Regenerative Fashion: A Nature-Based Approach to Fibres, Livelihoods, and Leadership

This thought-provoking outing by Minney (Slave to Fashion), CEO of fair-trade fashion company People Tree, advocates for sustainable and ethical practices in the fashion industry. Fashion has the ability to “restore what it has taken from the natural world and revive communities,” she contends, exploring sustainable business models through interviews with designers, businesspeople, and activists. Minney suggests that fashion should take cues from regenerative agriculture, which seeks to implement production processes that promote soil and ecosystem health. Several interviewees emphasize the importance of going local, as when Bethany Williams, the designer of the eponymous label, notes that doing so cuts transportation costs and generates jobs within the community. Other interviews with industry insiders from such brands as Eileen Fisher, the Fair Wear Foundation, and Patagonia discuss how to ensure fair wages for textile workers, improve sustainability, and negotiate necessary trade-offs (the product director of outdoor clothing company Finisterre says that consumers should be willing to “pay a bit more” for “better products that last longer”). Minney’s stimulating interviews offer a panoramic view of the innovative ways the fashion world is grappling with the need for more sustainable and ethical practices. The result is a fascinating look at how the fashion industry can design a more equitable future. (Nov.)