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2023 was going to be the year fashion made progress in sustainability. In January, industry leaders predicted that we would witness brands make bigger strides in their relationship with nature, that emissions and circularity conversations would get serious and that internal priorities and hires would better position brands to meet their sustainability goals.
Not all of that came true.
What actually happened? We reflect on the major themes that emerged over the last 12 months, and where they may be taking us in the year ahead.
Legislation loomed large
One of the biggest shifts impacting the fashion industry is originating from outside players. The sector has a long history of being underregulated and overlooked by policymakers — but that’s changing. Lawmakers increasingly have their sights set on fashion or on setting standards that affect consumer industries across the board, including fashion, and advocates are more often than not calling on politicians who aren’t paying attention.
The EU is undoubtedly leading the way, from emerging due diligence requirements to a crackdown on fashion destroying unsold goods. There are ongoing efforts to establish an extended producer responsibility scheme for fashion, as well as to regulate microplastics, greenwashing and establish an ecodesign framework.
In the US, meanwhile, the Fashioning Accountability and Building Real Institutional Change (Fabric) Act was reintroduced in September, while California passed the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act to require corporations with over $1 billion in annual revenues and do business in the state, to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions. Also in California, its statewide fur ban, passed in 2019, went into effect this year, and the Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2023 (SB 707) proposed this year would establish extended producer responsibility (EPR) for in-state clothing and textiles.
Fossil fuels, including plastic, held steady — but also faced more pressure than ever
Pressure to shift away from fossil fuels is higher than ever, although whether that will translate to industry-wide reductions is a big question mark. Fashion showed up at COP28, but barely; meanwhile, it continues to rely on fossil fuels not only for its energy mix but also its heavy use of plastic — in materials, packaging, transportation, and agricultural practices, among others. (Critics point out that synthetic fibres such as polyester are a key growth driver for oil companies globally, as demand from other markets falls.)
Reducing the overall demand for materials is one solution: achieved by decreasing total production volumes, a key tenet of degrowth, which migrated (a little bit) from fringe conversations to the mainstream this year.
Replacing virgin materials, particularly synthetic ones, with next-gen alternatives is another path to progress. From Bolt Threads halting production of Mylo to Circ’s debut with Zara, and then Mara Hoffman and Mycoworks commercialising production, this year offered mixed results on the next-gen materials front.
Gucci and Balenciaga owner Kering pledged to target absolute emissions reduction instead of emissions intensity — a vital distinction for the fight against climate change. Although it’s unclear how the company will achieve this, the rest of the industry remains far too non-committal when it comes to reducing its carbon footprint.
Shein: The outlier that’s unnerving an industry
Ultra-fast fashion retailer Shein appeared in the news a lot this year because of its seemingly unstoppable growth, because it became a rare issue for US lawmakers to investigate — and because last month, after a period of speculation, it filed for an IPO.
At the same time, it remains the only brand to admit (at least to The Or Foundation, one of the only institutions asking the question) that its own clothes are connected to the global textile waste problem, something other fashion brands outright deny; and to pay into a fund that looks to simulate EPR, in the absence of legislators crafting a scheme that would establish it officially. Vogue Business travelled to Ghana in July to see what that work looks like on the ground — what does it take, in emotional and manual labour, to clean up the world’s cast-off clothing?
Missing voices grew louder
While brands set sustainability targets, it’s suppliers who take the steps to actually deliver on them. That’s old news to anyone who’s been paying attention, but signs emerged this year of growing demand for and interest in listening to, and collaborating with, suppliers.
Garment workers in Bangladesh, meanwhile, made their voices heard globally as they protested en masse, calling on the government to set a minimum wage that they could actually live on. They didn’t get it, however — and for the most part, brands were distressingly absent.
Still, calls for a just transition continue to mount, including for a pricing model whereby fashion puts garment workers first. It’s also essential to extend support to countries that are both major sources or manufacturers, as well as among the most vulnerable, to the effects of climate change.
Fashion’s “brainprint” entered the spotlight
There’s growing recognition that fashion’s impact on people and the planet involves much more than scientifically measurable issues such as emissions or water consumption. In reality, fashion also plays a major role in shaping cultural conversations and values at large.
How we think about fashion’s impact should, therefore, extend, a growing chorus of voices is arguing, far beyond the measurable impact of the clothing people wear — its environmental footprint — to include its “brainprint”, or the influence that fashion has on public opinion or consumer mindsets as well as behaviour. That has implications for everything, from how fashion communicates about sustainability to how prominently it exhibits its theoretical commitments in the public sphere.
Also telling: how few brands have responded to a call by The Or Foundation to publish their production volumes. “In order for us to make progress, we have to know what we are up against,” Remake founder Ayesha Barenblat told Vogue Business about why production volume information is so important. “Let’s start with the simple disclosure: how much do you produce?”
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