Sustainability
How fashion can do better for people and the planet.
Highlights

What’s Blocking the Rise of More Sustainable Materials?

Weaker-than-expected demand for Swedish textile recycler Renewcell’s first commercial volumes of recycled cellulose pulp has sent the company’s stock price plummeting and highlighted broader hurdles challenging efforts to lessen fashion’s environmental footprint.

Case Studies & Reports

Case Study

Case Study | How to Avoid Another Rana Plaza

Analysis

Widespread Inaction on Sustainability Eclipses Progress at Fashion’s Biggest Companies

Case Study

Case Study | How to Talk to Customers About Fashion’s Dirty Secrets

Latest News & Analysis

Fashion’s Renewable Power Play

Bestseller and H&M Group have pledged $100 million to help develop a renewable-energy project in Bangladesh, a possible template for more meaningful investment in decarbonising the industry.

A Controversial Alternative to Fashion’s Coal Addiction

Big brands like H&M Group, Inditex and Nike are turning to biomass like wood pellets and agricultural waste in a bid to get the world’s dirtiest fossil fuel out of energy-intensive manufacturing processes. Climate groups say it’s not any better.

What Fashion Should Watch at COP 28

With global temperatures reaching new highs and time running out for brands to deliver on their environmental commitments, here’s what fashion leaders need to know ahead of the start of the UN’s annual climate summit in Dubai Thursday.

Don’t Believe What Consumers Say When It Comes to Sustainability

A growing body of consumer surveys suggests interest in sustainable consumption is reaching a tipping point. Those surveys are deeply flawed, writes Kenneth P. Pucker.

Resale’s Fast Fashion Purge

Vestiaire Collective will now block 30 brands including Gap, H&M and Zara from its platform, adding to an earlier ban on Boohoo and other low-priced online retailers. It’s an eco-conscious spin on a broader push upmarket by secondhand companies.

Bangladesh Garment Workers Fighting for Pay Face Brutal Violence and Threats

Negotiations over a new minimum wage for garment workers in Bangladesh have sparked mass demonstrations on streets across the capital.

‘Doomed to Fail’: Suppliers Warn on Fashion’s Climate Commitments.

Brands are passing the buck on sustainability targets, placing an unrealistic burden on manufacturers, according to a new industry report.

Would Higher Wages Break Fast Fashion’s Business Model?

This week, deadly protests after the Bangladeshi government proposed a minimum wage increase well below the level unions had called for highlighted a fundamental challenge in raising worker salaries: somebody has to pay for it.

What’s Blocking the Rise of More Sustainable Materials?

Weaker-than-expected demand for Swedish textile recycler Renewcell’s first commercial volumes of recycled cellulose pulp has sent the company’s stock price plummeting and highlighted broader hurdles challenging efforts to lessen fashion’s environmental footprint.

The Denim Brand Making a Business of Upcycling

E.L.V. Denim founder and creative director Anna Foster has built a profitable start-up turning unwanted cast offs into handcrafted denim sold at Neiman Marcus and Moda Operandi.

Target, New Balance Among New Collective of Brands Pushing Circular Footwear

The eight founding members of the nonprofit initiative say it is the first of its kind explicitly focused on the challenge for shoes.

Are Those Feathers Faux?

Retailers including Selfridges, Asos and Boohoo have mislabelled real feathers as ‘faux,’ according to a new investigation, as the feather trend on red carpets and runways fuels debate over whether the material is ethical.

THE NEWS IN BRIEF

Fashion Recycling Platform SuperCircle Raises $7 Million

Fashion Recycling Platform SuperCircle Raises $7 MillionThe reverse logistics business, whose clients include Reformation and Uniqlo, sits in an emerging space in the market, as more brands look to ensure the clothes they sell can be recycled at the end of their life.