal.”
Bigger, More, Better, Faster: The Ecological Paradox of Digital Economies, Paz Peña for Branch Magazine
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DesignersPeople who imagine and realise ways to change what is, to what is possible.Designers are led by intention, via commitments, relationships, products and their businesses, to contribute to societal, cultural, environmental and economic prosperity.
Fashion as Sustainability in Action Proposal, Centre for Sustainable Fashion (CSF)
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Draping3The process of positioning and pinning fabric on a dress form to develop the structure of a garment design.https://www.designersnexus.com/fashion-design-industry-information/what-is-fashion-draping/
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EcosystemsA system of all living organisms within an area and the way in which they interact with their environment and with each other.The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF https://www.condenast.com/glossary/climate-emergency/ecosystem
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EquityThe concept of equity extends the values of equality by considering fairness in terms of outcomes. To strive for equity as allies and accomplices means to prioritise fighting for opportunities according to individual circumstances and needs. EXPLAIN IN DETAIL. Use examples and analogies?The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/equity
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Fast FashionA model of fashion production and consumption that relies on fast turnaround of products with low sales prices and rapid trend cycles.The speed of fast fashion leads to fast buying and discarding of pieces, cumulatively resulting in extremely high social and environmental costs.

According to a study done by the Changing Markets Foundation, the average consumer is buying 60% more clothing compared to 15 years ago, yet wearing each item of clothing half as long.

It is also the cause for other interconnecting social and environmental damage e.g. exploitation of garment workers and causing extensive damage to environments and habitats.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/f/fast-fashion

Fossil Fashion: The hidden reliance of fast fashion on fossil fuels, Changing Markets Foundation (2021)
https://changingmarkets.org/portfolio/fossil-fashion/
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Fibres, Fabrics and TextilesFibres include natural fibres that are agricultural products (e.g. cotton) or animal products (e.g. wool). Manufactured fibres are industrial products (e.g. polyester).

Fibres are then spun into yarns, which are woven or knitted into fabrics.

Textiles more commonly refer to the woven/knitted/crocheted material, whilst fabric refers to the piece of cloth used for clothes making.

Textile and fabric can be used synonymously.
Fibres and Materials: What is Fashion Made of?, Huantian Can in The Dangers of Fashion (2020) edited by Sara B. Marcketti, Elena E. Karpova
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Indigenous Wisdom
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IntersectionalityCoined by Kimberlé Crenshaw, intersectionality is a framework that allows us to see the different elements of our identity: whether that’s gender, race, socioeconomic background, religion, sexualityIntersectionality in fashion is about recognising that the oppression and exploitation of workers of the industry is more often rooted in the intersection of gender and race. Without a proper way to identify what occurs at the intersection of various identities, our systems fail to address blind spots that permit the perpetuation of injustice. Qai doesn’t understand

In practice, this means that a sustainable fashion system will never be fully realised until racial justice is achieved.
Video: The Urgency of Intersectionality (2016), Kimberlé Crenshaw
https://www.ted.com/talks/kimberle_crenshaw_the_urgency_of_intersectionality


Intersectional Environmentalist https://www.intersectionalenvironmentalist.com/about-ie
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Mainstream FashionOtherwise referred to as Big Fashion, is the term used to refer to the larger fashion industry. This includes retail companies and clothing brands that own the most market share of the industry.Mainstream fashion is responsible for most of the production, manufacture and distribution of clothing (usually, trendy and made very quickly) around the world.
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ManifestoActionable and tangible steps to realise a fashion utopia, a dream, for a better state of the world.To achieve this desired state of fashion is to acknowledge that the only effective way to change is systemically. However, it is crucial to know that individual resistance, action and anger is equally valuable to move the needle. Collaboration and cross-industry cooperation is key.

Read the Fashion Revolution manifesto here: https://www.fashionrevolution.org/manifesto/
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Material Thinking & MakingInstead of using words like “production” and “manufacture”, re:wear believes that material thinking and making represent the process of design with greater consideration and mindfulness.

See also: definition of Designers
Within materials thinking and making, there is a resurgence in considering use for overlooked material resources, resulting in new applications for otherwise unused leftovers and waste.Materials Education Agency, Ma-tt-er @ma_tt_er, https://tinyurl.com/matterdefinitions
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Material Sustainability & ResponsibilityIn terms of materials, sustainability is a method of using a resource in moderation in order to enable continual reuse, and refrain from damaging surrounding ecological and social landscapes.With regard to systems, to be sustainable is a measure of whether an action or process can indefinitely keep going.

Responsibility is a preferred term, as sustainability can often feel like it’s up to someone else. Responsibility feels a bit more personal and achievable but with the same principle as sustainability.
Materials Education Agency, Ma-tt-er @ma_tt_er, https://tinyurl.com/matterdefinitions
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Mending (or Repair)2Repair is a practice of clothing care where a worn, torn or otherwise damaged piece is restored to be used and enjoyed again.

This may include techniques such as darning, patching, reinforcing seams and panels with new material, or replacing missing or faulty components such as buttons or zips.
It can often be cheaper to buy a new piece than to repair an old one. However, keeping clothes in use for longer, while at the same time reducing our clothing consumption, is considered the most effective way of reducing the environmental impact of the fashion industry.

Re-education in repair skills and improved access to professional repair and alteration services are therefore among the current priorities in encouraging more sustainable ways of engaging with and enjoying fashion.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF https://www.condenast.com/glossary/r/repair
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Natural MaterialsThey fall under 2 large categories: cellulose- or plant-based (e.g. cotton, hemp, linen) and protein- or animal-based (e.g. wool, silk, leather, down).Material sustainability is therefore complex and always context-dependent. While they often tend to be labelled as the "good" and preferable alternative to synthetic materials, the social and environmental impacts of all materials vary in relation to where they come from and how they are produced. E.g. cotton requires large amounts of water and land use

Variables include: traceability of the supply chain, the selection of the right material for the right application, manufacturing processes, distribution, laundering and clothing care during use, and also how fashion products are disposed of at their end of life must all come into the equation.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF https://www.condenast.com/glossary/environmental-impacts-of-fashion/natural-materials-2
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Pattern Cutting3Pattern cutting in the fashion industry is the process of taking a design and making it into fabric. Before it is made into fabric, it is made into paper (2D).https://www.cfscreativefashionservices.com/post/what-is-pattern-cutting
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Pre-consumer textile wasteAny leftover materials derived from the production of clothing throughout the supply chainDivided into 2 types:
- Fabric waste: cutting-room-floor offcuts, end of rolls, damaged rolls of fabric, etc.
- Clothing waste: dead stock (unsold garments), damaged runs (clothing considered defective at production level), cancelled orders (leftover from extras that brands order to preempt a range from running out), etc.
Loved Clothes Last (2021), Orsola de Castro
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Post-consumer wasteClothing waste generated after consumers purchase fashion items e.g. used and worn clothing intended to be discarded

Also includes brand-new pieces of clothing bought, but have never been worn.
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Post-growth fashionPost-growth fashion is a new narrative of fashion that offers an alternative to the market-driven overconsumption by focusing instead on the agency and satisfaction that people draw from care and long-term use of familiar clothes.See also: Systems Change

Post-growth fashion values everyday, informal, and resourceful ways of engaging with clothes, where close connections between making, re-making and use enable richer experiences and more sustainable fashion futures.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/post-growth-economy
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Regenerative processes/
Regeneration
The term regenerative refers to the capability of ecosystems to self-regulate and self-maintain and so adapt to change and interference.Regenerative approaches are often combined with conservation and rehabilitation practices to improve the health of ecosystems.The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF https://www.condenast.com/glossary/climate-emergency/regenerative
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Repairability2The potential of fashion items to be easily repaired and maintained, ensuring they are kept in use for longer.This means that designers have to consider the possibility of repair in future use and find creative ways for the original design to ‘absorb’ potential repairs, without compromising the item’s aesthetic appeal.

This process will require more design time, as extra thought has to be injected into the design process. Alternatively, it could be enhanced with digital sketching and relevant tech facilitation.
Adapted from The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF ​​https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability#repairability
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Re-useEncourages long-lasting relationships with clothes through sustained active use and careful clothing care, including repairs and alterations that can give unused items a new lease of life.Wearers are able to draw deep satisfaction and pleasure from looking after old and familiar clothes.

Re-use is a form of resistance against the high turnover of fast fashion production.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/re-use
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SustainabilityIn a broad sense, it refers to the way of life in which human and natural systems co-exist in a balanced and non-destructive way that enables continuous prosperity and well-being for all.“Everything you make returns to the Earth as either food or poison.” - The Slow Factory Foundation (This is my preferred definition of the driving principle of sustainability)
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF https://www.condenast.com/glossary/climate-emergency/sustainability

The Slow Factory Foundation
https://slowfactory.foundation/
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Sustainable FashionBeyond being a marketing buzzword and symptom-treating solutions for billionaire-owned fashion companies, sustainable fashion is the improvement in the ways of thinking and practices of design, production, communication, wearing and enjoying fashion.

See also: definition of systems change.
The nature of sustainability isn’t new. It’s long been practised by indigenous communities, people and cultures of colour before the term entered mainstream conversations (mostly Western-centric).

Sustainable fashion has to challenge and question the status quo of mainstream fashion that still prioritises profit over social and environmental concerns. This is because fashion could never be sustainable as long as current systems remain dependent on resource-intensive business models and definitions of prosperity and economic growth that only benefits the top 1%.

Explain resource-intensive business models - large scale of impact and extraction of virgin materials and dependence on fossil fuels
Adapted from The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/systems-change
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SufficiencyThis concept recognises that the finite limits of the planet and the infinitely increasing rates of production and consumption of fashion are at odds.The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/sufficiency-2
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Synthetic MaterialsPolyester, nylon and acrylic are some of the most common synthetic materials found in our clothes.Polyester, for instance, is derived from the ‘cracking’ system, in which crude oil petroleum is treated through intensive heating and cooling. Synthetic fibres are responsible for shedding microfibres with every wash. Microfibres are particles of synthetic fibres, AKA plastic, that contribute to water pollution.

Learn more about the properties of synthetic v.s. natural materials here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajYztvzmpSg
Fashion Environment Change zine, Fashion Revolution Fanzine #003

Sustainable Material Guide // 04 Polyester, SupplyCompass
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Systems ChangeSystems change focuses on the root causes of problems, instead of investing time and resources in temporary fixes that can only treat symptoms.Right now, fashion too, urgently needs a system change. It is not simply enough to rely on fixing resource efficiency or switch to the use of sustainable materials, or by inventing new methods of textile recycling.

What we need is a fundamental change in fashion’s current business model of overproduction and exploitation of natural and human resources.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/systems-change
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Systems ThinkingSystems thinking turns our attention to the intricate relationships that comprise textiles, fashion and their engagement with sustainability. This is important since focusing on isolated issues, which has been the dominant way of addressing sustainability to date, has not succeeded in establishing future-embracing practices.Creative Resilience Thinking in Textiles and Fashion, Mathilda Tham from The Handbook of Textile Culture (2015) [This book is available for reference at the National Library.]
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The Fashion Industry & The Fashion SystemThe Fashion Industry is a maze of disconnected supply chains encompassing many other industries, from agriculture to communication.

The Fashion System is the interconnectedness of the impact of fashion, and the fashion industry, on its various stakeholders involved.
In other words, the system includes:
- Its many operations (production and distribution),
- The resources it draws upon,
- Stakeholders involved: Designers, Labourers, End-users, Media
Loved Clothes Last (2021), Orsola de Castro

Creative Resilience Thinking in Textiles and Fashion, Mathilda Tham from The Handbook of Textile Culture (2015)
[This book is available for reference at the National Library.]
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Textile RecyclingTextile recycling is often mistaken for reuse and upcycling. Whilst both are essential in promoting the longevity of a clothing’s lifecycle, textile recycling refers to the technical process of separating the different blends in waste garments to produce yarn. This yarn will then be referred to as ‘recycled (material)’.Recycling should be the last-case scenario for a garment. The amount of carbon emitted in the process depends highly on the blend of fabric.
E.g. Growing cotton doesn’t produce a lot of emissions, so recycling cotton may actually have a higher climate impact than simply harvesting cotton. However, synthetic fibers—like nylon and polyester—are made from oil and require a lot of emissions to produce. So it might make more sense to recycle these fabrics rather than extracting oil to create them from scratch. - Fast Company article

We can encourage companies (especially ones that have the financial capacity to invest in a thorough recycling system) to innovate on recycling techniques and efficiency, but we have to be aware that recycling cannot solve fashion’s over production and consumption issues.
Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale (2019), Adam Minter

Renting clothing is worse for the planet than just throwing it away, study shows, Fast Company article (2021)
https://tinyurl.com/fastcompanyrental
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The Fashion Supply Chain and Value ChainThe fashion supply chain comprises: organisations, individuals and technical processes involved in turning raw materials into finished products and delivering them to customers.

The value chain refers to a whole series of activities that take place from the point of fashion product design through to its delivery to customer and its end of life.
The supply chain is notoriously known for its lack of transparency and offshoring of manufacturing processes to countries with lower wages and cost of production, the call for a more transparent and accountable supply chain has entered mainstream conversations in recent years.

Supply chain puts emphasis on manufacturing and distribution, whilst value chain also includes processes such as design, marketing and services (e.g. customer service), that do not necessarily include the transformation of raw material into product, but still increase product value.
The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/s/supply-chain

https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability/value-chain
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Transparency1Transparency is a requirement for companies to take full responsibility for their entire supply chains and act on their accountability for the social and environmental practices at all stages of manufacturing of their products. Transparency is necessary, but not radical. It is the bare minimum required of large fashion corporations to hold themselves accountable for their production processes and business model.

Transparency is meaningless if not followed by an active, ongoing commitment to protect workers and the environment. This has to be accompanied by consequence-bearing regulations that punish continuous harmful socio-environmental practices.
Adapted from The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, Conde Nast in partnership with CSF
https://www.condenast.com/glossary/t/transparency
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UpcyclingA practical and creative way of turning cloth (or clothes) into new clothesThe intent + act of reworking unworn/old clothing antagonises mass production and consumption. Loved Clothes Last (2021), Orsola de Castro
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WearIt is the conscious act of dressing. It acknowledges that clothing does not solely exist in a bubble isolated from the world. The choice of wear is intertwined with economics, ecology, cultural and social capital, race and gender (+ many more issues).
See also: definition of clothing wearers.
Poet, activist and cultural strategist, Sonia Guiñansaca, mentioned in an interview with Elizabeth Suzann (now taken down), “I’m not asking for folks to politicise clothing; I’m letting you know that it is already political. The clothes many of us have access to speak to income inequality, the fast fashion industry, capitalism’s disregard for environmental and ecological justice, and exploitative labor practices.”Sonia Guiñansaca https://soniaguinansaca.com/
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Whole Systems Thinking/ApproachWhole systems thinking means not leaving anything behind.This means that every single part of the material system has to be considered and utilised to its full potential. A more holistic way of considering and applying a material, whereby each and every single component of the material is being harnessed, which in turn has an impact on society, policy, the economy and environment.Materials Education Agency, Ma-tt-er @ma_tt_er, https://tinyurl.com/matterdefinitions
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