Google Moves Sustainability Needle With ‘Your Plan, Your Planet’
One hundred billion garments are produced every year on average, according to Google. And that’s why the tech firm’s new initiative, the “Fashion Friday Pledge,” is centered on outfit-repeating as a method for reducing climate impact.
Google’s Fashion Friday Pledge takes form in its interactive tool, “Your Plan, Your Planet,” which gives consumers an inside look on the “misuses” of fashion and its negative effects on the environment. Referencing the pressure consumers face to continuously display a variety of outfits on social media outlets — namely Instagram — Google said “Fast fashion has given us ‘disposable fashion,’ clothes so cheap that people can afford to buy new ones constantly. In the process, our society has developed a sense of shame regarding repeat fashion appearances, which has devastating environmental consequences.”
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As its panacea to garment waste, Fashion Friday is a multistep process consumers can oblige to take action: First, learn the various ways to extend the lifecycle of a garment, reduce waste, increase reuseability and “wisely” use shared natural resources via its Your Plan, Your Planet platform; take its pledge to change bad habits; share it on social media, urge others to take part, and finally, every Friday, wear clothing you haven’t worn in a long while. Google added that after wearing it, the consumer can decide whether they wish to keep it, resell, reuse or donate the clothing.
And with Google’s shared stats, such as one garbage truck of clothing (2,625 kg, or about 5,787 pounds) is burned or landfilled every second, largely due to low-quality garments that are often discarded after just seven or eight wears, consumers have significant and meaningful incentive to take part.
To take the pledge, visit Google’s Your Plan, Your Planet platform here.
For more Business news from WWD, see:
PrimaLoft Rolls Out First Fully Recycled Bio Performance Fabric
Fashion Industry’s ‘War for Talent,’ Demand for Vocational Skills
Field Notes: Fashion’s Making Waves
Fashion Brand Nicholas K Cites ‘Longevity’ as Key to Sustainability
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