Clothing brands across the world are manufacturing clothes and running their business unethically without considering the negative impact on the environment.
Today I talk to Kaitlyn Sy, a student from the sustainability club about how to live a sustainable lifestyle.
(Sy) “My name is Kaitlyn Sy and I’m a member of the students the sustainability committee. Sustainable fashion is when we make clothes that are high-quality for the consumer, but at the same time have a little impact on the planets.”
How can a common person practice sustainable fashion?
(Sy) “I guess not getting caught into that cycle of ‘oh but I wore that before I don’t wannabe seen wearing the same thing twice I want to get something new,’ but then I have a I have a budget. I can’t buy a lot of expensive clothes. See you end up buying these cheap stuff and then it falls apart and you throw it away or you would buy something at the store really cool and then you never really wear it, where it is impulse buying. we need to sometimes when you walk into the store and you see something cool and like oh my goodness it’s only five dollars I have like extra five dollars for my paycheck I’m going to go buy this, but we’re actually not thinking about am I going to wear this or is this really do I really need more clothes, or is this even good quality? Should I buy this or not? So I guess being more thoughtful when you’re shopping for a closer look at where are you shop for your clothes how are you shop and see if that’s a you know that’s a good way to combat fast fashion.”
Are there any brands which release statements claiming that their products are sustainable when in reality they aren’t?
(Sy) “I’d say that there are a lot of brands out there that say they’re sustainable or they’re organic or something, but in reality they’re not. So let’s say, like you know, shopping all organic, sometimes you might think that organic is like really healthy for the environment, healthy for you, but in reality it’s not always the case. Sometimes we humans like stuff to be cut and dry and simple, but sometimes we need to think critically about things. So I’d say that since I don’t really know much about brands usually I’d research a brand before getting into it. So let’s say like you know my family used to kind of be into Forever 21 until we put all those clothes in the washer and when they came out you can’t wear it anymore they got holes, stitches came undone and all that so it went in the trash. So I’d like to do like research on the reviews, like how long do these clothes last, how are these clothes made where are they made those kinds of things.”
If you have any questions about living a sustainable life, definitely check out the sustainability club. I’m Hadley Nguyen reporting for campus Ledger.