the fabric of our lives?

The current state of supply and demand makes us all culprits of damaging/depleting our environment.  The fashion industry is no exception to this rule. New fashion trends constantly emerge and the competition is fiercer than ever.  This perpetual state can seem appealing to consumers through a laundry list of sales (Black Friday sales, Labor Day, etc.), but we need to consider the vast consequences of our actions.  This constant need for the latest fashions leads to depletion of our resources, and according to the Ecosystem Millennium Assessment (ESMA) an irreversible degradation of our ecosystems.

According to Fashioning Sustainability (FS) different stages of production occur worldwide and often in collaboration.  For example, cotton is the largest single fiber in production.  Cotton is a resource “cheaply” produced, but that doesn’t mean our environmental resources aren’t being depleted. Without regulation of cotton production there is a series of unfortunate events that can take place.  These events include, but are not limited to, water shortage and health issues from pesticides. 

Unless proper water irrigation is maintained for crops there could be over 10 tons of water used in order to produce one pair of jeans!  A prime example of what consequences can come from inefficient water irrigation is Asia’s Aral Sea.  Once the earths 4^th largest body of water, the Aral Sea is now 15% smaller in volume. According to an article on glamour.com, Cotton Incorporated concluded that the average woman owns eight pairs of jeans at any given time. Now consider the various changes in jean trends (skinny, destroyed, etc.).  If we rotate four of the eight out of our wardrobe we could be potentially using 40 tons of water! However, there is hope. In Walsh & Brown’s article, water conservation is also possible through the implementation of organically grown cotton since it consumes considerably less water than conventionally grown cotton.

Organically grown cotton sounds even more alluring as FS describes the current use of chemicals in cotton production as, “some of the most toxic agrochemicals”.  These chemicals are hazardous, and most workers (especially in economically deprived countries) do not have the proper equipment to distribute them.  A study on Indian cotton farmers showed that most farmers suffer three instances of poisoning over a single season.  In the ESMA, it was pointed out that often when one ecosystem flourishes through the use of water and fertilizers, it could cause a parallel degradation of another ecosystem. 

With codes of conduct in place we can make a difference.  A decrease in hazardous pesticides could lead to the emergence organic cotton production, and healthier farmers.  In the worst-case scenario, we need to educate farmers of proper irrigation and proper chemical application.  But... let's think bigger!!! 

Predatory Humans

            In the 1923 movie, The Dance of Life, Havelock Ellis said, “The sun, the moon and the stars would have disappeared long ago... had they happened to be within the reach of predatory human hands”.  Typically we as a society would not characterize ourselves as a “predatory”.  However, what does it mean to be predatory?  According to the Merriam Webster the first definition of predatory means, “of, relating to, or practicing plunder, pillage, or rapine”.  The second definition offered states, “inclined or intended to injure or exploit others for personal gain or profit”.  Although one could conclude that general knowledge of environmental sustainability is increasing, one could adversely conclude the predator itself developed that concept.

            From the beginning of time human beings have plundered their resources.  Whether it was carving caves into homes or cutting down forest for ships, humans have benefitted from pillaging their surrounding environment.  Now as natural resources become more and more scarce, we must see that the issue is anthropogenic in its root.  One predominate example of humans disregarding their actions towards nature took place on Easter Island. Early occupants of the island were highly successful in their beginning.  However, as their population grew they consumed a great deal of the islands resources without options of renewal.  This consumption led to cannibalism and an almost distinction of their people.  In the book, A New Green History of the World: The Environment and the Collapse of Great Civilizations, author Clive Ponting wants readers to know the horrors that emerge from depleting Mother Nature.  Ponting said, “…it is a striking example of the dependence of human societies on their environment and of the consequences of irreversibly damaging the environment”. 

            If we, as a society, have this predecessor tale of decline then why would we not learn from our mistakes and make a change before its too late?  One can think of Easter Island as not only an isolated incident, but rather as the world.  Like the early inhabitants humans all over the world are consuming resources.  As the life expectancy for humans increases there is a direct correlation with the further depletion of natural resources.  According to data from the CRS Report for Congress, male and female life expectancy is anticipated to increase in the United States from an average 77.2 years in 2005 to 83.1 in 2075.  If, in 2012, we already see a decline in our resources then it is imperative we devise a plan of action versus reaction.

            Suppose population growth is a key player in depletion, what does it then mean to be overpopulated?  According to Mariam Webster overpopulation is defined to be, “the condition of having a population so dense as to cause environmental deterioration, an impaired quality of life, or a population crash”.  However, not everyone agrees that population is the problem.  According to the website, overpopulationisamyth.com, the growth of population is slowing according to the global total fertility rating.  Thus, even though the current population is on the rise, it will eventually fall.  

            Regardless of who is right in the population argument, we have a current problem that needs to be immediately addressed.  According to the 2005, Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA) “…some of the studies that do exist have found that the benefit of managing the ecosystem more sustainably exceed that of converting the ecosystem”.  Thus, we need to think “big picture” in our actions.  Think of environmental sustainability education as a disease.  “If, on average, each person infects at least one other person, the epidemic spreads…” (MEA). Lets us then use our predatory nature to plunder, pillage, or rapine our imaginations and gain a fruitful future.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/predatory

http://aging.senate.gov/crs/aging1.pdf

http://overpopulationisamyth.com/

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overpopulation