The Outside View: Fashion’s Paved Path to Carbon Neutrality

Circularity is no longer fashion’s “hot” sustainability topic. While thinking circularly is a great first step, the entire industry is embarking on the next big frontier: tracking carbon impact. Reducing corporate carbon footprints is becoming less performative as the impacts of climate change continue to hit closer and closer to home. All hands are finally on deck for behind-the-scenes action, not just sustainability heavyweights like Patagonia, Kering and Eileen Fisher. This is an undertaking for our entire global community. Collective Commitment Several carbon commitments have been made recently, underscoring the common understanding of how dire the climate crisis is. The Textile Exchange, a global industry nonprofit that brings stakeholders together to collaborate (I’ve been on the board since its inception in 2002), launched its 2030 strategy, “Climate Plus,” at the last in-person Textile Sustainability Conference in 2019. Climate Plus promises that Textile Exchange will “be the driving force for urgent climate action with a goal of 45 percent reduced CO2 emissions from textile fiber and material production by 2030.” This shared vision is paramount, as textile processing is the most energy-intensive step in fashion manufacturing. Another sweeping 2030 pooled commitment was organized by B Corp Climate Collective shortly thereafter, at the U.N.

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