INTRO
We live in a constantly changing world, however, sometimes it feels that changing things is extremely difficult. Isn’t it strange that from one year to the next a new piece of technology or a political event can completely change our lives, but then when looking at an industry like fashion it seems impossible to change it?
We are living through a period of history that will leave a strong mark on the world. The economic crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted economies worldwide, and will forever change the way we travel and think of disease. The world experienced lockdowns and restrictions that were completely new for most of its population, which halted hospitality, and retail, but accelerated trends like remote work and digital commerce. The pandemic also highlighted existing inequalities.
Climate change is reaching dangerous levels, and political inaction is leading to a surge in activism globally, driven by grassroots movements, youth-led initiatives like Fridays for Future, and increasing public awareness of the urgent need for sustainable policies and practices.
Black Lives Matter activism has become a powerful force over the last decade, catalysing global awareness and prompting significant discussions and actions toward racial justice and police reform. The Me Too movement gained widespread prominence over the past decade, has profoundly impacted societal norms by empowering survivors to share their stories and advocating for systemic changes to address and prevent sexual harassment and assault.
In parallel, tensions and wars have shaped the international landscape. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 is still a major conflict, leading to humanitarian crises and political tensions. This war has affected our every day lives through energy prices and government policies.
Ongoing conflicts in the Middle East are bringing people from all corners of the world to protest and speak up. In the US, there hadn’t been such involved collective action since the Vietnam war. Students are camping in universities demanding institutions to stop the violence causing clashes with police.
How is activism related to Fashion, and how can we bring together the force of collective action to bring change?
WHAT INFLUENCES CHANGE IN FASHION
Fashion is a constantly changing and very dynamic industry influenced by various factors, including pricing, regulation, activism, consumer demands, sustainability trends, and global trade deals.
Pricing strategies that are always looking for the cheapest deals have brought fashion production to the global south, where the cost of labour is low. A brand’s price strategy will determine its accessibility and market segmentation, which will then shape trends through affordability by most people, or exclusivity for only a very selected group of people. In parallel to brand’s decisions, global trade deals affect supply chains, tariffs, and market access, influencing the availability and cost of products worldwide.
Regulatory frameworks, such as labor laws and environmental regulations, shape compliance practices, and can have direct effects on countries of sourcing or choice of materials.
Activism and consumer demands in Fashion, which has a strong presence on social media, has raised awareness about ethical issues, prompting brands to adopt more responsible practices.
New technologies have also affected the availability of what brands can offer, driving innovations and personalized experiences, which are shaping up the industry.
Combined, all these elements interact to continuously reshape the fashion landscape.
COMMUNITY AND COLLECTIVE ACTION
Alongside the external factors that influence change comes community and collective action. Community is at the heart of change. When we organize people with shared values and common goals, action is set into motion. This notion is reflected in the concept of a Wellbeing Economy and the International Development Goals, which we touched on in our previous article. According to the IDGs Framework, courage, creativity, optimism, and perseverance are the ingredients required to enable change.
As the landscape of fashion shifts, we see community and collective action take shape. University incubators are fostering space for fashion innovation, sustainable fashion activists such as Aditi Mayer, who uses storytelling to speak on social & environmental justice in fashion, charities like The OR Foundation, are creating community around repurposing second-hand clothing through a justice-led circular economy in Ghana, and non-traditional media are reporting stories at the intersections of art, climate, and culture.
Earthrise Studio is an impact driven media company and collective telling stories through campaigns that centre people & the planet. Earthrise saw that traditional media lacked real storytelling from underrepresented voices with the power to create real change. Their work is optimistic and creative, attracting global companies to invest in future solutions, enabling change.
A recent project from Earthrise called O Futuro é Indigéna featured portraits of prominent Indigenous leaders to celebrate Brazil’s indigenous resistance movement. In collaboration with WeTransfer, Earthrise raised over 20K for Choose Earth, a fundraising & awareness-raising campaign of the struggles of Indigenous Peoples in Brazil face within the context of the climate crisis.
Fueled by a deep respect for the earth, Indigenous communities are important activists in the climate crisis. Indigenous communities protect 80% of the world’s biodiversity while representing 5% of the world’s population. It’s important to amplify Indigenous voices, who continue to show courage and perseverance in the face of fossil fuel lobbyists and environmental effects from climate change to their biome.
ACTIVIST ORGANISATIONS IN FASHION
Activist organisations in the fashion industry have been working really hard to drive awareness and change towards more sustainable and ethical practices. The most famous and far-reaching group is Fashion Revolution, founded in response to the Rana Plaza disaster in 2013, which is advocating for greater transparency within the industry, and organising Fashion Revolution Week every year, with events and activities led by groups all around the world. Their annual #WhoMadeMyClothes campaign encourages consumers to demand more accountability from brands regarding their supply chain practices, pushing for better working conditions and fair wages for garment workers worldwide.
The Clean Clothes Campaign focuses on labor rights and works tirelessly to expose and challenge the exploitation and unsafe conditions faced by workers in garment factories, particularly in developing countries.
On the topic of environmental sustainability, there are a lot of organisations that are trying to shift the habits of production through activism. In 2011, the organization GreenPeace launched a process of accountability through GreenPeace's Detox Campaign, a campaign designed to raise awareness of brands on their environmental impact, ask them for transparency along the supply chain and make consumers aware of the dangers of fast fashion, which led to the establishment of ZDHC (Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals), a program dedicated to promoting a more responsible use of chemicals.
Collective Fashion Justice is a not-for-profit which exists to create a fashion system that upholds total ethics, by prioritising the life of all animals; human and non-human, and the planet. They work closely with education institutions and fashion organisations to eliminate the use of animal products.
The list of amazing organisations goes on for a lot longer. Some that we would like to mention include: the Fair Wear Foundation, Fair Trade, Remake, New Standard Institute, Cotton Diaries, Atmos, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Fashion for Good, Fibershed, Global Fashion Agenda, Sustainable Fashion Forum, Slow Factory Foundation.
These organisations advocate for the implementation of fair and human practices, the reduction of waste, the use of sustainable materials, and the adoption of circular fashion principles. They engage in various activities, from policy advocacy to public protests, to raise awareness and drive legislative changes. These activist organizations aim to transform the fashion industry into a more responsible and sustainable sector, highlighting the interconnectedness of environmental and social justice issues.
ARTIVISM
You’ve heard of activism but what is artivism and how does it enable meaningful change?
Artvisim is the practice of using art and creative expression as a means of social change, which spans disciplines. Art is a powerful vehicle for change — unifying us through creativity which can be seen in different periods of art across human history. Steve Lambert, a co-founder of The Centre for Artistic Activism notes that, “when you start looking closely, every successful activist movement involves creativity, culture, and innovation”. From Pablo Picasso’s anti-war narratives hidden within his work to the pink pussy hats of the 2017 Women’s March, art has always served as a poignant tool of self-expression and resistance.
Today, many artists are using their mediums to speak on the intersection of the environment, fashion, and culture. Atmos is a platform & print magazine that brings community voices to the forefront. Featuring stories & inspiration on environment, community, and culture, art is a tool used to disseminate these ideas and spread inspiration with positive impact. Check out Atmos content here.
Photographs by Elizaveta Porodina
The latest issue of Amtos features photographer Elizaveta Porodina, who uses the adaptive nature of fashion to showcase our ability to change form. Inspired by biomimicry, her art serves as a reminder of our closeness to the natural world.
Guerra de la Paz is a collective of Cuban artists working with uncommon materials and discarded textiles to create sculptures and installations that deliver environmental and political messaging. In the work below, the artist sourced the clothing directly from Haitian-American businesses involved in the “pepe” trade, an active market for second-hand clothes in Haiti. Exploring themes of cultural & historical significance, the art questions modern consumer society.
No More Fast Fashion Lab is a community center and circularity lab created by The OR Foundation aiming to provide circular product design and skills training to local designers and fabricators. Located in Accra, Ghana near the Kantamanto Markets, designers are upcycling secondhand clothing that floods the Kantamanto markets from the Global North. Determined to create beauty from trash, designers use fashion acts as a powerful tool of resistance against waste colonialism.
Artwork by Guerra de la Paz
Ibrahem Hasan is a visual artist who created Yesterday, come closer, an art book that attempts to consolidate Palestinian collective memory, documenting eco-colonialism and land degeneration of Gaza and the West Bank. All proceeds are being donated to grassroots organizations and ground efforts in Palestine.
For artist Danié Gómez-Ortigoza, hair braiding art is her tool of resistance and unity in the climate crisis. At the Aspen Ideas Climate Summit, Danié held a braiding circle, using the practice to facilitate meaningful conversation, reminding the audience, “you are here to design the future”. Danié holds braiding circles once a month where women braid eachother’s hair.
While the connection between braids & the climate crisis may not seem obvious, the practice is deeply powerful. Braiding is a slow connected process that allows you to slow down — a time to nurture & connect. Imagine if we all came together to solve the climate crisis, Danié imagines harmonious and collaborative decision making.
Photograph by Danié Gómez-Ortigoza
FASHION FOR ACTIVISM
Fashion isn’t only an industry that has gained attention by activists, but it is also a tool that has been used widely to communicate issues through clothing. Fashion Activism’s aim is to promote, impede, direct, or intervene into social arrangements of dress to lay claim to a certain political agenda as well as influence systemic change within the fashion industry.
Fashion Activism has existed as a form of rebellion since a very long time. Clothes are used to negotiate and resist occupation or colonial forces of assimilation as a form of protest. By wearing traditional dress populations challenge the standards that have been imposed onto them.
Most recently, Australian actor Cate Blanchett’s used her red carpet presence at Cannes Film Festival to turn her black and white dress with an inner green lining into a Palestinian flag, a clear symbol of pro-Palestinian protest. Blanchett is also a proponent of repurposing fashion and re-wearing couture pieces – a practice she has said “should be completely unremarkable”.
A very outspoken Fashion Activist is designer Céline Semaan, of Slow Factory, which we have mentioned above. Items in her collections that have been used as means of fashion activism include a 'Dignity Key' necklace showing support for displaced Middle Eastern refugees, a 'Banned' scarf showing the impact of President Trump's Muslim ban, and a '1st Amendment Flight Jacket' collaboration with ACLU, featuring the First Amendment text in Arabic, standing up to the rise in islamophobia in the United States and hate crimes against American Muslims.
Another powerful example of using the power of fashion to communicate climate change and the mass displacement of people is Dress for our Time. The dress is created out of a decommissioned UNHCR refugee tent from Zaatari Camp, Jordan, that once housed a family.
CONCLUSION: HOW CAN YOU INFLUENCE CHANGE
We all have the power to influence change. Whether it’s getting involved with one of the many organizations listed, creating a community space to cultivate conversation, connectivity, and creativity, or wearing clothes as a form of resistance — fashion and art serve as powerful tools for collective action. Fashion is a dynamic industry that’s changing with our world, but we have the power to shape it.
Until next time friends,
Stay diligent x