I recently attended a session initiated by 25SW4P’s founder Mutete Bahkita and Belinda Smetana, an advocate for slow, ethical fashion and travel on Unpacking Sustainability in Africa. It left me not only informed but inspired🤩. So inspired that I’m writing about it.
I'm surprised - I thought that I had heard it all and knew it all…but my biggest surprise was the amount of insight I left with.
What is sustainability?
The United Nations Brundtland’s Commission defined sustainability as “meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (United Nations, n.a.).
Why should I lead a sustainable lifestyle?
It is good for the environment.
This is in terms of decreasing pollution and minimising the exhaustion of natural resources.
It is a pocket-friendly approach to life.
Buying second-hand items or upcycled items will always save you a buck or two in comparison to buying something which is brand new.
It is a way of simplifying life and making it beautiful at the same time.
Have you ever heard of the saying ‘less is more’? In the current world where consumerism seems to be the norm, taking a step back and opting for simplicity can enrich your living experience.
It gives more time to focus on living quality lives.
The time one would have spent trying to keep up with trends and what’s hot can be used to give importance to what truly matters in terms of making you're living a great experience. We only live once!
We owe it to the generations to come.
One may argue that despite finding the world in a better state in comparison to now, we also have inherited the problems that older generations created. As much as I get it, it still does not change the moral obligation we have, which is leaving our world in a better state for future generations.
Living sustainably is making an intentional choice to be selfless.
Now that we have that in mind…
I'll go ahead and explicitly answer some questions I think most people may have regarding sustainability in fashion. I kid you not, these were the very questions I had that were answered by my very attendance. In my head, it was quite the ✨revelation✨.
Q: Am I living sustainably?
A: If you are like me, perhaps living on the African continent and thrifting your clothes, the simple answer is yes. This answer blew my mind because as most of you have picked from my blog posts, I value thrifting but only because of affordability and the uniqueness factor, not because of saving the earth per se😅.
But at least I was still doing good for the environment, right😁?
One of the panellists mentioned that other than the custom-made clothing items one gets from their tailor once in a while on special occasions, we Africans predominantly lead sustainable lives fashion-wise.
Q: Is living a sustainable fashion lifestyle attainable, leave alone sustainable? Is it just for the privileged?
A: My previous answer proves that it is possible to support sustainable fashion because thrifting for second-hand clothes is affordable.
However, my question arose from the imagery I had in my mind: affluent persons dressing up in linen or silk clothing, true to their minimalist lifestyle whilst on vacation at a stellar location in the Mara😂.
In other words, such organic hence sustainable fabrics are known to be pricey and I wasn’t too sure if I could afford clothing made from them, leave alone from brands that claim to be cruelty-free and eco-friendly.
Although there are some clothing made from fabrics that are not sustainable that are found in second-hand retail shops, it is still sustainable to buy them since they’ll still get discarded after they are worn out. The issue, however, should lie with the producers of such clothing rather than the person buying them second-hand.
Persons who also shop for brand new clothes should purchase clothes made from sustainable fabrics so that when they do make their way to the Global South as mitumba, they do not pose a risk to the environment when they are discarded due to them wearing out after use.
Q: How can I, in my little way, lead a sustainable lifestyle in fashion?
Keep your current wardrobe.
Another fact that blew my mind is when a panellist said that a sustainable closet is what you already have. You might have thought that you need a new wardrobe since your current one might not be as fashionably sustainable as it should…turns out that you don’t.
The trick is to keep wearing the clothes that you already own and mend them when they get torn or when something like a button or a zip needs a fix.
Quit following trends.
A fashion trend refers to a certain look that is popular at a given time and location. Since trends never last, they tend to change from time to time. The era of social media, especially via TikTok, has led to the rise of micro trends in fashion.
The over-consumerism culture pushed by social media has led to heightened demand for trendy clothing, which subsequently leads to increased production of such clothes by fast fashion brands. Once the microtrend or trend is dead, the once-in-demand clothes are discarded in favour of what is the next trend. This explains why 85% of textile waste is found in landfills today.
Instead of following trends, one can opt to develop a personal style that one can stick with. Personal styles are versatile and prove to be sustainable since most of the shopping relates to obtaining staples which are used to create various looks.
I’m no stylist but I have a blog post that can help you with finding your personal style, in case you were wondering where to start. If it helps, I get lots of compliments on how I dress so you can trust my advice, lol🤭.
Swap your clothes for others.
Although it is a new concept here, 25SW4P is known for locally organising clothes-swapping events as a way to promote sustainability in fashion. It is a great initiative since you can swap the items you are tired of wearing in exchange for something preloved but new to you.
I had a successful swap - I swapped my pair of jeans for a lovely pair of Ankara shorts which I am looking forward to styling once the weather is friendlier!
Support clothing brands that are making genuine and tangible efforts in promoting sustainable fashion.
If you can afford to, you could shop from brands that are engaging in ethical fashion production for the most part. This gesture will encourage such fashion lines to keep doing what they do, as well as pave the way for more brands to be fashionably sustainable since it will show that a market does exist for that niche.
The niche should be the majority, but we’re getting there.
Thrift, thrift, thrift!
My list wouldn’t be complete (and honest) without this suggestion. We now know that our thrifting makes for a better world in terms of drastically reducing wastage.
When I was younger, I used to feel ashamed of wearing second-hand clothes. Although I was from a middle-class family, I felt so because I grew up in a church which had a large share of opulent families who used to wear brand-new clothes from boutiques. Nowadays, I simply own my lifestyle choice and it does feel better knowing that it is an environment-friendly choice.
I do understand the pressure to buy and ship your clothes from popular brands…I’ve seen how popular YouTube clothing hauls are. However, thrifting is nothing to be ashamed of. You could target clothing from your favourite brands and get them whenever you’re lucky:). I have a friend who always shopped for H&M clothes whilst thrifting.
It could work for you, too.
In conclusion…
I hope you learned a few things from this blog post. I certainly did learn quite some valuable lessons from that sesh. If you’d like to change or grow your mindset as well as swap your clothes, the Unpacking Sustainability in Africa event is a monthly session that you can attend. Do follow 25SW4P on Instagram for updates regarding that😇.
What did you think about this blog post? If you’re feeling talkative, I dare you to DM me your feedback or your thoughts - I respond! See you in my next blog post, or my DMs, whichever you prefer😂.
References
United Nations. (n.a., n.a. n.a.). Sustainability. United Nations Academic Impact. https://www.un.org/en/academic-impact/sustainability