Dressing Green

 

Explore how new technologies, eco-business models and better regulatory oversight might end fast fashion and benefit the planet.

Clothes provide not only warmth and comfort, but for many they represent an accessible and affordable medium for expressionism and individualism. So why do we keep throwing them away? The UK is the biggest consumer of so-called fast fashion in Europe and hundreds of thousands of tonnes of clothing are binned every year. Even donating to the local charity shop offers only temporary respite as the vast majority of unsold items still end up in landfill. 

We desperately need a change of clothing mindset, along with new technologies, business models and regulatory oversight to redress our relationship with what we wear.   

 At the Great Exhibition Road Festival, experts from Imperial College London, the Royal College of Art and the V&A will look at new approaches and ways forward. From biotextiles and new sustainable fashion start-ups, to post-purchase care services, new recycling infrastructure and the rediscovery of embroidery skills, they will set out a vision for how we might dress green in the future.