We have to urgently cut back our emissions of carbon and other greenhouse gases as global warming is increasing. Everyone produces carbon emissions.
The fashion industry especially is responsible for around 10% of all global greenhouse gas emissions
The journey of clothes is complex and lengthy (and a great contributor to carbon emissions). It’s extremely rare for raw materials to be grown, processed, sewn, and sold all in one location. Also production is outsourced, so clothes literally have to travel the world to get to where you can purchase them.
The impact of shipping on the environment is considerable.
Ships handle roughly 90 per cent of global trade, transporting nearly 10 billion metric tons (11 billion tons) of goods per year. It has been estimated that shipping accounts for 3 to 4 per cent of human-caused carbon emissions.
But transport by boat is actually the cheapest and most carbon-efficient option!🛳
It emits a fiftieth (!) of what an aeroplane would emit to accomplish the same task.✈️
Regardless of whether we buy a piece of clothing online or on our local high street, that item has already travelled around the world in some form.
The supply chain of a fast fashion brand is also incredibly inefficient with waste. It’s estimated that 35% of all materials will end up as waste sent to landfill.
A lot of companies are talking about becoming “carbon neutral” or “net zero” in an attempt to lessen their carbon footprint, one way to do so is carbon offsetting. You may have heard it before or you might have no idea what it is, in that case I got you :)
Carbon offsetting happens when a company, or even an individual, invests in one or more environmental projects to balance out their greenhouse gas emissions.
The Kering group announced it will offset 2.4m tonnes of carbon dioxide
Gucci also said it would spend $8.4 million to offset its emissions
Does carbon offsetting work?
Projects that are founded include tree planting schemes that claim credit for the positive carbon impact for the full life of the trees only to see them cut down.
It is also very difficult to calculate the exact emissions produced when travelling, purchasing or creating goods, also
it doesn’t really do much to reduce the emissions produced today, it just kind of… balances them out. Yes, our money might help fund projects to decrease greenhouse gas emissions in the future, but in the meantime, we’re still emitting an enormous amount of carbon, and we’re doing very little to stop that.
Carbon offsetting can be used to greenwash, It doesn’t require much actions from brands and doesn’t encourage consumers to change their own behaviour, either.
Do you offset your emissions?
If so, use this platform, the most trustworthy for carbon offsetting
Calculate your fashion footprint here!
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