Fast Fashion's Influence: Driving Factors of Climate Change Explored

This essay examines the extent to which fast fashion contributes to climate change. It introduces the concept of climate change and highlights the role of human activities, particularly the fast fashion industry, in exacerbating environmental issues. The essay discusses how fast fashion, characterized by cheap and trendy clothing, contributes to carbon emissions, water pollution, and landfill waste. It further explores the factors driving the growth of fast fashion and suggests ways for the industry to become more sustainable, such as embracing transparency, partnering with sustainable brands, and switching to renewable energy. The essay also addresses the negative impacts of fast fashion, including pollution, textile waste, and the release of toxins, emphasizing the need for the fashion industry to promote sustainability and reduce its environmental footprint. The conclusion summarizes the key points and underscores the interconnectedness of climate change, human activities, and the fashion industry, advocating for solutions to mitigate the harmful effects.

To what extent is Fast Fashion
driving climate change

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................2
MAIN BODY.......................................................................................................................................2
CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................................4
REFERENCES.....................................................................................................................................5

INTRODUCTION
The term climate change is referred to the change and long term shifts in the climate and other
weather conditions which can effect the environment up to a certain level. The human activities
have been a major role in changing the climate. The excess change in the environmental conditions
has resulted in the climate change. The climate change threatens people with food and water
scarcity, increase in temperature, flooding and other economic losses as well(Alharbi Khatta and Ali
2018). The climate change has been a major issue which should be considered by the general
public so as to maintain a healthy and sustainable environment. The various changes in human
activities is also referred as the main reason which has effected the climate conditions. This essay
will highlight various changes in climates and the human activities which can effect the
environment and the climate as well. The main theme of this Essay is, “ Fast fashion has resulted in
the change in climatic conditions”.
MAIN BODY
The term fast fashion is referred as the cheap and trendy clothings that defines the sample ideas
from the various brands, runways and catwalks and other celebrity culture dresses and fashion
sense. These dresses and fashion ideas them became available in the stores and garments shops in
high streets and other markets so as to fulfil the needs and wants of the customers. The clothing
production is the third biggest manufacturing industry in the world, The fashion industry has also
resulted as responsible for the 8% emission of the carbon. The open loop fashion production cycles
are also responsible for both, land and water pollution. There is almost 10-20% use of harmful
pesticide which is caused by the fashion industry. Fast fashion is a volume based production cycle,
which is related with the demand and supply of the customers from various segments of the market.
The fashion industry has resulted in creating many effects in the environment and the climate
changing as well as it can increase the emission of various harmful gases such as carbon and also it
creates the wastage of water and landfill waste up to an extent(Dunster Simmons and Gilbert 2021)
. There are a a lot of factors which contributes to the growth of fast fashion as they engage with
their customers on a great level. The success of the fashion industry is totally dependant on the
consumers tastes and preference and other factors according to them such as their buying behaviour
and paying capacities etc. The fast fashion industry is being more sustainable nowadays, as the
environmental concern sand other activities related to environment are being considered so as to
promote the suitable industry which will not effect the environment in a bad way(Frumkin and

Haines 2020). The fast fashion industry can become more sustainable through various ways such
as, Being transparent about the supply chains, partnering with the sustainable branding products,
ensuring that the product is sustainable enough. The Fast fashion can also switch to the renewable
energy provider. The fast fashion industry is growing at a fast pace nowadays, The various activities
and operations of the business and the organisation should be related with promoting the
sustainability and other effective environmental values, so as to make their brand more effective and
efficient and also by creating such product, which can be last long by utilising all off cut fabric
material and they can also promote sustainability fey recycling their products and clothes.
The fashion industry produces about 53 million tonnes of fibres every year, out of which
certain percent goes into the garbage dumps. The global fashion industry is also the second biggest
consumer of water(Leichenko and O'Brien 2019). The COVID 19 has effected the fast fashion
industry up to a great extent which has also resulted a huge loss in the clothing sector and its
demand and supply as well. The fast fashion has various effects which can harm the environment
and the climate change in many ways such as, Fast fashion pollution which is caused by the
substantial increase in clothing consumption. Due to the number of cut outs of clothing a large
number of materials got wasted as they can not be used in any other task(Li, and Shapiro 2020)
(Mann 2018). The high rates of textile waste has caused the recycling of textile low , which has
various effects on the public health and other environmental dangers were also caused by these
waste such as, toxic substances including methane and carbon which are considered as the most
harmful gases. The other harms that the fashion industry can create is the production of fibre.
Which uses various types of pesticides, herbicides. The fashion pollution has lead to the harm in
various environmental factors and other climatic effects such as the chemical dump and waste
dump, wastage of water and other natural resources. The various developing countries bear the large
amount of risk that is generated by the fast fashion industry as there management system is quite
weak it is not considered as that much effective for the firms to carry out the certain sustainability
methods effectively and efficiently. The fast fashion industry also causes various effects into the
natural environment which can lead to the harm of natural as well as man made resources too, such
as the release of toxins, these release can impact the health of various individuals and general public
in a bad way (Park and Lin 2020). The fashion industry is in a huge need to promote its product in a
sustainable manner and in an effective way so that they can reduce the ways of effect and other
harmful side effects for the environment as well as the climate too. The fashion industry also dries
up the source of water, as the water is considered as the main and relevant form of a natural
resource which is the basic need oof individuals, The textile waste also pollutes the rivers and
various other streams, leading towards the bad climatic conditions. The climatic effect and
conditions are effected in a huge way by the clothing and fashion industry, as they does not manage

the sustainability and other environmental concerns effectively(Song 2022).
Fashion industry is increasing day by day, fashion is always on demand, it is popular for a
lot of good reason, because it is affordable, convenient and cloths are also stylish. But there are
some problems in fast fashion , they has been intense by the advancement of technology and
globalisation. The problem of fast fashion is that they are cheap in quality, fast fashion company can
be of low price, and offer cheap quality product, because thy use cheapest material and make in
automated machines instead of skilled labour in the manufacturing process. Second problem is They
impact negatively to the environment as, some fashion companies hire child labour and use the low
quality material which is not good for the environment. The third problem of the fast fashion is that
it has increased the consumption structure for the consumer who wants to keep up with both current
as well the seasonal trends. That's why the increase in the wastefulness is, because people are
throwing their clothing items, which are defected and buy new clothes, because it is low in
cost(Trebeck and Williams 2019). people have to start thinking about that quality matters as
compared to the quantity. The fashion industry can also be provided with various solutions to these
problems, as they can increase the use of recycling methods and various other methods which can
help them to reach towards the path of sustainability such as, ensuring about the eco-friendly
products and packaging, switching to the renewable energy provider and implementing a recycling
strategy. The Fashion industry can also reduce the various effects by promoting effective
sustainability methods and also by spreading various information and awareness so as to make the
people of their surroundings known about the environmental and climate concern so as to create the
better and healthy surroundings.(Urbina and Ruiz‐Villaverde 2019).
CONCLUSION
The above Essay went into detail regarding various complex topics such as, Climate change and
human activities, as they both are directly related with each other, The environment and the climate
is effecting in many ways by the individuals and general public in many ways. Along with that, The
fast fashion industry and its various effects were also detailed as it is considered as the most
growing and developing industry join the world having various changes. The fashion industry is
effecting the climate in many ways such as, wastage of resource, emission of harmful gads such as
carbon. Further more, The various problems that is facing by the fashion industry is also
highlighted along with various solutions so as to make it more clear and understandable.
REFERENCES

Alharbi, O.M., Khattab, R.A. and Ali, I., 2018. Health and environmental effects of persistent
organic pollutants. Journal of Molecular Liquids, 263, pp.442-453.
Dunster, B., Simmons, C. and Gilbert, B., 2021. The ZED book: solutions for a shrinking world.
Taylor & Francis.
Frumkin, H. and Haines, A., 2020. Global Environmental Change and Noncommunicable Disease
Risks. Planetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves, p.165.
Leichenko, R. and O'Brien, K., 2019. Climate and society: Transforming the future. John Wiley &
Sons.
Li, Y. and Shapiro, J., 2020. China goes green: coercive environmentalism for a troubled planet.
John Wiley & Sons.
Mann, G., 2018. Climate leviathan: A political theory of our planetary future. Verso Books.
Park, H.J. and Lin, L.M., 2020. Exploring attitude–behavior gap in sustainable consumption:
Comparison of recycled and upcycled fashion products. Journal of Business Research, 117,
pp.623-628.
Song, M.H., 2022. Climate Lyricism. Duke University Press.
Trebeck, K. and Williams, J., 2019. The economics of arrival: Ideas for a grown-up economy. Policy
Press.
Urbina, D.A. and Ruiz‐Villaverde, A., 2019. A critical review of homo economicus from five
approaches. American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 78(1), pp.63-93.