Why we say NO to fast fashion
Over the last 30 years clothing has increasingly become regarded as a cheap and disposable commodity, with a huge rise in the production, consumption and subsequent disposal to land fill of fast-fashion garments. 300,000 tonnes of clothing went to landfill in the UK in 2016. In addition to the waste issue, textiles are a resource-greedy and polluting industry.
ReMode Renfrewshire exists to raise awareness of the environmental impact of the fashion and textiles industry. In the UK, roughly two million tonnes of clothing and textiles are thrown away every year and only 16% of that waste is ever reused. We give our communities opportunities to take positive steps to lessen the impact of their own clothing choices. We do this by teaching skills and running events which extend the life of clothing, thus saving it from landfill and reducing its environmental impact. Events and activities include creative classes in mending, repairing and upcycling clothing. We work with young people and the wider community in Lochwinnoch and Paisley.
If nothing changes by 2050, the fashion industry will use up a quarter of the world’s carbon budget. Clothes also release half a million tonnes of microfibres into the ocean every year, equivalent to more than 50 billion plastic bottles.