Fashion industry needs to move "further" and "faster" to meet 1.5°C target, prove they care about real change: UN expert

If you exist on any social media, you've probably noticed how, for some odd reason, people simply don't wear everyday clothes here. And if you somehow spot an influencer wearing garments that might finally look similar to what you and I have on, it only means that a grand transition is a-coming that will eventually turn these people into fashion deities, air-brushed by a combination of Maybelline and sneaky filters.

Because God forbid that influencers ever be seen wearing everyday apparel or adorning the same item twice. However, while the somewhat new era of breakneck social media posting might've played a part in glamorising fast fashion, this troubling phenomenon has been around for an unfortunate while now.

We say unfortunate because the fashion industry has much to pay for, considering they contribute about 8% to total greenhouse emissions, and more than one-third of all microplastics are created from synthetic clothing. That's right, the microplastics that have now been found swimming around in your blood, lungs and veins are neatly bundled into quaint little threads around your body.

In that regard, Simon Stiell, a United Nations Climate Change Executive, recently stressed that this needs to change urgently.

"The fashion industry needs to move "further and faster" to drive down emissions and prove the sector is serious about shifting from cosmetic to systemic change," he notes.

The Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action is an initiative to hold fashion brands accountable and transform the entire collaborative ecosystem — all the way from cotton farmers to textile machinery producers. Since its inception, many brands under the Charter, including big names such as H&M, Chanel, Nike and PUMA, have disclosed their climate-related information and filed regular reports. But it's not enough.

"After five years, the fashion industry simply isn't at the point where we can say that it is truly changing and implementation is truly happening," laments Stiell. "Less than half of active signatories are compliant with setting climate targets needed to limit global heating to 1.5°C. By and large, their extensive supply chains aren't aligned with Charter goals either. This is the reality."

While on paper, 45% of the Charter companies seem compliant with climate targets that keep us within the 1.5°C Paris target, fashion sector emissions tragically still remain "eye-wateringly high". According to Steill, the emissions from this sector alone are equivalent to what we observe from even ginormous economies such as France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

"Clearly this sector needs to move further and faster," said Stiell. "It needs to accelerate the pace of implementation of this Charter and extend its reach. Emissions need to go down as rapidly as possible."

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