Volume 99, 15 July 2015, Pages 345–353
Highlights
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- Ecolabel criteria mainly focus on ecological considerations in production.
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- The connection between ecolabels and the work of clothing designer is weak.
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- Sustainability issues are handled by other actors than the clothing designers.
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- The clothing designers' sustainability expertise needs to be broadened.
Abstract
In
recent decades, the textile industry has worked to reduce its negative
social and environmental impacts. Identifying and addressing important
sustainability considerations already in the clothing design are of
increasing importance in the continuation of this work. Many companies
look to ecolabelling schemes as means to set performance criteria and to
demonstrate progress to customers. This study investigates the
connection between ecolabels and clothing design from the perspective of
moving the garment industry towards sustainability. Information
gathered from literature was aligned and contrasted with interviews
conducted with employees of garment companies in Sweden, and the
material was analysed using a life-cycle perspective. The results reveal
that the clothing design process currently only marginally influences
clothing's sustainability performance by applying ecolabelling criteria.
For a more sustainable textile industry there is a need to expand the
expertise and information already in the design process regarding
sustainability of their finished products. Such a change is only
possible if the designers can be guided by a clear vision of design for
sustainability for the company they work in.
Keywords
- Ecolabels;
- Clothing design;
- Information for customers;
- Value chain
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