Sustainable Fashion – breaking the cycle of wardrobe waste
Did you know that:
- to produce our clothing, each year 70 million trees are cut down!
- for every kilo of clothes we have in our wardrobe, 1 kilo of chemical substances has been used!
- more recent generations keep a piece of clothing, on average for only 3 years.
- only 15% of the clothes we throw away is actually recycled.
- to dye 1 tonne of clothing, one needs 200 tonnes of fresh water!
- 200.000 tonnes of dye end up in sewage every year!
- 90% of sewage in developing countries ends up in rivers and the sea, without any prior treatment!
As part of the Caring Community project and with kind support from Megaro Handax Parking, we collected 185 bags and 19 boxes of clothing. This translated into 10 palettes (over 1 ton) which were sent to Fabric Republic for them to be disinfected and then used in one of three different ways:
- as a donation to people in need of clothing
- part of recycling programme
- upcycled as part of training programme for prisoners
Our action began in November 2020, had a long break during the 2nd lockdown period and was completed in January 2021.
Despite the fact that only 5 collection days were held, as opposed to the original planned 12 days, you all motivated us by being actively involved and we were moved by the ongoing positive feedback and encouragement.
This action comes as an answer to a very common practice which has us putting clothes in bags and leaving them by rubbish bins. OMÚ creates an empathetic community that aims to reuse its resources so as to cover the needs of its members while also conserving environmental reserves.
Thank you all wholeheartedly!