‘Y WASTE?’ an exhibition by Hong Kong-based NGO Redress, working on the mission of creating green future in the global fashion industry, uncovered the dark shadow of fashion. It contained 360 kg of discarded secondhand clothes representing the amount of textiles dumped into Hong Kong’s landfills every two minutes. The exhibit was displayed at Hong Kong’s K11 Art Mall from July 7-20, 2015. The aim behind the installation was to create awareness about the importance of reducing textile waste, pollution, water and energy consumption.
The exhibit, in collaboration with clothing care experts, Miele, with design by students from Hong Kong Baptist University’s Academy of Visual Arts, raised awareness about shockingly high clothing and textile waste rates that are collectively generated and the negative environmental impacts associated with discarding them into landfill.
Raising issue of textile waste
Redress works along with the fashion supply chain to achieve their mission of creating awareness about the hazardous impact of textile waste. Its works are grouped into four key programs: The EcoChic Design Award, The R Cert, Consumer Campaigns and Industry Engagement. Collectively, these four programs cover a sustainable fashion design competition, a recycled textile clothing standard, workshops, clothing campaigns, fashion shows, exhibitions, seminars and research.
Now even EU member states have agreed to ban a toxic substance widely found in clothing because it poses an ‘unacceptable risk’ to the environment. Countries unanimously voted in favour of extending existing restrictions on nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPE) found in clothing and other textile products. The measure is intended to protect aquatic species. Use of NPE in textile manufacture in Europe was banned over 10 years ago but the substance is still released into the aquatic environment through imported textiles being washed. The proposal was brought forward by Sweden in 2013 and backed by scientists at the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).
A 2011 study by Greenpeace found NPE in two-thirds of clothes tested, including items sold by big-name brands such as Adidas, H&M, Lacoste, and Ralph Lauren. The new ban on textiles containing NPE in concentrations equal to or greater than 0.01 per cent will enter into force five years after it is adopted by the European Commission, which is likely to happen in the near future.
Redress works with multiple fashion designers, textile and garment manufacturers, retailers, schools and universities, multilateral organisations, governments, NGOs, financial institutions and media organisations for the cause. Redress was established in 2007 in Hong Kong and is a Hong Kong registered charity under S88 of the Inland Revenue. Redress was previously called Green2greener. Cutting waste out of fashion
The EcoChic Design Award, one of the key initiatives of Redress, is a sustainable fashion design competition inspiring emerging fashion designers and students to create mainstream clothing with minimal textile waste. Each competition cycle takes designers on an education and design journey lasting several theory and design-packed months.
Firstly, it educates designers about the fashion industry’s negative environmental impacts and the sustainable fashion design techniques, zero-waste, up-cycling and reconstruction that can combat this. Secondly, Redress provides designers with the tools, via lectures, videos, articles and recommended links, in order to develop their understanding of sustainable fashion design. It also challenges them to source textile waste, in its many forms, to enable them to transition towards sustainable design and sourcing and then the designers are put to the ultimate test – to cut waste out of fashion – through sustainable design competition. This puts sustainable design talent in the spotlight and rewards the best with career-changing prizes to change the pattern of fashion.
Redress.com.hk
