SewTrue Panel Discussion Brings Together Experts

SewTrue Panel Discussion Brings Together Experts

Making Sustainable Choices When Buying Apparel

We hope you have enjoyed the insights and will use the information you’ve learned through our SewTrue Virtual Event panel videos to change your wardrobe and develop a sustainable clothing mindset. The panelists emphasized that the most sustainable thing you can do is reduce your consumption. After that, they advised selecting brands and product lines with options that are ethically produced using sustainable practices. Below are some links for further education and resources about apparel and the fast fashion industry.

Resources & Links

Ethical Fashion Brands

https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/affordable-ethical-fashion-brands

https://www.patagonia.com/home/ (a bit more expensive but they are great!)

https://www.everlane.com/ (great for buying professional attire and quality leather goods)

https://www.alternativeapparel.com/ (excellent for affordable casual attire)

https://en.guppyfriend.com/ (a bag like this is good for keeping dryer lint out of the environment)

https://www.elle.com/fashion/a29536207/rental-fashion-sustainability/ (pros and cons about renting clothes)

https://marielleelizabeth.squarespace.com/the-list/ (Plus Sized Ethical Fashion List)

https://athleta.gap.com/ The Athleta company is B Corp Certified, meaning it meets strict social and environmental standards. 60% of products are made with sustainable materials, either using fibers like organic cotton, recycled polyester, and Tencel OR produced in an ethical factory. Some are Fair Trade Certified.

https://www.columbia.com/ Columbia Sporting Goods has some great products: Outdry jackets are made from recycled water bottles, use no dye to save over 24 gallons of water per jacket, and have a water-repellant finish with zero PFCs (which are largely unregulated chemical compounds known to be harmful to the environment and to people that are in many waterproof, greaseproof, stainproof, and nonstick consumer products).

https://rothys.com/ Rothys has washable, woven flats and shoes made from recycled plastic water bottles. And tjere are some great styles!

https://www.manduka.com/ Manduka is your sustainable yoga wear resource. They reduce global consumption by making better products that last longer, they believe in conservancy and transparency, creating mats, towels, props and apparel while also making every possible effort to minimize environmental waste.

https://www.allbirds.com/ Most sneakers are constructed from a variety of different panels of plastic, rubber, and fabrics, which makes them difficult to be produced responsibly and makes them generally not recyclable. Allbirds focuses on the fabric and uses a responsibly sourced wool and a eucalyptus tree-based fabric (lyocell).

Here are a few brands to shop for long-lasting, quality clothing:

https://fahertybrand.com/ (men’s and women’s apparel, ethical and sustainable production)

https://www.eileenfisher.com/ (Eileen Fisher is not affordable but is a fashion brand that makes extensive sustainable practices, natural fibers, and styles that last. Their Renew website, where the brand buys back and resells its own label’s gently worn clothing so you can get it for a lower price in excellent condition. This can be a good choice for comfortable professional attire that will last literally for decades. Just choose carefully and pick more timeless styles. You can find new Eileen Fisher at luxury/upper moderate retailers (e.g. Nordstrom.com) on sale at deep discounts, so no need to pay the regular price).

https://www.cuyana.com/ (this is a destination for quality, ethically-produced apparel and leather items, a place to get somewhat fashionable apparel that will last and be wearable for years).

https://amourvert.com/ (Amour Vert offers apparel and accessories, they use sustainable processes and manufacture in the USA and concern themselves with the full lifecycle of a garment— from the fibers and production processes, to how workers are treated, how it gets to the consumer, and finally, whether it can be recycled or is forced into landfill.)

Regarding fast fashion and COVID-19

To see what COVID-19 has done to garment workers...people who make your clothes!

https://qz.com/1828541/covid-19-leads-to-one-million-garment-workers-unemployed/

Want to know how long it takes different fibers to decompose?

https://edgexpo.com/2017/09/05/edge-fast-fact-non-biodegradable-clothes-take-20-to-200-years-to-biodegrade/

(from Skya Nelson, CEO of Fed By Threads, local sustainable clothing company)

Email skya@fedbythreads.com for more information about how he is responding to COVID-19!

Groups you should pay attention to:

WHO Collaborating Centre for Infectious Disease Modelling MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis

Abdul Latif Jameel Institute for Disease and Emergency Analytics Imperial College London

JAMA

PPE Purchasing and suppliers.

Tucson and Phx hospital leaders are saying the peak has already occurred, but others are saying the COVID-19 peak will occur in June and will get worse if we “open the country”. Today, the Governor’s coalition reported a 21% co-infection rate. States are already buying ventilators for June- July surge.

https://www.hpnonline.com/surgical-critical-care/med-surg-equipment/article/21134051/hhs-announces-new-ventilator-contracts-orders-total-over-130000-ventilators

Example of timeline establishes 2021 drug trial schedule.

https://cepi.net/news_cepi/2-billion-required-to-develop-a-vaccine-against-the-covid-19-virus/

Covid has a 21% infection rate.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2764787

“In addition, even if all patients were able to be treated, we predict there would still be in the order of 250,000 deaths in GB, and 1.1-1.2 million in the US.”

If we re-emerge from isolation without a vaccine and “open the country” for business deaths in the US will exceed 2m” (page 16).

https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-college/medicine/sph/ide/gida-fellowships/Imperial-College-COVID19-NPI-modelling-16-03-2020.pdf

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