Fast Fashion
We Buy More, Keep Less
The fashion industry produces around 10% of global carbon emissions — more than aviation and shipping combined.
Since 2000, clothing production has doubled while the average garment is worn 36% fewer times before being thrown out.
Consumers now buy 60% more clothing than 15 years ago and keep each item for half as long.
Fashion's Water Problem
A single pair of jeans takes 7,500 liters of water to make — that's over 7 years of drinking water for one person.
| Garment | Water Used |
|---|---|
| Pair of Jeans | 7,500 L |
| Cotton T-Shirt | 2,700 L |
| Leather Jacket | 16,600 L |
| Polyester Shirt | 200 L |
The industry also causes 20% of global water pollution through dyeing and treatment.
Behind Every $5 T-Shirt
Garment workers — mostly women in developing countries — earn as little as $3 a day so that clothing can stay cheap.
The 2013 Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh killed 1,134 workers. Safety warnings had been ignored to meet deadlines.
Only 2% of garment workers earn a living wage.
Where Does It All Go?
85% of discarded clothes end up in landfills or are burned. Polyester takes up to 200 years to break down.
| Country | Discarded/Person/Yr | Recycled |
|---|---|---|
| USA | 37 kg | 15% |
| UK | 26 kg | 22% |
| Australia | 27 kg | 12% |
| EU Avg | 16 kg | 35% |
Every laundry cycle also releases ~700,000 microplastic fibers into waterways.
What Can We Do?
Buying secondhand, choosing quality over quantity, and demanding brand transparency all help reduce the damage.
Extending the life of clothes by just 9 months reduces their carbon, water, and waste footprints by 20–30%.
France and Germany now have laws holding brands responsible for textile waste.