Figuring Out Fashion Week’s Carbon Problem

According to the report, the travel undertaken by buyers and brands resulted in about 241,000 tons of CO2 emissions a year. That figure, said the report, is equivalent to the annual emissions of a small country — say, Saint Kitts and Nevis — or enough energy to light up Times Square for 58 years.

International air travel is the primary culprit, followed by accommodation (lights, water and electricity in hotels), then cabs and black cars, and then the emissions associated with transporting the fashion collections.

“Obviously fashion weeks are the tip of the industry pyramid and contribute far less to the climate crisis than areas like manufacturing, logistics and clothing waste,” said Simon Lock, the founder of Ordre.com, a platform that showcases collections online in an effort to reduce fashion travel.

But, he continued: “We need to be asking ourselves big questions. How much do we need to travel to conduct the business of fashion? Should fashion weeks be dismantled and rebuilt? Having concrete data for the first time should be seen as a step toward collectively finding some answers.”

Finding answers is especially important because, according to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the fashion industry is responsible for about 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. If that figure continues to grow at current rates, fashion could use more than a quarter of the world’s annual carbon budget by 2050.

According to the Zero to Market report, the average professional carbon footprint of a fashion buyer is twice that of an average global citizen. A retailer will fly an average of 19,214 kilometers (nearly 12,000 miles) every year in order to attend showrooms at fashion weeks, the report found.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/12/fashion/figuring-out-fashion-weeks-carbon-problem.html?emc=rss&partner=rss