Kathie Lee Gifford's sweatshop scandal.. say it ain't so!

I can vividly remember the exact moment when I was first introduced to the concept of sustainability.  The year was 1996 during a family vacation to California to visit my Aunt Jinnie.  From 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. the only television channel that was allowed in my Aunt Jinnie’s home was CSPAN, due to her overwhelming fascination of playing the stock market.  One day while eating lunch and watching CSPAN I became instantly intrigued when a picture of Kathie Lee Gifford flashed across the screen.  Being a huge fan of the Kathie Lee Gifford and Regis morning show, I was absolutely devastated when I heard she was being accused for using sweatshops to construct her clothing line for Wal-Mart.  Before, reading the assigned articles I never would’ve considered this piece of news as an issue correlated with sustainability.  However, after reading the articles I learned that to achieve more sustainable practices of managing the ecosystem services, we must begin to implement sustainable practices in all areas including laws, policies, rules, business strategies, and all stages of clothing and textile production.

The Fashioning Sustainability report states “clothing and textile industry is huge.  Worth over US $1 trillion worldwide, it contributes to 7% of world exports and employs approximately 26 million people.”  Unlike other industries and sectors, the stages of production in textile and clothing products involve many parties that perform specialized tasks.  ESMA describes “an effective set of responses that will ensure sustainable management of ecosystems services must directly address the indirect and drivers and must overcome the barriers related to”:

• Inappropriate institutional and governance arrangements
• Market failures and the misalignment of economic incentives.
• Social and behavioral factors
• Underinvestment in the development and diffusion of technology that could increase the efficiency of use of ecosystem services and reduce the impacts of certain drivers of ecosystem change.
• Insufficient knowledge involving ecosystem services and the environment.

The solutions outlined in the Fashioning Sustainability report are influenced by the specific barriers that ESMA views as highly important measures that must be taken to ensure more sustainable management practices of our ecosystem services.  

The Fashioning Sustainability report by Draper and Murray outlines a list of several preventive measures that can be taken to ensure the longevity of our environment.  The recommendations suggested by the Fashioning Sustainability report are largely influenced by the “promising interventions” outlined in the Ecosystem and Well-Being Synthesis.  The first recommendation made by the Fashioning Sustainability report involves the avoidance of using naturally grown raw materials that are not equivalent with sustainability standards.  I was very surprised to read the “organic cotton production is still less than 1 percent of total cotton production.”  (Fashioning Sustainability)  By implementing these actions in the materials stage of production will provide a significant contribution in addressing the ESMA “promising intervention” goal of taking measures to reduce aggregate consumption of unsustainably managed ecosystem services.  Another important issue that must be addressed is increasing water efficiency.  “In some cases over 10 tonnes of water are used to grow enough cotton to make 1 pair of jeans.” (Fashioning Sustainability)  To increase water efficiency we must begin adopting practices that include water harvesting and drip irrigation, a device that allows water to drip directly on the roots of a plants.  Water harvesting and drip irrigation methods are strongly influenced by the ESMA “promising intervention” of the “promotion of technologies that enable increased crop yields without harmful impacts related to water, nutrient, and pesticide use.”  Another recommendation that would positively impact the materials stage of production is beginning to incorporate the country of origin on the labeling of cotton products.  This action further addresses the “promising intervention” of improving the levels of communication and education with consumers.  An overall solution to increase more sustainable levels of management is substituting cotton with other natural materials like hemp.  “Hemp is four times stronger than cotton, twice resistant to abrasion, and more resistant to mildew, soiling, shrinkage and fading in the sun.” (Fashioning Sustainability) This solution addresses the ESMA’s goal concerning the “promotion of technologies that enable increased crop yields without harmful impacts related to water, nutrient, and pesticide use.”  

The suggested solutions concerning animal welfare in the materials stage of production can be achieved through companies raising awareness regarding cruelty free products.  If implemented these solutions would fulfill the ESMA “promising intervention” relating to the “increased transparency and accountability of government and private sector performance on decisions that have an impact on ecosystem.”   A solution for enhancing the materials, usage, and disposal stages  of production is incorporating the usage of renewable materials in fabrics and making it a point to recycle clothing and textile products.  This solution incorporates the ESMA “promising intervention” mechanism of reducing the practices of aggregate consumption that are unsustainable to the environment.  

Throughout the different stages of production a sizable amount of toxic chemicals are used in producing the fabrics. The people who are most at risk are the individuals employed by the dye factories.  “Dyestuff contains carcinogenic aniline dye and aromatic amines, which cause bladder cancer-the most common cancer in clothing production workforce.  Other chemicals can trigger asthma and allergies or affect fertility and alter neurological behavior and have been linked to breast cancer.” (Fashioning Sustainability)  A solution in preventing this issue could be achieved by companies increasing their safety regulations and standards.  Employers actively monitoring and encouraging more stringent safety regulations and standards would strengthen the lines of communication, thus maximizing accuracy and efficiency throughout the supply chain.  Overall, this solution would address the social and behavioral barriers outlined by the ESMA and reassure the overall transparency and accountability between private sectors, shareholders, government institutions, and businesses.  

Technological advancements throughout the past decade have significantly transformed the roles of humans in the manufacturing process.  The emergence of assembly lines during the Industrial Revolution shifted the reliance that was once placed on humans to computerized machinery.  The production of clothing and textile products is one of the few industries that continues to utilize human efforts in the manufacturing process.  Many of the workers involved in this process face poor working conditions and are poorly mistreated.   To increase the awareness of poor working conditions relating to human rights, boycotts, and supplier audit fatigue the Fashioning Sustainability report proposed a variety of solutions to address this issue.  The Ethical Trading Initiative is an organization created by the UK government that aligns the efforts of trade unions and companies to improve existing working conditions.  As a means of increasing transparency many companies have adopted the SA8000 standards and have begun including sustainability assessment in their annual reports.   Both measures provide consumers with external evidence involving the adoption of sustainable management practices.  The most powerful and influential contenders in the supply chain are retailers.  By retailers adopting sustainable management practices such as, fair pricing, lobbying, longer term commitments with suppliers, country of origin labeling, and auditing garment suppliers, provides the other parties involved in the production process  with encouragement and places a larger emphasis on social rewards. 

The ESMA has observed an emerging pattern that categorizes people either as “winners” or “losers”.  Countries that are under developed and lack adequate resources commonly fall into the “losers” category. The discrimination that exists between the two categories ultimately influenced the ESMA’s “promising intervention” relating to the “elimination of subsidies that promote excessive use of ecosystem services.”  The clothing and textile industry are beginning to take the measures to turn this goal into a reality.  “In November 2005, The Fair-trade Foundation announced standards for Fair-trade cotton to help ensure a fair price for cotton producers.  As a result a number of UK retailers have started to sell ranges of Fair-trade certified cotton clothing.”  (Fashioning Sustainability)  Manufacturers and retailers are also making strides competing in other avenues that are not purely driven by price.  For example, the lingerie manufacturer for Marks & Spencer’s, markets the use of sustainable management practices in the company’s advertisements.  Retailers are beginning to assess their personal contributions, in terms of their involvement in the depletion of the environment.  A method that helps retailers assess their overall involvement is assigning dollar values to the environmental costs associated with the various stages of production.  The authors James Walsh and Michael Brown exercised this method to evaluate the effectiveness of the clothing retailer, Patagonia.  To assign the dollar values associated with the environmental costs, Brown ad Walsh used a managerial accounting technique.  As a result, Walsh and Brown discovered the stage of production that commands the highest value of environmental costs is the usage stage involving washing and care methods.  The most significant piece of evidence that was derived from this study was “the environmental cost of growing conventional cotton is more than double the direct cost of producing the crop.”  In my opinion, I think the implementation of this pricing strategy would increase the awareness of all the parties involved in the various stages of production. 

After reading the Fashioning Sustainability report I was shocked to discover “as much as 80% of the carbon ‘footprint’ of clothing can be caused in its washing and care, contributing to climate change.”  Consumer’s in my opinion, are the most active participates that are engage in this unsustainable behavior.  Taking into consideration the “promising interventions” proposed by the ESMA, the clothing and textile industry are beginning to take the preventive measures to enhance their overall management relating to ecosystem services.  Encouraging consumer’s to incorporate sustainable washing and care methods into their daily activities, such as washing full loads at low temperatures and forgoing tumble drying and ironing clothing.  Brands and retailers are encouraging consumer’s to begin incorporating sustainable practices by applying chemical treatments and coatings to their products enabling consumer’s to wear clothing multiple times before having to wash it.  Shifting to more sustainable washing and care practices reiterates the ESMA “possible intervention” that addresses education and awareness.  

A significant amount of money, resources, and time are lost during the transportation stages of clothing and textile production.  ESMA outlines a “possible intervention” method that emphasizes a “greater use of economic instruments and market-based approaches in the management of ecosystem services.”  In the Fashioning Sustainability report several solutions are recommended to address the specific transportation issues.  One solution in particular that would help solve this crisis are retailers and brands placing a greater emphasis on buying products locally.  The positive outcome that’s likely to result from buying products locally are increased levels of communication resulting from reducing the number of parties involved in the production process.

  

The Fashioning Sustainability report brought to my attention that “increasing amounts of clothing is ending up in landfills when it could be recycled or reused.”  Consumer’s are solely responsible for this reported increase, but many consumer’s do not realize the severity of their actions relating to improper disposal.  Raising the awareness of consumer’s is the only effective solution to this growing problem.  Designers, retailers, celebrities, social and government institutions play a significant role in increasing the awareness and providing consumer’s with an adequate amount of education.  The active involvement of designers, retailers, celebrities, social and government institutions, and consumer’s will help in the efforts of preserving our environment and help achieve the goals emphasized by the ESMA and the Fashioning Sustainability report.  

Anti-Eco... Americas New Taboo

       Has the thought ever crossed your mind while boarding an airplane to make an announcement to fellow passengers that you’re an aspiring terrorist?  Or have you ever considered openly cursing inside a church?  It’s very likely these particular thoughts have never entered your mind.  This is largely in part of society conditioning us to abstain from certain habits and practices that are perceived as social taboos.  Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word taboo as “a prohibition imposed by social custom or a protective measure.”  As the sustainability movement continues grow more Americans are becoming more knowledgable in regards, to the specific practices that a sustainable lifestyle requires.  Sustainability is an issue that many American’s don’t fully grasp, but do to the constant media coverage more people are willing to jump on the eco friendly bandwagon.  I’m fairly certain that I do not know one individual who strongly opposes the concept of sustainability.  In fact, the opposition of sustainability is slowly becoming a new social taboo that many individuals deem as being unpatriotic or un-American.  Regardless, whether you support sustainable development or not we must become more proactive in our efforts to put an end to the ecological crisis that’s brewing in the horizon.   

Prior to taking this course, my knowledge concerning the topic of sustainability was very limited.  However, as I further educate myself on this issue I have come to the realization that their are many layers to sustainability.  I believe with great certitude that the world as a whole is engaging in actions that are intensifying the approaching ecological crisis that’s upon us.  Research derived from the Ecosystem and Human Well-being: Synthesis discuss the implications that we are currently facing and how these will impact future generations. Recent media coverage has brought it to my attention that some individual’s strongly oppose the sustainability movement.  The ex GOP presidential candidate, Michele Bachmann, received a considerable amount of attention due to her interesting political platform and ideals concerning the environment.  The blogger Andrew Schenkel for the Mother Nature Network wrote an interesting article that highlighted Bachmann’s philosophies about environmental issues.  Once I became more aware of Bachmann’s radical views I had a difficult time comprehending her reasoning behind her strong opposition of this issue.  In Schenkel’s article, Michele Bachmann Environmental Record, I became aware that Bauchmann fails to acknowledge that climate change even exists.  She has “consistently voted against government promotion of energy conservation.”  In fact, Bachmann believes that the entire issue of global warming is a conspiracy.  Bachmann was quoted saying,“The big think we are working on now is the global warming hoax.  It’s all voodoo, nonsense, hokum, a hoax.”(Schenkel) The article goes on to report “Bachmann doesn’t buy the idea that emissions from power plants, cars, trucks and industry are trapping heat and warming the planet.”(Schenkel)  Michele Bachmann firmly believes that the concept of global warming was invented by the government.  She’s also a vocal advocate of drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  This type ideology in my opinion, is one of the underlying causes that will inevitably lead to an ecological crisis that cannot be reversed.

  In opposition of Bachmann’s beliefs, an abundance of research gathered throughout the years effectively discount the validity of her supposed theories.  The likelihood of an ecological crisis is becoming more of a reality as society continues to abuse ecosystem services that includes, food, fiber, genetic resources, biochemicals, natural medicines, pharmaceuticals, fresh water, air regulation, climate regulation, water regulation, water purification, disease regulation, pest regulation, pollination, natural hazard regulation, religious values, aesthetic values, and recreation and ecotourism.  Research conducted by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment reveals that 60% of ecosystem services are being used by humans unsustainably.  Many do not consider the long-term repercussions and merely dismiss the issue.  Many American’s have grown up enjoying the luxury having an infinite amount of resources at their fingertips.  For example, if our computer’s are running slower than usual we become very unsatisfied with this so called “dated” technology and immediately go to MAC store to purchase a newer model that’s faster and has more storage.  Another example, probably most prevalent in females, are the feelings that arise randomly when you find yourself hating absolutely everything in your closet.  To satisfy this need you will venture to the mall to purchase a new wardrobe to free yourself of the unwanted feelings that your currently experiencing.  Ecological resources differ from these examples because they cannot be easily duplicated and they’re not infinite in nature.  Greed and carelessness are driving forces behind the degradation of vital resources.  As reported in the Ecosystems and Human Well-Being Synthesis within the last few decades our environment has experienced significant damages.  The following statistics accurately convey the severity of these damages:  

• 20% of the earth’s land have been converted into croplands 
• 20% of the earth’s coral reefs have been extinct 
• the amount of water impounded behind dams has quadrupled
• reactive nitrogen levels in the terrestrial ecosystem have increased
• levels of atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide have also increased                                                                     

The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment reports “more than two thirds of the area of 1 of the world’s 14 major terrestrial biomes and more than half of the area of 4 biomes have been converted by 1990, primarily for agricultural purposes.”  The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment also reveals the “number of species on the planet are declining.  Over the past few hundreds years humans have increased the species extinctions rate by as much as 1,000 times over background rates typical over the planet’s history.”  If we continue to abuse the earth’s resources the speculations of an approaching ecological crisis will become a reality.

Easter Island ahu's

For centuries humans have inadvertently abused the resources provided by mother nature.  In the book, A New Green History of the World: The Environment and the Collapse of Great Civilizations, the author Ponting describes the detrimental effects that can result from the “dependence of human societies on their environment” by referencing the sequence of events that occurred that ultimately led to the demise of the Easter Island civilization.  Easter Island is a small island near the coast of South America.  Polynesian settlers mainly dominated the island and as settlers arrived they discovered the island had very limited resources. The volcanic nature of the island caused high temperatures and humidity levels and fresh water was extremely scarce.  The author Ponting, reports that due to the remoteness of Easter Island the island had very few species and plants.  This forced the Easter Islanders to depend on a diet that included sweet potatoes and chickens.  Due to the limited amount of resources the inhabitants of Easter Island had the opportunity to spend the majority of their days doing several activities that didn’t largely revolve around cultivation.  Easter Islanders began building ahu, a type of monument used for burials, ceremonies, and worshipping.   The craftsmanship of the ahu is mind-boggling, “some six meters in length and weighing several tens of tonnes.”(Ponting)  Instead of constructing the ahu’s in their desired locations, the Easter Islanders would build then transport the structures to the determined locations.  To move the ahu’s the settlers would cut down trees and use the tree trunks as rollers.  Sub cultural clans of Easter Island began to evolve at a rapid pace causing an increased rivalry between the clans.  The growing competition between the clans led to an increase of ahu's constructed.  The increased construction of the ahu’s led to an increase in the amount of trees cut down to move the structures.  This is a perfect representation of how humans have over used resources in order to increase the supply of other resources.  The deforestation of the island ultimately caused the demise of the civilization by off setting an ecological crisis to disrupt the society at large.  The depletion of the forests caused the limited food selection to become even more scarce.  Easter Island also experienced a significant increase in soil erosions levels, a limited means of transportation, and irreversible social and cultural damages.

Their are many ways that we can help stop this ecological crisis from developing any further.  In my opinion, gross domestic product should not be the motivation of our country, instead our country needs to take a step back and revaluate our day to day routines that deplete the earth’s resources.  We must consider the bigger picture and make wiser choices that aren’t harmful to the environment.  The support from the government and presiding institutions must also be intact.  It’s crucial that the government supports these efforts, seeing how they’re the liaison to the public at large.  The Ecosystem and Human Well-Being Synthesis reiterates the support of a government backing is the key to successfully implementing new policies that will prevent a future ecological crisis from occurring. To successfully implement these policies ensuring a sustainable future, coordination must exist across all sectors. Increased coordination will create a united front that will reduce the likelihood of an ecological crisis from occurring and enhance the quality of life for future generations.