New York, New York | November 13th, 2023 | The Transformers Foundation, a leading advocate for sustainable practices within the denim industry, is proud to announce the launch of its annual deep dive report, titled “Towards A Collective Approach: Rethinking Fashion’s Doomed Climate Strategy.” This comprehensive report addresses critical issues within the fashion sector’s climate initiatives and calls for a collective approach to tackle the challenges of decarbonization.
The report identifies a worrying disconnect between the industry pursuit of Science-Based Targets & the feasibility & equity in garment supply chains. It also points to the need for a wider reckoning about funding: carbon mitigation will stall if suppliers are not only expected to do most of the work to decarbonize, but to pay for it, too. Authored by Elizabeth L. Cline, Lecturer of Fashion Policy & Consumerism at Columbia University, Brooke Roberts-Islam, an industry expert and independent journalist, and Kim van der Weerd, Intelligence Director of Transformers Foundation, this report delves into the complexities of the fashion industry’s climate commitments and the unfair burden they place on textile and apparel suppliers worldwide.
Given the regulatory developments likely to impact the fashion industry, including the upcoming EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive and the New York Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act, this report highlights the urgent need for a more equitable and practical approach to decarbonizing. It also warns against enshrining Science-Based Targets (SBTs) into law.
The report’s findings raise concerns about the fashion industry’s roadmap for achieving climate goals. While Transformers Foundation supports the collective objectives of the Paris Agreement, this research suggests that the approach must evolve to ensure practicality, fairness, and shared responsibility in the journey to decarbonize fashion. This means ensuring that responsibility for climate action is shared rather than a supplier burden.
“This report articulates how and why the sector’s current approach to climate action makes it a supplier responsibility, rather than a collective responsibility. It also offers evidence for why this is not only inequitable, but also impractical and doomed to fail. At the same time, by putting forward a definition of collective action, I hope this paper gives a framework for how we could accelerate action.” – Kim van der Weerd The report, which includes in-depth interviews with denim suppliers and stakeholders from major garment-producing nations, offers valuable insights into how the fashion industry can rethink its climate strategy.
About Transformers Foundation:
Transformers Foundation is the unified voice representing the denim industry & its ideas for positive change. It was founded to provide a thus-far missing platform to the jeans & denim supply chain, and a central point of contact for consumers, brands, NGOs, & media who want to learn more about ethics & sustainable innovation in the industry. We represent the denim supply chain: from farmers and chemical suppliers to denim mills and jeans factories.
