History of Women in Fashion and Sustainability

Women have long been pioneers in the environmental and sustainability movement.  As early as the beginning of the 20th century, women such as Jane Addams, the first American female to be awarded the nobel peace prize in 1931, were recognized for uncovering environmental health concerns and advocating for environmental equality for all people, no matter their income or ethnicity. Rachel Carson, a notable ecologist, biologist and writer, whose influential book, “Silent Spring” (1962) challenged the practices of agricultural scientists and the government, including condemning the indiscriminate use of pesticides. 

The movement of sustainability in fashion is also not a new trend or concept. The “make-do-and-mend” campaign came about in the UK during WW2 when the purchasing of new clothing was rationed. This campaign urged people to repair, reuse and reimagine their existing clothes. Sustainability as a fashion trend was popularized during the hippie movement of the late 1960’s.  With anti-consumerist ideals, hippies focused on locally grown and handmade clothing, as well as thrift/second hand store shopping.  In the late 1980’s, Esprit co-founder Susie Tompkins was revolutionary with the corporate mission of social responsibility in the areas of women’s issues and the environment.  Esprit and other companies began pioneering sustainable clothing, as their founders observed the negative environmental impacts of the clothing manufacturing industry. However, it wasn’t until the 1990s that big clothing retailers began setting precedence in sustainability initiatives. Nike, a prominent outsourcer, turned around its image after a sweatshop investigation exposed its unethical working conditions. As the Chief Sustainability Officer for global activewear giant Nike Inc. until 2018, Hannah Jones played a key role in developing an appreciation for and a motivation to achieve sustainability.  Since then, both domestic and international regulations have been put in place, and nonprofit organizations have emerged to assess and promote sustainable practices in the fashion industry, such as the Sustainable Apparel Coalition founded in 2012, and the Ethical Fashion Initiative, formed in 2018. 

Today, womenswear designers like Stella McCartney and Eileen Fisher are leading the way in fashion sustainability.  Brands at every price-point are making huge strides in transparency of supply chain including ethical labor practices, sustainable and eco-friendly fabric selection and manufacturing processes, re-use and recycling of excess materials, and much more, to ensure that their businesses are doing their part in reducing the enormous negative impact that the fashion industry has on the environment and its inhabitants.  

Our mission is to advance sustainability in fashion and is the very reason why we started T Shirt Atelier!  Vetting brands for their sustainable and ethical practices in order to provide great low impact fashion to women across the country!  T Shirt Atelier, a proud, women-owned business, also adheres to strict sustainability and ethics guidelines.  

Personally, we consciously purchase the most environmentally and socially conscious clothes for ourselves; and we hope to inspire you to do the same through our beautiful collections of some of the best sustainably and ethically made apparel on the planet!

References:

https://sfenvironment.org/zh/celebrating-women-environmentalists-during-womens-history-month

https://www.rachelcarson.org/Bio.aspx

https://www.hechoxnosotros.org/post/the-history-of-sustainable-fashion

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_fashion

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