CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION - 01
CURRENT STATUS - 02
CUSTOMER AWARENESS AND SENSITIVITY - 05
ECOTAG : TOOL FOR THE FASHION INDUSTRY - 05
ECOTAG : INDICATING SUSTAINABILITY - 09
ECOTAG : FOSTERING TRANSPERENCY FOR
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS - 14
CONSUMERS PERSPECTIVE - 23
CASE STUDY-LEVIS - 27
FUTURE OF FASHION INDUSTRY-ECOUTERRE - 30
CONCLUSION – 33
REFERENCES - 34
I
NTRODUCTION
The greening of the apparel industry is a significant and evolving trend that is likely to
affect every facet of this enormous global industry. Under both internal and external
pressure to reduce the environmental impact of growing, processing, treating and dyeing
fibers and to eliminate exploitation and inequities in labor practices, textile and apparel
companies are eager to show consumers a new, sustainable approach to fashion without sacrificing
style or profit. At the consumer and retail level, this trend is evident in a growing number of
designers, manufacturers and marketers making sustainable claims. 'Sustainable apparel' is an
umbrella concept that includes some or all of these practices:

Use of certified organic natural fibers (wool, cotton, linen)

Use of highly renewable fibers (bamboo, soy)
Use of low-impact synthetic or recycled fibers The ultimate goal of the EcoTag is
to incent corporations to make their
Use of non-toxic or reduced-toxicity fiber processes and
sustainability measures more
treatments
accountable to their customers.
Use of low-impact or natural dyes
Design and color choices aimed at longevity rather than
planned obsolescence
Fair trade, ethical labor practices, and elimination of child labor and other exploitation
Reduced energy use throughout the product life cycle
Minimal or environmentally appropriate packaging

Consumer awareness, grown through the organic foods movement (and more recently, the local
foods drive) and other health and environmental concerns, is creating a heightened sensitivity to all
dimensions of ethical production. As a result, companies must avoid 'green washing' and create
transparent, consistent and substantive sustainability and social-responsibility initiatives. However,
lack of standards and regulation, and a proliferation of claims and labels, leaves room for very
broad interpretations of sustainable apparel. In this environment, manufacturers and marketers of
all kinds -- tiny boutiques to huge mass-market chains, low-end to high-end pricing, brand identities
including yoga clothing, infant clothes, glamorous designer fashions, menswear, and outerwear - are
seeking to identify themselves as sustainability minded and authentic. Wal-Mart is the largest
purchaser of certified organic cotton, but many emerging designers are also aiming in the same
direction. There is pressure on the supply chain, and pressure to quickly develop new technologies
and systems that will demonstrate an environmentally and socially conscious commitment.
Consumers now expect sustainability and ecological sensitivity to be factored into the cost of
manufacturing and selling consumer goods. The EcoTag for apparel is designed to make
sustainability factors more transparent for purchasing decisions among consumers. The ultimate
goal of the EcoTag is to incent corporations to make their sustainability measures more accountable
to their customers. ―Sustainability grading‖ or other methods of ranking products would create new
ways for customers to evaluate the value of a product prior to making a purchasing decision, , while
forcing corporations that have since been uninterested in bringing sustainability practices to their
businesses to change their behavior.
Ecotagging is today in the cradle stage. With sensitivity towards point of sourcing northward bound;
ecotagging will soon become a factor of business advantage.
While Green product and Green Marketing are ways to create a new category of product for
consumption, Eco-tagging is willing surrendering the accountability to customers there by elevating
him from the citadel of a King to an Emperor. This helps the green concept come a full circle.

This project throws light on Eco-tagging and its benefit to producers - business advantage -and
consumers- choice and ecobution (ecology + contribution) advantage.

C
URRENT STATUS

The article from WWD (in the picture above) queried fashion industry insiders who were pondering
the current state of fashion at this very instant. The aforementioned called out the following as
possible reasons why all things fashion-related feel more than a little uncertain:

-the economy tanking (especially in the US, it‘s beginning to look pretty dire…)

-insane prices of designer wear (coupled with the aforementioned weak US economy and value of
the dollar against other currencies like the pound and euro)

-the lack of color in the recently commenced fall shows: black is dominant. People want and connect
with color, but designers aren‘t offering it (these dark colors for clothing seem almost funereal,
and are, interestingly enough, an apt metaphor for the malaise and fear in the air culturally,
politically and economically. hmm!)

-an overhyped fashion industry machine: stuff is churned out so fast and slammed into our face so
much (via magazines, blogs, websites and the like), we lose sense of what season we‘re in and what‘s
really significant at any given moment stylistically.
-the lack of a single, solitary ―must-have‖ item in the market at the moment (a trend for consumers
like us to fixate upon, which would drive us to the stores to buy, buy, buy)

-an off-kilter delivery cycle that puts clothing on the racks and shelves of stores months before a
season actually starts…which works against the fact that people want to wear what they buy RIGHT
NOW. Why stash it away for later??

-fast fashion is a worthy adversary: some retailers push new, relevant designs out to their floors
constantly, pleasing the customer. Something it‘s more difficult for big designers to do or sustain.
designers feel the pinch.

-some people would rather spend good money on the latest gadgets (think: iPhone), something that
ensures long-lasting, practical use, than buy lots of (inevitably) trendy, disposable clothes

On the thinking tip…

Other possible reasons for malaise and uncertainty:

An off-kilter delivery cycle that

-some lament (and others celebrate) the diversity of today‘s style puts clothing on the racks and
scene: anything goes. This is bad news for manufacturers, who, like shelves of stores months before a
it says above, would probably prefer one dominant look to foist season actually starts works
upon a large number of potential customers. against the fact that people want
to wear what they buy RIGHT
-and trends change SO FREAKING FAST now, consumers can‘t NOW. Why stash it away for
later??
keep up. And what happens when the trends du jour don‘t resonate
with customers? Not everyone‘s into each and every look! Just
because designers are into it, because designers are making it, doesn‘t mean that customers are
going to eat it up. The aforementioned diversity of today‘s cultural landscape is at odds with that
designer motive: many people cannot relate or find what‘s on offer as being relevant to their bodies,
or their lives

Consumers, people like us, all of us, who buy clothes, are feeling more than a little blasé about the
current state of fashion and shopping too. A recent article from the telegraph references the
article I paraphrased from WWD. Called why fashion has gone off the rails, i feel it sort of
encapsulates this current uncertain fashion zeitgeist:

You scarcely need to listen to the biblical chorus of retailers blaming the credit crunch, the
weather, energy bills (anything but themselves) to see the evidence that this spring women have
risen up, taken a look round the shops, pulled a face – and kept their plastic in their purses.

Clock the fact that the ―mid-season sale‖ has arrived in so many places before the ―season‖ has
even got going (with barely a moment to clear winter‘s discounted leftovers) and there‘s only one
thing to conclude: sorry, but we just don‘t like these clothes that much.
So, what is the Consumers biggest complaint?

That, increasingly, clothes are not just blah in terms of style (non-committal, non-novel, bland
details), but are made cheaply of cheap materials. Why bother buying when the garment is garbage
even on the hanger?

Low, low prices are only convincing for a while…when money is tight (and tighter with each passing
day), buyers want to know that what they deign to buy is actually a deal, and not a dupe. ―something‖
about that piece, whatever it is, has to sell it, has to signify it‘s special nature to the shopper…and
in that arena, manufacturers are falling short. Perhaps the bottom hasn‘t been reached, but we‘re
falling toward it.

Something has to give, eventually, doesn‘t it?

…because after all, those manufacturers and marketers are feeling the pinch too. Cheap materials
and labor mean the potential for eking out more profits…vitally important in economically restrictive
days to come. Some might call it greed, indeed. and some might say, well, those mass-market makers
are just trying to stay afloat, to brace themselves from the wave of uncertainty and possible hard
times that feel as if they just might be rumbling toward us all.

and so, some questions to foster discussion:

Low prices are only convincing for a while…when
money is tight, buyers want to know that what
they deign to buy is actually a deal, and not a
dupe. “something” about that piece, whatever it
is, has to sell it, has to signify it’s special nature to
the shopper…and in that arena, manufacturers
are falling short. Perhaps the bottom hasn’t been
reached, but we’re falling toward it.
-what‘s the answer, then? What do we do and buy
in these times, if anything?
-in this dismal economic scene, where does fashion
go? where do we go as consumers? what DO we
choose to buy and do to express ourselves when
what‘s on offer doesn‘t suit us anymore?

-Do we keep on with this movement of making our

own? Do we increasingly take fashion and style into our own hands? Could this mean even more
interest in sewing, restyling, and the needle arts?

-Will second-hand shopping become even more desirable for more people? What happens when we
turn to said sources, and only find them crammed with discards from those cheap-chic stores?
Then what?

-what will happen to these designers, to luxury fashion, if the customers stop lining up to buy, from
lack of funds, or lack of interest?

-if everything is in style, if everything is up for grabs, is there any way that we could, collectively,
go back to accepting one main directive? Is there a potential for one overriding aesthetic anymore?

-how do we digest and make sense of the call for more ethical, more green ways of living, of
clothing and expressing ourselves, if at all? Do these factors weigh in any with this feeling of
uncertainty with what‘s on offer in the shops, and what we choose, in the end, to put on our bodies?
if so, what do we need to do?

indeed…
where is fashion going next?

C
USTOMER AWARENESS AND SENSITIVITY C

Emily says: I want more and more people to start consuming less of everything,
including clothing, and using up the things they already have. Recycled is so much better than new
but organic. In that way, I don‘t think DIY fashion will see an end in this decade.

The market is saturated with details that are becoming ubiquitous: bows, pleats, volume, florals,
neons… it has to turn back to basics at some point but I think that things are going to ride out at
least another year.
I also agree and think that the line between What Will Sell and What People are Wearing is going
to get muddier, which I think is related to people making their
own clothes and accessories It is a cruel game played upon more . Marketing is going to
have its hands full. There are us by fashion. Follow it and so many idols born up by
magazines like NYLON that are am “in”. Failing to do so, and becoming very incestuous and
same-old tired looks just to sell I am a fashion pariah. It is a the same products over and
over. I hope that people are seasonal pressure applied catching on to the fact that you
upon us by designers and
should work on yourself and work on expressing who you are,
manufacturers.
instead of fawning over designers.

That being said, I think that textile artists are going to see more recognition with people sewing at
home and wanting a certain look. I think we‘ll see more sewing news mixed with fashion pieces.

Also, technology will become more a part of fashion… try University - United-Kingdom

E
The Eco-analysis tool for the Fashion Industry

co-Tag: The Eco-Analysis Tool for the Fashion

Industry
Over the past three decades a range of certification schemes have developed to enable
manufacturers and farmers to participate in improving either the conditions of their workforce or
improve the environmental impact of their product. The initial idea of the Eco Analysis Tool was to
enable SMEs to identify and prove to their customers how much they were already doing towards
becoming more sustainable and how ethical their production already was without necessarily
applying to join one of the existing schemes - as this would represent a significant cost burden. As
research has progressed though it has become evident that what is required is a complex database
(updated as new developments in technology and materials become available) which enables
companies to identify which areas of the production chain use the most time, energy or resources.
Ella Sharp and experts in fashion research, energy management and software and database
development from Coventry University and UK Unplugged Technologies have been working to
develop a database and labeling system as well as a mechanism/software package for calculating
the ECO rating of individual garments. With this information companies could reduce costs and
improve their Corporate and Social Responsibility Code whilst maintaining their profit margins. The
Eco-Analysis tool will identify how well an individual product performs in both ethical production and
sustainability; the customer can then make an informed choice and the designer can see how, but
more importantly where, their decisions can have the greatest impact on the final outcome. The
resultant Eco-label for clothing is intended to assist individuals in making an informed decision
about their clothing purchases, enabling them to positively discriminate in favor of products, which
are environmentally and socially responsible. The online Eco-Analysis tool would also empower the
SME to make decisions on material choice and production method, ethical
implications and to provide post user advice on most Eco-friendly cleaning
The resultant Eco- methods. This would thus inform the design process. The project has been
label for clothing is led by and involved working with British fashion companies to develop the
intended to assist labels in a way that is relevant to them. How does the innovation solve a
individuals in
particular problem?
making an
informed decision To date eco-labeling has been developed for a variety of products including
about their white goods, such as freezers and irons, and food products - for example,
clothing Marks and Spencer's has invested in ecolabelling its food. There is
purchases, however, no standard eco-label for clothing – a number of schemes to
enabling them to accredit garments exist but they are frequently extremely difficult to
positively comply with and can often limit the materials that a designer is able to use.
discriminate in
This makes existing schemes limited in both their applicability and
favour of products,
which accessibility, particularly for SMEs.
are
environmentally There are a variety of accreditation systems that enable the sustainability
and socially of a product or the ethical aspects of its development to be rated. The few
responsible. systems catering for both aspects do not allow for analysis during the
design process, they are retrospective. In addition, even when
accreditation schemes (for example Fair Trade and Made in Green) are
developed and made available to clothing and textile companies they are frequently too expensive
for SME's to engage with or purchase. To this end the Eco-Analysis tool is highly innovative and
applicable to SMEs within the fashion sector who frequently tend to be more green but can lack the
resources to promote this side of their business. The Eco-Analysis tool provides such SMEs with an
immediate tool to showcase their green credentials and from which textile and manufacturing
methodology decisions can be influenced prior to production. This may help to ensure the longevity
of SME textile and clothing companies that may otherwise suffer in the low carbon economy.
Eco-Tag in practice Accessing up to date information on sustainability and ethics is difficult for
SMEs unless it is already a defined part of their business model and they are therefore in the
Ethics/Sustainability 'loop'. The innovation in this project lies in the fact that it enables businesses
to make ethically and ecologically sound design and production decisions without complying with
expensive and complicated certification.
Data will be gathered on the following to produce a life cycle flow chart:

1) Sheep farming; including farm type and area, animal welfare, chemical usage, energy
consumption, methane production, fleece productivity, fleece quality.
2) Energy and chemicals used in fleece sheering, cleaning, transport.
3) Energy and chemicals used in carding, spinning and weaving.
4) Chemicals and energy used in dyeing and other processing.
5) Energy used in garment fabrication.
6) Environmental factors related to transport.
7) Consumer issues (i.e. washing).
8) Post consumer product.

To identify the environmental and ethical status of a specific garment, it would need to be tracked
from raw material to point of sale and beyond after it reaches the customers hands. Information
needs to be collected regarding the energy consumption and waste emissions/materials for each
stage of the production chain; this would include measuring the energy required to power a machine.
The industrial links, which the University and Ella Sharp already possess, enable the project to
access most of the processes required. The expertise within the Fashion Department would also be
able to identify the areas of knowledge (and companies) which need to be accessed to complete as
far as possible the information required for the database. Once the fabric pathway has been
identified and researched, the design process would then be analyzed comparing both traditional
and more technically advanced pattern cutting systems.

What are the results?

A feasibility study, funded by the UK Government‘s Technology Strategy Board and involving British
fashion companies, has already been undertaken to develop the Eco-Analysis tool. In order to take
this project forward, further work researching and subsequently populating the database with
information on a plethora of materials, spinning and weaving, dying and printing techniques will be
required. The feasibility study revealed some vital information on the environmental impact of
textile fibers: notably that all fibers (including wool, cotton and synthetics) have major
environmental impacts. Wool is associated with large amounts of greenhouse gasses and cotton with
the consumption of vast quantities of irrigation water. Synthetic fibers are sourced from finite
resources and consume large amounts of energy during production. The study also found significant
ethical issues in human and animal treatment for the production of fibers and textiles. Further
research will involve working with textile companies and those involved in the garment production
chain to ensure that the information required to compile the database is as accurate as possible.
Wool has been chosen to launch the database as the wool chain has the most clarity when going
back to the source material.

International Interest

The label and system piloted as part of the Eco-Analysis Tool project was intended in the first
instance to support the UK fashion industry who rely on pockets of manufacturing expertise around
the country, often in London and the Midlands. However the benefits of the Eco-Analysis tool can
be applied to independent fashion companies in Europe and around the world, for example, small
cooperatives manufacturing independently in Africa would be able to use the eco-credibility of
their garments to compete on an ethical level with larger fashion companies who tend to mass
manufacture their garments in locations such as China and India. If smaller fashion companies are
able to promote their eco credentials via an Eco-label it would enhance their credibility and open up
new market opportunities whilst increasing wider market awareness of corporate social
responsibility, ethics policies etc. The Eco-Analysis
project will develop an on-line self assessment style If smaller fashion companies are able to
Eco-labeling facility for UK based fashion companies in promote their eco credentials via an Eco-label
the short to medium term and in the long term will work it would enhance their credibility and open up
new market opportunities whilst increasing
with other organizations to develop an affordable
wider market awareness of corporate social
standard that is relevant both to the UK fashion responsibility, ethics policies etc
industry and worldwide.

Using Eco-Tag in other countries

Clothing is an economic success story (globally worth over £500 billion) but has a significant
environmental impact. In the UK 2 million tonnes of clothing (value £23 billion) are produced per
annum. Legislation is currently being developed to ensure that clothing producers take responsibility
for their emissions however no easy- to- comply- with- standard currently exists for rating the
ethics and carbon footprint of a garment. To this end this project would be a market leader in this
area.
Furthermore current standards applicable to the fashion industry are beyond the realms of
affordability for most fashion SME's. Developing an affordable Eco Analysis Tool would thus
provide the industry with a much needed, affordable system for making informed decisions and
encouraging sales. The average for current standards in the textile area range from £300 per
garment to £18,000 per year - beyond what most companies can afford. The market for this
product would be wide spread; from fabric companies concerned with meeting the new REACH
directives from Europe to companies already designing and manufacturing within the
ethical/sustainable field as it will allow them to look at their ideas/products as a whole, not in
isolation. As a result it would be very useful to producers, manufacturers and designers; for SMEs
the production chain is very long and made of companies similar in size and target market - this
product would allow them to access information quickly and as the information became available
quite cheaply.
T
HE ECOTAG: INDICATING SUSTAINABILITY

The fashion industry has been broadly criticized for its part in the excessive production
of increasingly disposable garments. In many places like North America and the UK,
where extreme poverty is not a reality, items of clothing are tossed out after they have reached
their life expectancy – usually around one or two seasons later. This textile waste adds to the
sprawling landfills that are accumulating around the world. With a bit of foresight, it is obvious that
'fast fashion' cannot continue, or pretty soon we are going to be wading through our own refuse.
Not a pretty picture.

It has become apparent that we need to rethink the way we consume fashion, so that the industry
can re-engineer itself and go back to the drawing board, guided by ecological directives, and at the
same time remain profitable as a business model.

First of all, we need to ask ourselves: What is fashion?

Fashion is an idea, a vision: the selective adjectives of society's mood

that draw from the stories of past and write those of the future.
In communist Berlin during the 1980s, a collective of fashion
It has become apparent
designers and models were part of an edgy and thrilling underground that we need to rethink
movement that operated on the fringes of state-sanctioned society. the way we consume
The focus was on self-expression and exploration, and had little to do fashion, so that the
with consumerism since the haute-couture pieces were all custom industry can re-engineer
made by the creative individuals from found objects such as itself and go back to the
discarded shower curtains, black plastic bags and strawberry foil. drawing board, guided by
ecological directives, and
Fashion, in that case, existed free from the shackles of profitability
at the same time remain
and expansion that are characteristic of a capitalistic system. profitable as a business
Fashion in communist Berlin expressed a mood, a feeling; and model.
captured the zeitgeist of an era. Items, otherwise seen as waste,
were recycled and re-invented, and given a whole new life in the form
of haute-couture garments.

The movement, documented in Marco Wilms' "Comrade Couture", made do with very little, and the
group was at one point almost arrested for advertising fashion pieces that could not be bought.
They maintained that their garments could be made by anyone and they began throwing patterns
straight off the ramp during their daring and dynamic shows in seedy, underground venues.

This was a radical departure from the common view of the fashion industry, an industry that
cunningly tempts us with the latest "it" bag or stunning pair of Manolo Blahniks, and lures us in to
spend our money and buy into a system that seeks ever-faster production of ever-more worthless
and wasted turnover.

Fashion does not have to be about buying, consuming, and needlessly depleting the earth's precious
resources on a seasonal whim. The pace of fashion consumption has fast outstripped the rate at
which natural resources can be replaced, and time has come to ask some fundamentally important,
and, at times difficult questions like "How can we be smarter about this?" and "What steps can we
take to reduce our wastefulness?"

It‘s important to realize that there is an alternative to the exhaustive model of mass-production.
Creative people are redesigning their businesses to foster a
more sustainable, long-term approach. A host of clever little In a process similar to recycling,
startups are popping up to fill a widening niche that offers termed "upcycling", a previously
organic and recycled products, and global corporate used item of clothing is recycled
into a more stylish, more
companies are re-evaluating and redefining their practices
valuable object. These products
in terms of sustainability. An entire school of thought has also question our traditional
been born that questions the current model of consumption, ideas of value, giving more
scrutinizing each and every step, and suggests more credence to handcraft and
streamlined and conservative approaches to consumption. bespoke items, as opposed to
ubiquitous mass-luxury items.
Self-proclaimed "fashion activist" Kate Pears recently
completed her PhD through the School of Management at the Royal Melbourne Institute of
Technology. In her research, she proposed that young people were willing to adopt lifestyles based
on the idea of sustainable consumption. Pears facilitated clothing swaps, where people are "paid out"
for their contributions in buttons, which they then use to "pay for" their new items. People see
their old clothes getting a second lease on life, and leave with a bag full of new goodies. One man's
floor is another man's ceiling, or so it goes.

In San Francisco, designer Shannon South has started the company 'remade USA' which uses
second-hand leather goods to create original one-off designer handbags, clutches and purses. In a
process similar to recycling, termed "upcycling", a previously used item of clothing is recycled into a
more stylish, more valuable object. These products also question our traditional ideas of value,
giving more credence to handcraft and bespoke items, as opposed to ubiquitous mass-luxury items
such as the Louis Vuitton handbag (80% of Japanese women under the age of 25 own a Louis Vuitton
handbag).

Whilst some companies look at up cycling old products, others

Whilst some companies look at are conceptualizing entirely new and ingenious products that
up cycling old products, others educate the consumer about the importance of being
are conceptualizing entirely new
environmentally friendly. Take, for instance, the "Spud Raincoat".
and ingenious products that
educate the consumer about the The waterproof bio-plastic is derived from potato starch and
importance of being other all-natural products, therefore is 100% biodegradable and
environmentally friendly. compostable. Furthermore, seeds are embedded into the plastic,
so once the raincoat has reached the end of its life, it can be buried and will grow into a delicious
herb garden. This is an excellent example of closed-system design, where no part of the product
goes to waste at the end of the cycle.

Global fashion houses are also getting in on the trend. Yves Saint-Laurent recently launched an eco-
friendly capsule collection that will be sold exclusively at Barney's in New York. The "New Vintage"
range uses leftover fabrics from previous seasons, employing the house's classic cuts and
silhouettes in the way of embroidered trench coats and bustier dresses: The appeal lies in the
uniqueness of each limited edition piece: the one-of-a-kind nature holding more value than just the
logo.

A trend exacerbated by the global recession, is a tendency towards "trading up" in terms of quality.
People are favoring better-made products that will last longer. In terms of design, we are seeing a
classic revival, with people opting for timeless designs that
resonate enduringly with them as individuals. Consumers, A peculiar behavior was noticed during
surprisingly, are willing to spend more money on well-made, recession. Top clothing Brands had to
beautifully designed products that last, and gain value over time. discount their sales and in the bargain
noticed a new set of customers buying
their products. All of those who could
Economic thinkers and writers have speculated that longer the not afford the brand then could afford
recession lasts, the more entrenched this new behavior will it now. The divide between the
become. If the figures are anything to go by, people will be a lot ‘original’ customers and
more discerning in their purchases, and more aware of the ‘opportunistic’ customers was
environmental impact of those purchases. I suspect that we are marginalized.
nearing the end of the cycle of 'fast fashion' and moving into a
more thoughtful and expressive era of 'slow fashion' and responsible consumerism.

We are seeing is a large-scale paradigm shift that will influence every decision we make in the
future. It is no longer a case of "make-it-and they-will-buy it". Companies have to tune in to the
changes happening on an individual level if they want to remain relevant to an increasingly conscious
market guided by ethics and a changing sense of values. A new generation of active consumers is
coming of age, bringing with them an altruistic sense of ecological awareness, responsible
consumption and sustainability.

And Mother Earth breathes a sigh of relief...

Consumers now expect sustainability and ecological sensitivity to be factored

A new
into the cost of manufacturing and selling consumer goods. The EcoTag for
generation of
active consumers apparel, shown below, was designed as a prototype to make sustainability
is coming of age, factors more transparent for purchasing decisions.
bringing with The ultimate goal of the EcoTag is to incent corporations to make their
them an sustainability measures more accountable to their customers.―Sustainability
altruistic sense grading‖ or other methods of ranking products would create new ways for
of ecological customers to evaluate the value of a product. Ideally, the tag would be
awareness,
resized, printed, and affixed to goods in a way that had minimal impact on the
responsible
consumption and product‘s carbon footprint. The front panel of the tag displays the standard
sustainability. SKUs for a product, as well as the costs of offsets and recycling that have
been factored into the product price. The back panel of the EcoTag gives a
view into how a piece of apparel was sourced, produced, and shipped, as well as
the average carbon cost and whether the clothing is organic, recycled, and/or
biodegradable
Options for an environmentally sustainable fashion industry

Researchers have laid out a set of proposals outlining how consumers could satisfy their needs for
clothes and textiles with significantly reduced impact on the environment, while also offering new
business opportunities.

The new study, produced by academics at the University of Cambridge, sets out a vision of a
sustainable clothes industry which at the same time would offer new opportunities to retailers and
manufacturers.
Consumers in the UK are increasingly aware of concerns about the environmental impact of the
products they buy and the social conditions of the people working to make them. Specific
environmental impacts associated with clothing and textiles can include the use of toxic chemicals
in cotton production and in manufacturing; carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels to create the
energy needed to run agricultural machinery and for heating air and water in laundry; the amount of
clothing and textiles sent to landfill each year (an average of 30kg per UK consumer).

The new report is written by researchers at the University's Institute for Manufacturing and was
funded by Biffaward as part of its Mass Balance Programme, as well as Marks & Spencer. Entitled
‗Well Dressed‘, it considers what could be done differently to make the industry more sustainable.
Among other things, it recommends the use of more organic cotton, washing clothes at lower
temperatures and encouraging consumers to buy fewer, high quality, longer-lasting clothes as well
as more second-hand garments.

Some retailers have begun to address these issues but industry-wide change would require the
evolution of new business models. Suggestions such as a focus on durability in the fashion world, and
business models that would focus on extra services like repair and maintenance show that profit
and growth can be decoupled from increasing material flow.
―The aim is to help answer the question of what we should do to create significant change at the
sector level,‖ Dr Julian Allwood, from the Institute for Manufacturing, said. ―We have focused on
what might happen if we could make major structural changes to the way our clothes are made and
used.

―For example, what would happen if we used different fibres or farming practices? What would be
the consequence of washing our clothes in a different way, or keeping our carpets for longer?

―Businesses and the industry as a whole have to remain economically viable - or any change will have
no benefit. The key to change is to ensure that government, industry and consumers work together
to achieve a more sustainable clothes and textiles industry.‖

Among other things the report lays out a model for the ideal consumer, who would drive
environmentally-beneficial changes in the clothing industry by, for example, buying fewer clothes,
washing them less and recycling them more. At the moment, consumers in the UK spend about £780
per head per year on textiles and clothes, purchasing about 2.15 million tonnes (35kg per person).
Of this, just one eighth is sent for re-use through charities and the rest is discarded.
The report proposes a model of change for future sustainable business
practice. To bring about change an ideal consumer would: More fact-
based
information for
Buy second-hand clothing and textiles where possible.
customers,
Buy fewer and more durable clothes. funded by
Choose clothes and textile products made with the lowest energy and government,
toxic emissions, and based on good information on labour standards. business and
Lease clothing that they wouldn't otherwise wear to the end of its campaigner to
natural life. encourage
Wash clothes less often, at lower temperatures, use eco-detergents, better practices.
This could
hang-dry clothes and avoid ironing where possible.
include “eco-
Repair clothes where possible to extend their natural lives. tagging” of
Dispose of garments through recycling businesses. clothes so that
shoppers could
The report also proposes actions that government and businesses could take to see where and
encourage better practice while remaining profitable. These could include: how they were
made
More fact-based information for customers, funded by government, business
and campaigners. This could include ―eco-tagging‖ of clothes so that shoppers could see where and
how they were made.
More emphasis on durability in new fashions, to encourage fewer, higher-quality and longer-lasting
products. These could be sold for a higher price to offset reduced sales. This would reduce the
flow of material through the sector and thus the impact on the environment.
New business models for clothes retailers. By re-introducing once-common services like clothes-
repair and maintenance, retailers could develop new revenue streams. Garments that were designed
for repair could be actively promoted and shops could also offer fashion upgrades.
Overall rise in prices. Customers may have to pay more for products that last twice as long.
Research into technological developments that would allow us to freshen clothes without washing,
sort clothes efficiently and recycle new fibres.
Improved infrastructure for clothing collection. Domestic waste-sorting is growing in the UK, and
used clothes and textiles could be collected in the same way that glass and paper are now picked up
on a weekly or fortnightly basis by local authorities.
Changes to government policy to promote the reduction of the environmental consequences of
clothes production, for example, through an eco-tax on product purchase.
New government-negotiated international agreements on trade to promote environmental and social
responsibility in supplier countries.

EcoTagging: Does Your Sweater Have a Baacode?

Companies such as Timberland and Patagonia have been working to provide this level of
sustainability information online and on clothes labels. And now another company has joined their
ranks: they show you the source of their wool right down to the sheep farm.
Check out Icebreaker, a New Zealand company that spins locally-sourced merino wool into technical
outerwear. They've developed what they call the "Baacode,"
Icebreaker, a New Zealand which is a unique number associated with each piece of
company that spins locally- clothing they sell. You go onto their Web site and enter the
sourced merino wool into code to see the exact farm where the wool came from, who
technical outerwear. They've runs it, etc. The company also provides information on their
developed what they call the
general guidelines for manufacturing ethics and animal
"Baacode," which is a unique
number associated with each welfare. This is definitely a step in the right direction. While
piece of clothing they sell. You go they don't reveal the carbon cost of their distribution from
onto their Web site and enter the New Zealand to France to Germany to Shanghai and then out
code to see the exact farm where to retailers, it's great to see a clothing company showing in
the wool came from, who runs it detail the impact of each phase of their product manufacture.
The only red flag was how they couched their manufacturing
ethics. More specifically, they encourage good working conditions, 3 meals a day, free lodging if
necessary, but with regards to pay, they only mandate minimum wage for their workers. Their
products are premium and affordable -- a rare combination -- so an incremental increase in the cost
of their product lines in return for paying premium wages in the actual manufacturing process would
be a worthwhile tradeoff.

E
cotagging: Fostering Transparency for Sustainable
Business
Consumers now expect sustainability and ecological sensitivity to be factored into the
cost of manufacturing and selling consumer goods. Corporations such as Patagonia, through their
Footprint Chronicles, and Timberland, with their nutrition label for social responsibility, have
started a major trend that pulls back the veil on the apparel industry, making us aware of the major
demands that the textile industry put on our world. It's not enough to just offset your purchases.
Through our purchasing decisions, we can alter how the industry operates.
The EcoTag for apparel, shown below in a draft format, was designed as a prototype to make
sustainability factors more transparent for purchasing decisions across all brands -- not just these
brave few who are striving to lead the industry. The ultimate goal of the EcoTag is to incent
corporations to make their sustainability measures accountable to their customers. ―Sustainability
grading‖ or other methods of ranking products, derived from ecotagging, would create new ways for
customers to evaluate the value of a product, while forcing corporations that have since been
uninterested in bringing sustainability practices to their businesses to change their behavior.

The front panel of the tag displays the standard SKUs for a product, as well as the costs of
offsets and recycling that have been factored into the product
price. With proper education of the
consumer at point of purchase,
the latent waste of the textiles
The back panel of the EcoTag gives a view into how a piece of
industry may be reduced and
apparel was sourced, produced, and shipped, as well as the
ideally replaced with more
average carbon cost and whether the clothing is organic, sustainable options
recycled, and/or biodegradable.

Ideally, the tag would be resized, printed, and affixed to goods in a way that had minimal impact on
the product‘s carbon footprint.
Without an industry-wide standard for this type of information, it will continue to be difficult for
consumers to make educated decisions about what they purchase and how their purchases will
influence the world. With proper education of the consumer at point of purchase, the latent waste
of the textiles industry may be reduced and ideally replaced with more sustainable options.

World of Dilemmas
Sustainability defines a new citizenry
As personal health becomes increasingly linked to community health, a new ―sustainable citizen‖ will
replace the so-called green consumer. Eco-friendly, low-impact, local and organic will be seen as part
of a healthy lifestyle. Sustainable citizens will participate in community-improvement efforts to
secure their own health and make their values heard through their purchases, daily behavior, online
activity and involvement in local community issues. Tools and practices will emerge to support
sustainability lifestyles—carbon footprint calculators, sustainability coaches, personal carbon
credits and online forums for personal sustainability strategies. Real-time monitoring of
environmental goods and services flows at the household, community and regional level is anticipated
within the decade.

Extreme longevity shifts perceptions of risk and opportunity

Breakthrough bioscience holds out the possibility of much longer lifespans in the next few decades.
In the meantime, many cultural analysts note that populations are effectively growing younger, as
social and economic aspects of midlife are extended and even childhood lasts longer: young adult s
are getting married later, having children later and adopting the material symbols of adulthood,
such as purchasing homes, later. While the social and political effects of engineered longevity may
not show up for decades, the expectation of longer lifespans may fundamentally change the way
people view the future and, in particular, risk.

Links between environment and health grow

Public views of health are moving away from the disease centered biomedical model toward a more
ecological view. This evolving perspective is supported by scientific evidence that where and how
people live their lives can have as great an impact on health as genetics, health maintenance and
medical interventions. A language of eco-health literacy will emerge over the next decade to frame
health concerns in these new terms.
Polarizing extremes
Though many will rally around common causes and decide to collaborate, anxieties about pollution,
climate change and health will solidify strongly-advocated opinions. In both the developed and
developing world, communities will use economic, social and political arsenals to protect their
positions and resources. Potential results range from obstructionism, to counter-activism to out-
and-out violence.
Self-interest is aligned with collective good
A fundamental principle of cooperative strategy is to link personal self-interest to the good of the
larger community. As new technologies and a new sociability make this link more obvious across many
domains from health and environment to wealth generation, security and even entertainment,
expect a proliferation of new commons experiments and innovative
Tools and practices will emerge
solutions to old commons problems. As understanding of these
to support sustainability
resources matures, people will realize that different kinds of
lifestyles—carbon footprint
resources will require different management and protection calculators, sustainability
strategies. In ―Capitalism 3.0: A Guide to Reclaiming the Commons,‖ coaches, personal carbon credits
economist Peter Barnes argues for the creation of a commons and online forums for personal
sector of the economy to make up for the limits of the private and sustainability strategies. Real-
government (public) sector when it comes to preserving natural time monitoring of
environmental goods and
capital and the rights of future generations. His proposed twin
services flows at the household,
engines of growth-corporate profit maximization and commons
community and regional level is
wealth creation-would allow for a more prosperous, secure and anticipated within the decade.
sustainable future.
Eco-markets face challenges
Using the marketplace to manage ecosystem disturbances, many
states, regions and countries will experiment with eco-trading exchanges for carbon, water pollution
and air pollution. These exchanges will be plagued by uncertainties in how to value ecosystem
services—how much is one acre of carbon-sequestering forest really worth?—as well as backlash
from emerging economies who question the exchange rates and the limits on their own development.
The result? Eco-markets may be a short-lived phenomenon. Nonetheless, valuation efforts will
exert pressure on companies and commerce to acknowledge environmental services, and insurance
and reinsurance industries may force the issue.
Eco-management practices and regulations proliferate
As the effects of climate change mount, both communities and corporations will step up efforts to
manage the ecosystem more effectively, focusing on ecosystem services such as carbon
sequestration and water quality management to more intangible services, such as the value of view-
scapes. They will look to science to provide precise measures and targets, but they will also conform
to top–down regulation as states set standards for everything from renewable fuels to personal
carbon emission limits.

Fragmented state practices

As climate change continues to alter ecosystems and spur changes in economic and political
practices, some states will find resistance more profitable and attractive. Some
might benefit from climate change: growing seasons may lengthen, conditions may enable more
productive practices and formerly inaccessible regions may open. Some, especially in the developing
world, will simply disregard pressure for green development, preferring rapid industrialization in
the race to strengthen economies and infrastructure, even engaging in ―greenmail‖—offering to
trade compliance for massive subsidies or economic favors. Meanwhile, many states will also pilot
green development tools and practices. Some may display a disregard for international IP rights,
pitting them against major companies and other countries, while others find themselves used as
testing grounds for new treatment and clean-up processes.

Collaborative science and open-source environmentalism

Participatory digital media tools and
connectivity will enable bottom–up mapping,
Nature-based models are becoming important in the monitoring and sharing of data, activities
design of products and control systems. Bio- mimetic and conditions related to the environment.
practices allow designers to take advantage of millions The emergence of universal protocols for
of years of evolution towards optimized structures, field research will facilitate and accelerate
and will appear with greater frequency in the shapes
these efforts. These networks will
of cars, buildings, even infrastructure.
integrate local knowledge and expertise
with professional insight, creating webs of
population based science and innovation and informed activism. As local self-interests align with
broader issues, these efforts will contribute to open-source environmental strategies and policy
making.

Nature becomes the guide to design

Nature-based models are becoming important in the design of products and control systems. Bio-
mimetic practices allow designers to take advantage of millions of years of evolution towards
optimized structures, and will appear with greater frequency in the shapes of cars, buildings, even
infrastructure. Biological models will take on increased importance in the management of resources,
ecosystems and traffic flow. The changing global climate may also force construction and oversight
of designer ecosystems in order to maintain important services despite a changing environment.

Decentralized authorities compete for voice and influence

A maelstrom of voices will vie for influence, control and power, under conditions where knowledge
and technologies are constantly changing. Surveillance and detection tools can force transparency
and accountability but can also enable fabricated ‗evidence‘ and spread misinformation. Communities
and consumers will challenge the notion of ‗externalities‘ and companies will need to rethink their
relationships with their stakeholders. Many will look to state authorities to adjudicate these
issues—whether through command-and-control legislation, new market and tax incentives or
overseeing natural resource damage claims— even as the state struggles to find its role in this
volatile climate.
Geo-politics adopts eco-politics
Anxieties about climate change, vulnerable natural resources, and protected private resources will
carve out a new landscape of geo-eco-politics. Environmental impacts ignore national borders, which
will encourage collaborative approaches but will also fuel tensions. Perpetrators of environmental
abuse do not necessarily feel the effects of their actions, as airstreams carry air pollution miles
away, disrupted eco-systems cripple neighboring eco-systems and IP theft and non-cooperation
undermine certain strategies. Environmental justice will acquire a global character, and international
diplomacy will be forced to manage reparations and environmental damage lawsuits. It is possible
that some countries will feel threatened enough to protect resources and enforce measures
violently.

Eco-tools build on bottom–up context awareness

New scientific and social practices—using sensor networks, bottom–up environmental monitoring,
collaborative pollution mapping and nested environmental models—will create a rapidly growing
awareness of our environment. This ―green panoptic on‖ may lead to a kind of ―planetary mark-up
language‖ not unlike the Web‘s XML, which will facilitate global communication about the state of
the planet. Scrutiny of products, chemicals and corporate behavior will come from the top down and
the bottom up, as centralized and distributed parties take advantage of surveillance tools.

Think local, act global

The interconnections between global climate change and local ecological instability, between overall
economic sustainability and community economic health will spur increased localism. Some
communities will bear the brunt of economic and environmental fluctuations—pollution hot-zones
created by cap-and-trade markets, disrupted agricultural seasons, non-potable water—and these
communities will protect themselves in surprising ways. Meanwhile, efforts to secure the stability
of local and regional ecologies and to integrate these systems with each other and with macro-
climates, will be increasingly important.

Higher (by)product standards

Augmented detection capabilities and pressure for
monitoring and regulation will combine to intensify
New scientific and social practices—using
restrictions on production, manufacturing and servicing. sensor networks, bottom–up
As more links between environment and DNA are environmental monitoring, collaborative
discovered, chemicals will receive greater institutional pollution mapping and nested
scrutiny and higher individual expectations. The entire environmental models—will create a
life-cycle of products will be examined, from inception to rapidly growing awareness of our
eventual degradation—from cradle to graveyard. environment. This “green panoptic on”
may lead to a kind of “planetary mark-up
However, outputs that cannot be used or reused—i.e.
language” not unlike the Web’s XML,
those in the ―graveyard‖—will incur penalties, and which will facilitate global
companies will be asked by regulators and consumers communication about the state of the
alike to find valuable uses for all products and by- planet. Scrutiny of products, chemicals
products. Cradle-to-cradle will be a commonplace and corporate behavior will come from
demand. the top down and the bottom up, as
centralized and distributed parties take
advantage of surveillance tools.
Rise of the eco-driven city-states
As urban and regional political leaders seek
decentralized approaches to sustainability, look for mega-cities and collections of leading-edge eco-
cities populated by the creative class to join climate change abatement efforts as semi-autonomous
units. Their size and complexity may demand customized and locally-overseen strategies. Some will
distinguish themselves as leading eco-cities, pioneering green strategies, boasting cleaner water and
air and accumulating the social and intellectual capital that sustainability innovation attract.

Extreme urbanization
For the first time in history, the majority of the population will be urban, not rural, and most of
these urban environments will be in developing countries. Slums and squatter communities will grow
in number and size. Lacking traditional resource-and care-delivery infrastructures, these urban
wildernesses will foster innovation. Mobile phones will enable new forms of collaboration.
Distributed urban users will pioneer sustainable-out-of-necessity business, development and living
strategies. Look for new market opportunities in marginalized and bottom-of-the-pyramid
populations.
The entire life-cycle of products
Increasing vulnerability will drive climate refugees and reshape will be examined, from inception
migration to eventual degradation—from
Close to 40% of the human population lives near coasts, and rises cradle to graveyard. However,
outputs that cannot be used or
in sea levels could devastate local and global economies. Natural
reused—i.e. those in the
disasters could cause mass migrations, disrupting neighboring
“graveyard”—will incur
countries, who could respond aggressively and violently. Many of penalties, and companies will be
the vulnerable areas have disadvantaged communities, which lack asked by regulators and
the resources to properly safeguard against these hazards. consumers alike to find valuable
uses for all products and by-
Digital natives define the next generation of civic engagement products. Cradle-to-cradle will be
a commonplace demand.
As youth media literacy emerges, watch for young people to apply
media skills to social, political and environmental issues. They will
podcast, blog, tag, rate and review companies, share information and connect online to collaborate.
Their evolving literacy could catalyze new forms of civic action as networked publics, commons-
based property regimes and emergent self-organization bypass traditional government with ad-hoc
interventions and distributed solutions.

Open-source practices help diffuse sustainable building

The energy required to maintain commercial and residential buildings accounts for more greenhouse
gas output than the global transportation network. Building and urban development practices are set
to experience innovation around energy efficiency, water use, information transparency and health
effects. Biomimicry, micro-energy production and ―zero footprint‖ designs will become watchwords.
Watch for do-it-yourself (DIY) home improvement mobs and architectural design knowledge
commons to change home building.

Built environments get smart

RFID, tags, embedded sensors and ubiquitous communication computing will help animate and
empower built environments. Products and places will bear user-generated information, which will be
accessible through sensing devices and be capable of gathering information. Embedded micro- and
nano-electronics make it possible for previously ―dumb‖ materials to sense usage and activity
patterns, and communicate this information to other systems. The environmental uses are
significant, ranging from finer control of energy consumption to measurement and potential
mitigation of ―sick building syndrome.‖
The intersection of economics and ecoscience creates chaos before clarity
The intersection of ecoscience and economics manifests in the growing market presence of
environmental products and services, but also as a new way of understanding value. Ecosystem
valuation describes the importance of the natural world using the language of costs and benefits,
forcing governments and businesses to look at the broader ecological picture.These valuations are
controversial: they are often ambiguous, with conflicting metrics, and environmentalists and
economists alike have raised important questions about their ethics and efficacy. For example,
critics of cap-and-trade schemes charge that these ‗carbon indulgences‘ create pollution hotzones
and invite market corruption. Moreover, this is a field in flux—new scientific discoveries could
rapidly change the rules for up-and coming services like carbon offsets and sequestration.

Eco-brands and offerings expand markets

As consumers express eco-friendly preferences through their purchases, companies will find
increasing opportunities to create eco-brands, identify market niches and build their eco-friendly
reputations. Some companies already label their products with the environmental impact of their
production. Consumers, to maintain freedom to manage their own environmental footprints, will value
information over promises. However, companies will face the dilemma of identifying the most
relevant information (carbon footprint, local-community impact, equitable practices), calculating
this information (using what methods?) and finding palatable ways to present it. Meanwhile, the
sustainability and ‗zero-impact‘ craze may fuel a backlash, as some people see environmentally
damaging products and practices as elite, luxurious or just downright more comfortable.

Smart networking enables new activism

Smart networking practices, personal empowerment and abundant connectivity will stir a whirlwind
of new activism,often challenging traditional roles, responsibilities and realms of influence.
Increasing lightweight venture funding and social entrepreneurship will produce creative synergies,
especially in urban slums. Some shareholders will pressure companies to incorporate sustainable
practices, and some parties will become shareholders for the precise purpose of doing so. Amplified
by social networking technologies, the voices of stakeholders will louden and, connected together,
they‘ll be able to champion their own causes. Among these
Some companies already label evolving efforts lies regenerative commerce, which sits at the
their products with the intersection of intangibles and cooperative strategies. Coined
environmental impact of their by Jon Ramer, the term regenerative commerce refers to
production. Consumers, to values- based commerce that integrates social networks and
maintain freedom to manage
their values with transactional networks to retain and grow
their own environmental
footprints, will value information local wealth. In this mix, expect labor to enter the forefront
over promises. of sustainability debates.

Design-based manufacturing foments a factory revolution

As rapid fabrication technologies like 3D inkjet printers and laser sintering move from prototyping
to production, they will likely trigger a transformation in manufacturing. They will make factories
more flexible, short-run and responsive to rapidly shifting markets. More important, they may well
unleash a vast wave of design innovation and ultimately move some forms of manufacturing to the
desktop, where peer-to-peer exchanges of design are as common as music swapping is today. New
production technologies and processes may drive demand for various wastes as base production
material, which will open new markets and change the rules of waste regulation.

Financial reform will tackle intangibles

The next decade is likely to see a host of financial reforms in response to natural and social crises
that will create volatility in the financial community. Some will be innovations that extend existing
financial practice such as microfinance or Islamic finance, but more will use multiple capitals—
intellectual, social and natural—to reduce the risk associated with uncertainty in the environment.
These will be linked to growing corporate social responsibility requirements and increasing demands
for transparency across both corporations and communities.

A score of scorecards
External scrutiny and evaluation will take diverse forms and functions, but one thing most methods
will do is become public.The field of corporate responsibility ratings will range from self-organized,
bottom-up ratings by networks of consumers and small business (such as the World Index for
Social and Environmental Responsibility and BuyBlue.org) to top–down, designed evaluation schemes
by formal institutions like GEMI, Dow Jones and the Financial Times. Metrics for intangibles and
alternative indicators like employee wellness, civic participation and carbon footprint per worker will
find their way into rating schemes.

Green is green, toward value-creation

As companies navigate the storm of pressure from various voices—consumers, regulators, partner
and rival companies, empowered communities, employees, advocacy groups—they must balance their
responsibility to their shareholders and pursue profits. Successful companies will discover points of
synergy, where sustainable, eco-friendly and equitable practices create tangible value. Simple
revisions in operations to improve energy efficiency can yield immense energy savings in the long
run. Protecting and investing in employees can increase productivity and reduce turnover rate.
These strategies will become more sophisticated, measurable and mainstream. Companies who take
initiative to adopt and innovate these reforms will earn respect and quiet criticism— as long as
companies remain honest and ransparent.

Employees as a driver of corporate sustainability

As health care continues to be a major cost to employers,it will be treated as a commons—a shared
resource that is susceptible to depletion. While health and wellness become more directly linked to
physical environment, work and the physical workplace will become a focus for sustainable systems,
conditions and practices. Watch for business services based on FairSource practices and European
models of work shaping those in the United States.

Consumer collectives organize around low-impact commerce

Collective purchasing by groups of Chinese consumers online provides lessons for establishing new
relationships between consumers, retailers and manufacturers. Collectives will include community-
and neighborhood-based buying groups, as well as formally organized corporate employee buying
clubs. As personal sustainability practices and values permeate households and the workplace, look
for these groups to drive market growth for low-impact, green products and services.
Natural systems redesign business interactions
In addition to serving as inspiration for designing new products and functional services, natural
systems offer important lessons in organizational processes ranging from team process to collective
intelligence and collaborative problem solving. Beginning with experiments in bioteaming, companies
will use natural models, from cellular communication to swarms and flocking, to understand more
emergent forms of collaboration.

Reinsurers as regulators
Reinsurance companies, which provide insurance to traditional insurance companies, pay extremely
close attention to emerging risks that might end up causing catastrophic events. The top two global
reinsurance companies—Munich Re and Swiss Re—started taking climate change seriously over a
decade ago, and have begun to charge higher rates to insurance companies that cover areas most at
risk of global warming-related disasters, such as coastal developments in hurricane-prone regions.
These higher rates get passed along to consumers, or sometimes even force insurance companies to
leave certain areas.

Do-it-yourself infrastructures create opportunities and gaps

As lightweight infrastructure components for communications,water, power and transportation
diffuse in the developing world, a variety of strategies will emerge for local, small-scale
implementation—from regenerative commerce strategies that emphasize new commons, to private
investment that looks more like traditional chambers of commerce. Both will create opportunities
for local and global entrepreneurs, but will also leave gaps that will not only deny access to some but
also require adaptable strategies by those who want to use the infrastructures for their own
enterprises.

Energy infrastructure (in)security

Energy will be reframed in a variety of ways, as different parties recognize their inevitable
dependence (and interdependence) on the functioning of numerous overlaid energy systems—fuel
pipelines, electric grids, etc. Some states will see energy as an economic and political weapon of
coercion,domestically and internationally. However, insurgent groups and other non-state actors—
called ―global guerillas‖ in John Robb's book ―Brave New War‖—will see energy disruption as an
effective strategy for crippling states. Using technologies, innovations in weaponry, IED‘s, online
networks, crime and eco-terrorism, they will target centralized energy grids, which,when they fail,
fail catastrophically. Many will find that maintaining energy as a commons—sanctioned from the top
down,monitored from the bottom up and distributed in a network fashion—will render systems more
resilient to these shocks. The strength of these networks as opposed to hierarchies may inspire
other restructuring of crucial economic, social,environmental and business resources.

Immersive media helps reframe of energy strategies

Understanding the long-term impacts and day-to-day realities of energy choices will play a key role
in developing successful strategies. Immersive experiences can provide consumers and business
decision-makers with concrete experiences in living the future consequences of present day energy
decisions.
Alternative energy up, demand down
Renewable, non-fossil fuel energy sources are beginning to see a renaissance, and are likely to
become a much greater part of the global energy footprint in the near future. Familiar power
technologies like wind and solar will see increased cost benefits from material and manufacturing
technology advances, such as lightweight composites and organic-polymer electronics. Less-well-
known alternative technologies, such as Hydrokinetic energy and solar-thermal energy, will also
attract increasing attention from investors and governments looking for wild-card breakthroughs.
Meanwhile, ongoing innovation in energy efficiency has radical benefits over time. With small annual
boosts in efficiency, by 2100 ten billion can live as well as the top billion today, while using less
power.

ANNEXURE 01

E
nvironmentally Friendly Apparel: The Consumer’s
Perspective
As ―environmentally friendly‖ claims and products have increased in the marketplace,
consumers have become more aware of eco-friendly apparel. However, the increase in awareness
does not translate into increased importance or changed purchase intent among consumers. Both
Cotton Incorporated‘s research and industry studies indicate that when deciding to buy apparel,
consumers continue to consider other factors, such as price, more important than environmental
impact.

Cotton Incorporated‘s Lifestyle Monitor™ in 2006 surveyed 4,000 U.S. consumers aged 16 to 70;
the survey was conducted via telephone by Bellomy Research. In addition, 2,800 U.S. consumers
aged 18 to 54 were surveyed on specific issues in March and December 2006; the survey was
conducted via the Internet by Bellomy Research.
Awareness Increases as Action Declines

Consumers‘ awareness of environmentally friendly products has increased in the past few years, as
more products are labeled with ―green‖ terminology. In a December 2006 survey, one third of
consumers said they were more aware of organic apparel and home textiles ―today‖ than ―a year
ago.‖ However, the choice to actively seek out environmentally friendly clothing remains restricted
to a small niche group of consumers. When asked how much effort they put into finding
environmentally friendly clothing, only 5% of consumers said they put a lot of effort into looking,
statistically the same share as in a March 2006 survey. In addition, half as many consumers (15%,
down 16 percentage points in nine months) said they would be bothered if they purchased an item
they believed to be environmentally friendly and later discovered that the claim was incorrect.

Ironically, as environmental claims have become more common and shoppers have become more
aware, consumer concern about environmental issues in their purchase decisions has declined. The
majority of consumers are concerned about some environmental issues, such as child labor (67%)
and water quality (64%); however, from March to December 2006, consumer concern about issues
such as food additives and fabric treated with dyes declined. Significantly more consumers said
they were concerned about rising prices at retail than the environmental friendliness of their food
or clothing.

Ironically, as environmental
Relative Importance Remains Low claims have become more
common and shoppers have
National research conducted by Frank About Women indicates that become more aware, consumer
concern about environmental
when women are deciding to buy apparel, the most important
issues in their purchase decisions
factors they consider are price, quality, and style. Most women say
has declined.
they don‘t want to change their lives, sacrifice quality, or pay more
for green products.

Consistently, the majority of consumers are most concerned about price when shopping for clothing,
while only a small share consider environmental issues to be important. According to Cotton
Incorporated‘s Lifestyle Monitor™, environmental friendliness has remained the least important
factor in consumers‘ apparel purchase decisions for over a decade. When purchasing apparel, 87%
of consumers consider price to be the most important factor, followed by fabric content (51%), and
laundering instructions (50%). Fewer than a third (30%) consider environmental friendliness to be
important, down significantly from 1995 (by 6 percentage points). Separate research by the NPD
Group confirms the importance of factors such as price among apparel shoppers, finding that price
is a key purchase motivator (43%), following style (62%) and comfort (44%).

Consumer Confusion

"All other components of the value equation being equal, price is often the deciding factor,
particularly in consumer electronics, household appliances, sporting goods, outdoor grills, and of
course trendy apparel."
—Marshal Cohen, Why Consumers Do What They Do (2006)

Perhaps the decline in importance of environmental friendliness to consumers is due to their

confusion over the profusion of ―eco-friendly‖ claims being made at retail. For example, only one
third of consumers correctly understand the terms ―renewable‖ and ―sustainable.‖ However,
consumers do relate to ―natural‖ products, including natural fibers. According to the Lifestyle
Monitor, whether or not consumers consider environmental friendliness as a purchase driver, cotton
is their preferred fiber. Additional research shows that consumers consider cotton to be the
safest fiber for the environment, with 66% calling it ―extremely safe.‖ Consumers even say they are
willing to pay more for natural fibers such as cotton, and this willingness to pay more is significantly
higher among consumers who consider the environment when shopping for clothing (72%) than
among shoppers overall (62%).
Perhaps the decline in
importance of environmental
friendliness to consumers is
due to their confusion over the
profusion of “eco-friendly”
claims being made at retail.
For example, only one third of
consumers correctly
understand the terms
“renewable” and
“sustainable.” However,
consumers do relate to
“natural” products, including
natural fibers. According to
the Lifestyle Monitor, whether
or not consumers consider
Conclusion environmental friendliness as
a purchase driver, cotton is
Although consumers are more aware of environmentally friendly their preferred fiber.
apparel, those who consider it important to look for and buy such
products remain a niche market. Factors such as price continue to be the driving force in most
consumers‘ apparel purchases. However, whether or not they care about environmental friendliness,
consumers continue to prefer natural fibers such as cotton.
Honda: “plant this letter”.

Green is the new Ad. As part of its new drive to raise the green-creed on its lawn and garden
vehicles, Honda sent out a direct mail letter that literally grows. Once soaked in water and planted
in soil, the seeds inside the paper itself grow into wildflowers. Though one could fairly easily argue
the environmental implications of a direct mail letter (the creation of more paper, regardless of it‘s
biodegradability or green purpose, uses chemicals and expends energy… I‘m just saying the romantic
in me loves the beautiful idea of this letter:

Brain-stormed by London, UK agency Inferno and copywritten by Jaime Diskin, they really seem to
have walked their talk on this one: the envelope and paper were 100% recycled and acid free and
the inks were green-friendly as well.

There‘s a certain green simplicity going on here. Keep in mind this isn‘t the first time something like
this had been done; earlier this year Bogle Bartle Hegarty Asia created plantable tags for Levi‘s
Eco Jeans (made from 100% organic cotton) that had the whole paper-with-wildflower-seeds thing
going on. Still, an idea this deserves to be re-envisioned. Plus, the concept of viable seeds embedded
in paper existed before either of these campaigns and neither of these agencies invented it.
C
ase study - Levis

Best Practices for the Planet.

Our Restricted Substance List set a new standard for how the apparel industry manages the use of
chemicals.

Clean Water.

Our Global Effluent Requirements established the highest industry wastewater standards across
our factories.
Global Supplier Compliance.

Our Social and Environmental Sustainability (SES) Guidebook lets our suppliers know how to meet
our high standards.

Our commitment to sustainability goes far beyond regulatory compliance or minimizing the
environmental impact of our business practices. We build sustainability into everything we do, so
that our profitable growth helps restore the planet.

Levi Strauss & Co has been embarking on a pioneering path to make sustainability an integral part of
everything we do to create clothing all over the world. Our inspiration came from our own
experience promoting ethical labor standards around the globe. Just as our groundbreaking Terms
of Engagement changed the supply chain landscape for our suppliers worldwide, we wanted our
environmental sustainability efforts to raise the bar for every company.

Responsibility for sustainability goes far beyond mere regulatory compliance or sound business
practices. While we are proud that our environmental policies are some of the most comprehensive
in the industry, we aspire to something larger. We have a vision of sustainability that ambitiously
aims to restore environmental health to the planet.
Sustainability from cradle to grave

Our vision stems from a deep understanding of the entire product lifecycle of our products — from
time our cotton is first planted until the worn-out clothes are placed in a landfill. Our study of the
impact of a pair of Levi‘s® 501 jeans and Dockers® Original Khakis provides the touchstone for our
sustainability practices in the years ahead. Understanding our own impact has allowed us to focus on
two key phases — cotton and consumer use — and reduce the impact in four areas critical to apparel
manufacturing: energy, water, chemicals and materials.

Making sustainability a global responsibility

The next level of responsibility for sustainability isn‘t easy. It requires a long-term plan with
measurable, targeted milestones, honest self- and third-party assessment, thoughtful product
development and innovative public policy. We‘re working with partners and competitors to develop
the next generation of global standards and goals. Our leadership involvement with organizations
like the Better Cotton Initiative and Business for Social Responsibility allows us to share ideas and
affect critical change while learning from our peers. View a list of all of our partnerships.
Energy

We are committed to achieving carbon neutrality and moving to the use of 100% renewable energy
in our operations and our supply chain.
Water

We are decreasing water usage and improving water quality in significant, measurable ways.
Chemicals
We are minimizing the environmental impact from chemicals used in all stages of our product
lifecycle.

Materials
We are committed to becoming a zero-waste company offering consumers more sustainable
products.

Re-Use
One of our biggest opportunities for reducing the environmental impact of a pair of Levi‘s® or
Dockers® Khakis occurs after we have turned it over to the consumer.

Our lifecycle assessment revealed that 58% of the energy and 45% of the water used during the
lifetime of a pair of Levi‘s ® jeans occurs during the consumer use phase. We also learned that how
our consumers care for their clothes can greatly reduce the climate change impact of our products:
Consumers can decrease the climate change impact of their Levi‘s® by about 32% if they wash their
jeans once every two weeks. They can further decrease the environmental impact by 48% by
washing their jeans once a month.
They can also make a difference if they wash their clothes in cold water.

This is huge and we know it. So we‘ve initiated a global dialogue with consumers about how to care
for their clothing.
Our lifecycle We recently launched A Care Tag for our Planet to educate consumers
assessment about how caring for their clothes affects the environment. The new
revealed that 58%
garment care tags encourage consumers to ―Machine wash cold; line dry
of the energy and
45% of the water when possible; donate to Goodwill.‖
used during the We‘ve partnered with Goodwill in an effort to encourage consumers to
lifetime of a pair of increase the lifecycle of a pair of jeans by donating them instead of
Levi’s ® jeans contributing to the 23.8 billion pounds of clothing that end up in landfills
occurs during the each year.
consumer use We‘ve partnered with the Alliance to Save Energy and Procter & Gamble,
phase. We also
makers of Tide Coldwater, to encourage consumers to save energy and
learned that how
our consumers care money by washing their jeans in cold water.
for their clothes
can greatly reduce And we are following our own advice. In 2008, for example, we donated
the climate change more than 200,000 pairs of recycled jeans to insulate the newly reopened
impact of our California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, helping the building earn
products the highest possible environmental rating.
The Future Fashion Industry –ecouterre

Predicting the future, like spotting trends, is a tricky proposition, but that hasn‘t stopped people—
including us—from attempting to squint beyond the veil. The latest sartorial crystal-ball slingers,
Levi Strauss & Co. and the U.K. nonprofit Forum for the Future, have jointly released a report
painting four possible scenarios of what the trillion-dollar global apparel, accessories, and luxury
goods market will look like in 2025. You don‘t have to wade through reams of dull statistics to get
the gist of Fashion Futures‘ call to action for the industry, however. A quartet of digestible
animated videos make envisioning these futures a cinch, from a world where slow fashion reigns
supreme to one where production is localized to the point of xenophobia.
SLOW IS BEAUTIFUL

The first possible future presents a world of political collaboration and global trade, marred only by
a ―gray economy‖ that exists for people who refuse to conform to the new, slower ideal. People own
fewer but higher-quality clothing, clothes are cared for sans chemicals, and vintage or secondhand
pieces are well-circulated.
People own fewer but higher-quality clothing and vintage pieces are well-circulated.

Most workers are paid a living wage, used clothes are shipped and remanufactured in Japan, and
digital tagging helps us keep track on where our clothes come from and the impact they‘ve had.
People also don ―smart‖ clothes, which monitor health and wellness.

COMMUNITY COUTURE
Although the world in the second scenario is struggling to cope with climate change and the ensuing
resource shortages, community bonds remain strong and geared toward self-sufficiency. Because of
the high costs of raw materials and disrupted supply chains, the production of new clothing has
plummeted dramatically.
―Make do and mend‖ becomes our mantra once again and nothing is disposed of.

The clothes we wear are now either secondhand, handmade, on the black market, or from ―clothing
libraries‖ that rent sought-after looks. ―Make do and mend‖ becomes our mantra once again and
nothing is disposed of—when we‘re done with our clothes, we sell them back for reuse.

SCENARIO 3: TECHNO -CHIC

TECHNO-CHIC

In this prosperous, high-tech utopia, fashion is fast, lightweight, and inexpensive. Our clothes are
just as technologically savvy, comprising advanced yet low-impact materials that incorporate
nanotechnology and lab-grown components. Three-dimensional body scanners allow us to try on
clothes in interactive mirrors, while tour operators arrange ―holiday wardrobe‖ packages that
include a selection of local fashion on your arrival—all pre-selected virtually, of course.

Our clothes comprise advanced yet low-impact materials that incorporate

nanotechnology.

Clothing is now made by machines, rather than people, which poses the downside of
underemployment in the manufacturing industry. Modular clothing, produced in China, is delivered to
stores, where you can customize them as you wish. (Likewise, crowd-sourced fashion, which is voted
upon online before it goes into production, reduces overproduction and wastage.) When our clothes
no longer suit our needs, they are composted, disassembled, or remanufactured.
PATCHWORK PLANET

Divided into economic and cultural ―blocs‖ with Asia at the fore, this future faces strong nationalist
tendencies, along with conflict over dwindling resources. On the upside, material scarcity has
spurred innovations such as clothes grown from bacteria cellulose and coatings that render
garments self-cleaning.Fabrics become exclusive to their locale: bamboo in Asia, flax in India, and
wool in Australia. The way we care for our clothes also differs according to region—some blocs have
developed waterless washing machines, while others use coatings that limit the need for cleaning.

c
Because clothes are now made in regional factories, they reach us more quickly. Xenophobia is
rampant, however, and in most of the Middle East, Western clothing is verboten.

onclusion
The concept of Eco-tagging is in the infant stage and few companies have taken
the bold step of willingly stripping naked the source of all elements that go into
producing their product. These companies have envisioned that the future of
business is directly related to the education they impart to their customers. The concept of ―Open-
manufacturing‖ is gaining ground and customers are welcoming it wholeheartedly. Understand my
product before you buy it is the mantra such bold companies are chanting. By being open, they are
inviting customers into their fold. Here they see a new revenue model – a business advantage.

By doing so, they claim they are the soldiers of environment and they care to protect it. A new
revolution – slowly but surely- is unfolding.
R
eferences

1. Environment, Green business consideration, Green eco fashion – Goodwill International

Industries
2. GPN greenhouse product news, Around the Industry article ,Dec 7,2007
3. David Sherwin, post on Ecotagging, Sustainability
4. Fibre2fashion.com
5. Green environment- Shapes and Colors
6. How the Fashion Industry is greening up its Operation-by Rachel King,Fast Company
7. Fashioning a new world by Loren Phillips
8. Levis Strauss & co, Levis.com
9. Forum for the future, fashion in 2025 by Jasmin Malik Chua
10. 2010 International awards on human development innovation – Eco tagging by Claire
Edwards
11. Changeorder.typepad.com
12. Institute for the Future for Global Environment Management, California, USA
13. Times of India, 06.June.2010