‘Save clothes, save the planet’: Activist advocates for sustainable fashion
Nonprofit exposes fast fashion’s environmental, labor costs, advocates sustainable solutions through bartering, repairs
At a clothes market in the hip Seoul neighborhood of Seongsu-dong, shoppers were looking for something other than the latest trend. one-day market called 21% Party brought together conscientious consumers to barter over clothes and attend repair workshops, along with other engaging programs under the concept that “the most sustainable clothes are in your wardrobe.”
“The name originated from our 2020 survey results, where we discovered that, on average, 21 percent of respondents’ clothes sat unworn in their closet,” Jung Ju-yeon, the event’s organizer, explained in an interview. She is the founder and executive director of Wear Again Lab, which is dedicated to promoting sustainable fashion.
“The actual figures, I suspect, are probably higher,” she added.
‘Wear Again’
Before Jung founded Wear Again Lab in 2020, she had no involvement in the fashion industry, environmental movements or any form of civic activism.
“I wasn’t an environmental expert,” she said. “But I felt the urgency of addressing this issue in Korea.”
During her stint as head of the Korean Cultural Center in Paris, Jung took particular notice of the priority France put on environmental factors in policymaking decisions.
She noted that South Korea, despite its dynamic fashion scene, lacks awareness about the industry’s environmental impact.
On a mission to expose the industry’s environmental footprint and champion sustainable practices, Wear Again Lab has broadened its scope from hosting mended-clothes contests and clothes-swapping parties to advocating for legislative change.
The past weekend’s 21% Party marked its fourth edition.
Jung said that the event is intended to align with the week of April 24 to commemorate the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on April 24, 2013. The tragic incident claimed 1,113 lives, with some 2,500 others left injured.
Swapping clothes is just one aspect of the program.
“We also offer varied workshops aimed at extending the life span of clothes through sewing, hand painting and knitting,” she said.
The workshops aim to foster a change in perception among Koreans, moving away from favoring newer clothes over existing pieces, as if only new garments can convey a refined image.
“One of the male participants (of the clothing repair workshops) shared with me that he leads a sewing club at his company. Apparently, his co-workers were inspired by seeing him mend a hole in his socks with colorful thread.”
Jung hopes the 21% Party will evolve into a nationwide campaign with the participation of various community-level organizations.
“Besides the main event held in Seoul every April, those keen on organizing similar gatherings in their communities during the same week can do so using our party tool kit,” she said. “Moreover, outside of this time frame, we collaborate with other organizations and corporations to host individual events throughout the year.”
As of January, the lab had seen 4,317 people take part and almost 10,000 clothing items swapped across 34 parties.
Environmental stakes and beyond
According to the lab, out of the 150 billion clothing items manufactured worldwide each year, 73 percent end up in landfills or are incinerated.
Spanning from cotton cultivation and clothes manufacturing to transportation and disposal methods, the fashion industry has a significant environmental impact.
“Every stage of clothes making involves varying degrees of environmental damage,” she said. “This includes the excessive use of pesticides in cotton cultivation, the use of a multitude of toxic chemicals in textiles and clothing production and the emission of carbon into the environment during production, manufacturing and transportation.”
She also cautioned against the dangers of microplastic pollution in the ocean.
“Even when washing synthetic clothes, significant amounts of nonbiodegradable plastic materials are released into our rivers and oceans,” she explained. “Moreover, plastic fibers such as polyester and nylon can pose a serious health risk as we inhale their particles simply by wearing them.”
As part of its efforts, the organization’s fashion activism extends to influencing changes in laws and policies to promote eco-friendly fashion.
“South Korea lacks a specific definition of clothing waste and regulatory measures regarding the responsible disposal of leftover clothes,” she stated.
“What’s more problematic is that we remain ignorant of how fashion companies dispose of their surplus stocks, as many of them refuse to sell them at discounted prices to avoid cheapening their image.”
She is advocating for the passage of a similar law within the clothing industry here to France’s antiwaste law enacted in 2022, aimed at eliminating waste and promoting more circular practices across diverse sectors.
She also shed light on the toll exacted by inexpensive fast fashion on the environment as well as laborers in other nations.
South Korea reportedly exports around 300,000 tons of clothing annually, including fibrous waste. While some of these exports reach Southeast Asian and African vintage markets, a significant portion, as Jung points out, ultimately becomes landfill fodder in these developing nations.
“Moreover, in underdeveloped countries in Asia, the working conditions of garment factory workers are substandard, similar to those faced by Korean factory laborers in the 1970s and 1980s,” she explained. “Furthermore, an even more pressing concern is the prevalence of child labor.”
Believing in the power of knowledge to drive action, she expressed that awareness of this human rights issue would motivate individuals to engage in the organization’s activism.
Despite the organization’s modest scale, she remains hopeful due to the overwhelming participation of younger generations in their activism. Over 95 percent of party attendees are in their 20s and 30s.
“As many of these young Koreans are avid fashion consumers, a significant number have chosen to take the industry’s adverse effects seriously,” she remarked.
Furthering this line of thought, she contended that consumers must transcend passive acceptance of fast fashion’s trends. By actively considering the far-reaching consequences of their clothing choices, they can catalyze positive change in the fashion industry.