a:dress
Women, Fast Fashion, Eco-Action
a:dress is a campaign using textile art, poetry, film and conversations to raise awareness about fast fashion’s devastating contribution to climate crisis. The focus is on women and girls as we are disproportionately impacted by climate crisis globally and the main target, and makers, of fast fashion.
a:dress is a collaboration between local textile artists, poets, climate activists, women’s activists, fashion designers, and women and girls who love to upcycle clothes. We embroider, burn, paint and print messages about women, fast fashion and climate crisis onto charity-sourced clothes, which we display through ‘Subversive Catwalks’, shop windows and film. a:dress also offers repair and upcycling workshops.
What is fast Fashion?
Fast fashion is the production of very cheap clothing, often in countries such as India, China and Indonesia. It is made, and thrown away, fast.
In the UK the average lifetime for a garment is just over two years. An estimated £30billion of unused clothing hangs in wardrobes and yet we keep buying more.
Why is fast fashion bad for the planet?
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Two pairs of jeans take as much water to produce as a person will drink in a lifetime
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When clothing made of synthetic fibres like acrylic and Lycra is washed, tiny plastic particles are released and work their way into the seas and oceans
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85% of our old clothes end up in a landfill. Synthetic fibres can take up to 40 years to degrade and dyes and chemicals leach into the earth, contaminating water and soil
How are women targeted by fast fashion and climate crisis?
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Sexism affects women’s self-esteem and body image, leaving them vulnerable to being sold fast fashion to ‘feel better’
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Women make up 80% of garment workers. They are often silenced when they speak up about low pay, unsafe working conditions and sexual harassment
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With each drought and flood, it becomes increasingly difficult for women to meet their families’ needs and harder to make a living
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Climate crisis creates social instability and this results in an increase in trafficking and sexual violence against women
