From Monday 22nd to Sunday 28th April 2019 Fashion Revolution Week aims to question, inform, educate and highlight how the future fashion industry must respect both people and planet with fair and decent work, environmental protection and gender equality.
The campaign will be supported by Jasmine & Melissa Hemsley, Wilson Oryema, @dresslikeamum and Stories Behind Things to urgently demand a fashion industry that conserves and restores our environment and gives people, especially women, a voice. Over 1,000 Fashion Revolution events will be held in more than 100 countries around the world, from catwalks and clothes swaps, to film screenings, panel discussions, creative stunts, open studios and workshops.
Kicking off on Earth Day, Monday 22nd April, Fashion Revolution has announced that it has signed the UN Fashion Charter for Climate Action, signalling the start of a greater campaigning focus on educating the public about the devastating impact of the fashion industry on global warming, and offering positive actions we can all take to reduce the carbon footprint of our clothes. Fashion Revolution will also take a stand against the environmental threat to our planet by declaring a Climate and Ecological Emergency.
The campaign was initially formed in response to the Rana Plaza disaster in 2013, claiming the lives of 1,134 garment workers and injuring over 2,000 more. While the sustainability of the fashion industry is increasingly under scrutiny, human rights abuses, gender inequality and environmental degradation remain rife. Research shows that garments are among the items most at risk of being produced through modern slavery. Sexual harassment, discrimination and gender-based violence against women is endemic in the global garment industry, where women comprise 80% of the global workforce. Global textiles production emits 1.2 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases annually, more than international flights and maritime shipping combined. We are producing 53 million tonnes of fibres to make clothes and textiles annually, only to landfill or burn 73% of those fibres.
Fashion Revolution Week 2019 will encourage people to recognise their own personal impact and value quality over quantity. It will demand a change in culture where we nurture dignity in work because we cannot afford to live in a world where our clothes destroy the environment, harm or exploit people and reinforce gender inequality.
There are many ways to get involved from contacting your favourite brands and asking #whomademyclothes to posting on social media and holding clothes swapping events. To find out how to get involved click here.
The FTA’s in-house label ‘Belles of London’ will present at the UK’s leading independent ethical fashion showcase ‘Ethical Brands for a Fashion Revolution’ at London’s Brand Museum on Saturday 27th April. The core message behind the event is that viable and ethical fashion, such as the Belles of London, is out there, beautifully made and ready to buy. The event will bring together amazing ethical brands, beautiful fashion and inspiring speakers to encourage you to #BeTheChange and wear your values. To find out more and book tickets click here.
Other event highlights in London include: Fashion Question Time on Wednesday 24th April will expand as a powerful platform to debate the future of the fashion industry by moving from the Houses of Parliament to the Lecture Theatre of the V&A Museum, and opening to the public for the first time. Chaired by Baroness Lola Young of Hornsey, the panel will follow a BBC Question Time format with a diverse range of leading experts from across government, academia and the fashion and textile industry adding their own voice to the debate about how innovation and sustainability must be accelerated to change the fashion panorama.
On Saturday, April 27th, 2019, Slow Factory will host “Sustainability as a Culture”, the fourth in its critically-acclaimed conference series Study Hall. Hot on the heels of a successful partnership with the United Nations in February, the first international edition will be held in London UK at Central Saint Martins college of art and design, in collaboration with Fashion Revolution. Study Hall creates a unique chemistry, updating the conference from a static to a dynamic and spontaneous experience which relies on multiple points of views to engage its audience into inspiring conversations.
Follow the FTA’s and FashionCapital’s social media pages on Twitter, Facebook and instagram and meet the team behind the clothes made at our ethical, SMETA and Fast Forward approved factory based in North London.