Creating a sustainable planet: how fast fashion is contributing to textile waste

Abstract

Consumers have been trained by the fashion industry and capitalistic pursuits to buy items they do not need and may never use, yet the appeal to have that item in the moment is so overtly compelling, it feels like a need to survive. Clothing and textiles are a gold-mine for companies to target consumers' habits in over-consumption and drive the company’s financial success and profits. Between consumers' materialistic lifestyles and companies' pursuits to push over-consumption, humans are witnessing record levels of environmental damages with our waste accumulation. The fashion and retail industries' clear focus on monetary gain and success, leading to the increased interest in fast fashion methods of production, is fueling the destruction of our planet. We are reaching a point of irreversible climate deterioration and a major factor in that is the mass amount of waste produced. As we progress through a time where the success of fast fashion companies and its waste augmentation are simultaneously and exponentially on the rise, taking a closer look at your local communities and how personal decisions impact the bigger issues is imperative to spark the change that our planet needs.