Earth Day Fashion Impact: How Clothing Choices Affect the Planet

Earth Day fashion impact reminds us that our clothing choices are connected to pollution, resource use, waste and the wider climate crisis. Each year on 22 April, around 1 billion individuals across more than 190 countries take action to raise awareness of the climate crisis and bring about behavioural change to protect the environment!

Participating in Earth Day can take place in many forms, from small home or classroom projects like planting a herb garden or picking up litter, volunteering to plant trees, to joining ecological projects and even taking part in street protests. These campaigns and projects aim to increase environmental literacy and bring together like-minded people or groups to address issues such as deforestation, biodiversity loss, waste management, etc. Understanding Earth Day fashion impact means recognising how the clothes we buy, wear and discard contribute to these wider environmental challenges.

The Origins of Earth Day

Millions of people protested on the streets of US cities and towns on 22nd April 1970 over the damage being done to the planet and its resources amid the post-war consumer boom’s. From oil spills, factory pollution, toxic spills to other ecological threats, these were on the rise, with no legislation in place to prevent environmental damage.

The Earth Day demonstrations left an indelible mark on US policy. By the end of 1970, the US Environmental Protection Agency was created and a stream of laws followed to help protect the environment. These included the National Environmental Education Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Clean Air Act. Soon after, more legislations about protecting water quality, endangered species and to control the use of harmful chemicals and pesticides were introduced. 1990 was the year when these protests became global: around 200 million people from 141 countries joined efforts to boost recycling around the world, paving the way for the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Thanks to these protests, we now all have the opportunity to have our say in environmental issues, that since then, have not stopped growing and causing harm, mostly because of all the technological advances that we have made since. From transport pollution to overconsumption and deforestation, these issues continue to be a mainstream problem still to be tackled. The Earth Day fashion impact conversation connects this history of environmental activism with the need for greater responsibility across the clothing industry.

Take action on Earth Day

Every Year, the Earth Day organisation puts together a few ways everyone can help tackle the environmental issues going on globally by sharing sustainable living tips, petitions, protests going on and ways we can join these campaigns.

Here are several ways to take action throughout the year:

• You can sign the petition to the climate & environmental literacy program here, in order to help spread the word about these issues to everyone, including young people all over the world.
• You can sign the petition to end plastic pollution here. There’s still many countries where non-recyclable plastic packaging is widely spread and by signing this petition, you can help put a stop to this.
• You can donate as little as £1 to The Canope Project, so that their workers can plant trees and help tackle the deforestation issue. Luckily, this is becoming a more widely spread initiative taken on by millions of companies and brands out there.
• You can use your voting power to protect the environment, and vote Earth here.
• You can take part in a clean up campaign by either organising one yourself and sharing it or by finding the nearest one to your location. Check out their helpful map for more.
• Another way to take part in this revolution is by signing the petition ‘Fashion Must Change’ here. We already know that the fashion industry is one of the biggest polluters in the world, and this petition can help raise our voices and get the governments to put stricter legislations in place for fashion businesses. This is where Earth Day fashion impact becomes especially relevant, because fashion policy can influence production, waste and corporate responsibility.

Furthermore, here’s 52 helpful tips on ways you can take action and make a positive impact in your own time!

Taking action on Earth Day fashion impact can include buying less, extending the life of clothing, supporting repair and resale, and asking brands for greater transparency. The Earth Day Organisation is a great tool to learn about the social and environmental issues going on in the world every day of the year, not just on the 22nd April. From learning resources, to quiz tests and tips on how to implement changes into your day-to-day lives, you can find plenty of ways you can invest your time into our planet.

We also share ideas through Scarlet Destiny about responsible materials, circular fashion and practical ways to reduce clothing waste. Small individual choices matter, but the wider Earth Day fashion impact also depends on brands and governments making systemic change.

Has Earth Day changed the way you think about fashion and consumption? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

[info sourced on earthday.org, images sourced on canva.com]