Collective action to mitigate environmental impacts in fashion supply chain

by GIZ Admin created 2024-02-01T14:15:59+07:00

14 brands and 626 manufacturers in textile, garment, and footwear industry in Vietnam joined forces in a collective action to mitigate environmental impact. This is part of the German government-supported Initiative for Global Solidarity (IGS).

To the Finish Line 2023 (TFL) online training series on environmental management was organised from September 2023 to January 2024 for textile, garment, and footwear manufacturers operating in Vietnam. With 50 webinars, it attracted nearly 2,000 environmental practitioners from more than 600 factories using Higg FEM 4.0 - the most widely used environmental assessment tool in the industry.

“Learning for Taking Action” is the guiding principle for the TFL community: Best Practices were curated from high-performing manufacturers and prepared by a pair of specialists from brands and manufacturers. Industry Insights were provided by subject matter experts from brands such as VF Corporation, Amer Sport, Maxport, etc., and consultants from Enerteam, Act Renewable, WWF and GIZ. Question & Answer sessions were active with challenges that practitioners face in their everyday work at factories. By the end of the training series, 57% of practitioners assessed that TFL enables knowledge application and beyond.

“Hopefully more factories can access TFL in the future to have a solid understanding of the (Higg FEM) framework and apply it effectively on the topics of environment, energy and chemical management.”

- HSE Officer, Santa Clara Co., Ltd.

1. Wastewater quality review at Saitex.jpg — *Wastewater quality review at Saitex International (Dong Nai, 2024)*

2. Sludge check at Santa Clara.jpg — Following the Best Practice Sharing from another manufacturer, Santa Clara factory formed a task force to reduce sludge waste and successfully categorized it as non-hazardous waste for reusing as compost instead of incinerating (Nam Dinh, September 2023)

TFL also contributed to refining trainers’ lectures. Bien Vu, Lead Trainer, shared:

The activity’s outreach helps to enhance the sustainability image and – along with it – competitiveness of Vietnam’s textile and garment industry, said Mr. Truong Van Cam, VITAS General Secretary. Furthermore, with its proven effective, efficient, and established content and format, GIZ is supporting brands to replicate the training in their global supply chain. The partnership with 14 brands and several high-performance manufacturers is crucial not only to the delivery of this large-scale and practical programme, but also to the further development of TFL in the years to come.

“TFL 2023 is already showing the benefits of cooperation and how we can achieve much more together than alone”

- Saskia Anders, Team Lead, FABRIC/IGS Project.