REPORT LAUNCH – Unfit, Unfair, Unfashionable: Resizing Fashion for a Fair Consumption Space

Current fashion trends in consumption, and in particular fast fashion, cannot be maintained if we aim to achieve a fair and just transition to climate neutrality. Mounting scientific evidence now clearly reveals the vast extent of negative environmental and social impacts of fashion consumption, as well as the different responsibility of consumers in high- and low-income countries and groups.

The report contributes to filling the knowledge gap arising from most prevailing climate scenarios on fashion that underplay the potential contributions of lifestyle changes to climate change mitigation and instead focus entirely or mainly on developing new technologies and on changes in production.

Furthermore, the report assesses and exposes misconceptions in the climate impacts of practices often regarded as effective solutions for reducing the carbon footprint of fashion. Analysis of practices such as clothing donations and second-hand exports, reveal environmental impacts not often considered but that potentially shift their net environmental benefits to negative.