CLIMATE JUSTICE ACTIVISM DEMAND POLICY MAKERS GLOBAL
By IFAB MEDIA - NEWS BUREAU - December 7, 2023 | 38 5 minutes read
Fashion Revolution, the world’s largest fashion activism movement, has released a list of demands for major fashion brands and policymakers ahead of this year’s COP.
“In addition to being one of the most unequal industries on earth, the fashion industry is one of the most ruthless on our planet’s resources. It churns out clothes at a level that we cannot even quantify because the majority of brands do not even disclose how much they produce. It relies heavily on fossil fuels like coal in manufacturing, it guzzles water in regions where it is scarce, uses thousands of chemicals and drives record levels of deforestation,“ says Maeve Galvin, Policy Director, at Fashion Revolution.
The COP 28 Demands for Major Fashion Brands and Policymakers call on fashion brands to set robust climate targets in consultation with suppliers, transparently publish a plan to meet these targets and share how they are meeting those targets.
The demands are developed in coalition with and supported by leading campaigners, Stand.Earth, Eco-Age, Action Speaks Louder, and Transformers Foundation, a unified voice representing the Denim supply chain. They further demand brands be transparent about fundamental areas such as where our clothes were made, how many clothes are produced and what they are made of and how. The demands also call on policymakers to legislate to ensure environmental and social accountability
from fashion brands.
COP 28, which began last week in Dubai, is the largest annual gathering of world leaders, companies and activists on the climate crisis. Poised to be a global stocktake on progress since the Paris Agreement came into being five years ago, Fashion Revolution says it is a prime opportunity to hold major fashion brands accountable for the urgent need to phase out fossil fuels and ramp up renewables to address climate chaos.
“Our latest research shows brands are quick to share commitments but far quieter about actual impacts,” says Liv Simpliciano, Policy & Research Manager at Fashion Revolution.
“We believe major brands and governments must financially support the transition to renewable energy in garment producing countries and COP 28 should be used as a platform to reach an agreement on who foots the bill for phase out and how. Fashion brands must put their money where their mouth is and make real financial commitments which share financial risk with suppliers across their supply chains. Supplier-led and brand-supported action is the only way we can truly decarbonise fashion manufacturing.”
Fashion Revolution cautions against addressing environmental issues in a vacuum. Climate justice in fashion cannot be achieved without centring garment worker demands. In recent weeks, Bangladeshi garment workers have faced a brutal crackdown for protesting against poverty wages. Addressing the deep social inequalities perpetuated by the fashion industry, the demands also call on fashion brands to disclose how many workers in their supply chain are paid a living wage
and the prices brands pay per item to suppliers.