I personally love fashion and I think there is a way to save the planet and also love what we wear. But most huge companies aren’t making business decisions with the environment in mind.
Companies use cheaper materials and many people lack the knowledge to repair their own clothes since 1) now it’s cheaper to just buy something new and 2) it’s simply not taught like it used to be. The trend cycle has also significantly sped up thanks to social media and overconsumption has become the norm
You're not going to like this, but the main thing that causes stuff to wear out more quickly from a textile perspective, is making stuff stretchy. Chlorine in water (pools, treated city water, etc), using heat to dry, fabric softeners and chemicals in detergents, and just time itself all causes elastic to break down. If you've ever found an old pair of underwear and heard it make a crunch sound, you know what I mean, or looked at a sock to see little white fibres of elastic sticking out, that's elastic showing signs of wear and age. The only way to make something have some stretch without elastic is to knit a natural fibre, like 100% wool or cotton, but that doesn't replace what we got used to as it's doesn't have that compressive quality. I personally need to wear compression socks, and I find that the only way they can last is to use more natural unscented detergent or hand wash with bar soap, and hang them up to dry. Wearing things more than once between washes helps too, but sometimes that doesn't work. I personally find men's Levis to last a long time because they don't have elastic like most of their women's ones do, and they say right on it to wash less often. 100% wool sweaters also last a long time when cared for properly.
@@Queersailorscout People don't usually believe me when I say how expensive it is to make my own stuff. Just taking an average of what I've seen, it's usually about $200+ for a good sewing machine (unless you get lucky and can get a good machine from a relative or thrift store, I highly recommend Kenmore or Singer machines from the 60s through 80s as long as the motor is good), most machines need maintenance every couple years which is $60 unless you learn how to do it, and for a good fabric that isn't going to fall apart, you're looking at $10-$50 a yard depending on what it's made of. For a shirt, skirt, or jacket, you can usually get away with 1.5, but for pants, a long coat, a dress, you need at least two. I personally don't mind using old or unconventional materials to make clothes, from sheets, to curtains, to whatever fabric a thrift store has, but for new materials, you can see why it's harder to justify. I made a swimsuit, it cost about $50. To get an ethically made one, most sites are around $80, but then you have Walmart with $15, so it's not always an easy choice. Plus you need to practice and know what you're doing.
I love to sew and thrift a lot of my materials. It's hard to trace things back beyond what fabric retailer it came from. Sometimes you can find a manufacturer brand, like Tencel, but it's a complicated system. I like seeing recycled materials and bamboo more often, but they're so expensive. That being said, expensive is relative. I made my wedding dress with Tencel, an upcycled sheet, some scrap lace I had, some zip ties, as well as new interfacing and boning. It cost about $80, but compared to local bridal stores where dresses started at $200 and went up to $2000, it makes mine sound a lot cheaper. People said I should sell things I sew, but when you add in the time it takes to make a pattern that fits, and all the work of putting it together, most people can't justify spending more than $80 on one item of clothing.
Seeing and knowing the impact every small creature comfort should be understood. And not shipped to far away location making it a local issue for others.
Great talk. It’s so very sad that we are constantly told to, and respond to, change our wardrobe - because if we don’t we won’t be in the in crowd. And Amy explains the cost of that marketing manipulation so well. 😢😢😢
Made a New Years Resolution a few years ago to rid my wardrobe of synthetic fabrics. With how the world is working and what is available this is impossible. I've been trying for three years now, I can't find socks, bras, underwear, shoes or anything in my price range to replace some of the stuff I am able to get rid of. So, my opinion is get affordable plain but well made items out there again. I once had a ten minute argument with a sales person whom I told I wanted a plain white tshirt. She said "We have microfiber. We have 50/50 and 40/60 cotton and poly.". And none of it lasts, I have allergies to synthetics, and the quality clothes I do have are wearing out. As soon as the market gets decent stuff available, I am there. But even high end stuff is made of polyester and nylon. It's ridiculous.
Fashion is in the eyes of the beholder. I see no real fashion trends anymore. Most people just where what is cheap and comfortable, has a brand name stamped on it, and/or accentuates their body in the way they like. It is easy to throw stones at consumers of Shein, Temu, Forever21, etc. But we each need to look at our own consumption practices. Letting produce go to waste, pouring paint or other toxic chemicals down drains, what certain foods do to our bodies. Ask the question “how can what I’m purchasing harm me, others, the planet by what it’s made of, how it’s made, where it will go when I’m done with it?” We no longer just have to live with buyer’s remorse, we now get buyer’s guilt as well. Watching Ted Talks is tough these days.
There were laws lifted back in I think the late 80's that allowed other countries to produce cheaper clothing and undercut the value of their products which in turn priced out other countries being able to compete. This caused the issue we are in now. But also the mindset of so many generations has changed. Many of them simply do not care past "their front door". Coupled with how inflation has priced out people that normally would be able to afford daily necessities which includes clothing and shoes.
3:10 so many clothes have lost their quality as well - after just a couple of wears, they look already worn out, lost their shape and fibers make up into the "bubbles" which are very difficult to remove. such clothing is unmendable - there are no holes to mend yet, but it's already misshapen and fabric is heavily pilled. i'm very upset with this because i do prefer to wear my clothes for longer. i have my own taste, and i don't chase fads. when i have my own taste, it's often difficult to find to buy what i like (yes,i end uo making some things myself). so when i do find to buy what i like, i want to wear it as long as possible. quality of everything has declined, tbh, not only clothes... trying to save costs, quality suffers. trying to mass produce in greater numbers - quality suffers. just sad. my favourite fabric is cotton, and i struggle to find 100% cotton tshirts (or other garments) in shops - it's most often either mixed with synthetic fibers like polyester, or is pure polyester to begin with. (but cotton + elastan is also a favourite fabric.) wool is too itchy, silk is too cold and too smooth, i don't like fur as i didn't find it as warming as synthetic filling or natural dawn. viscose is ok i guess. i love cotton and denim (also cotton), i love leather (as it's very durable and will last for a very long time, as opposed to "vegan" "leather" or PolyUrethane PU which is just plastic and glue, and will start peeling after a year or two no matter how well you store it, so real leather turns out to be better for the planet in the long run - if they can find 500 year old skeletons still wearing leather shoes, bby, you know it's gonna last 👍). i can't have - and don't want to have - too much of leather goods. one of each for jacket, coat, boots, bag, belt, gloves - that is enough. but i sure do love cotton 🥰
What about wearing clothes as long as they are in good shape instead of putting on once and throwing as soon as fashion changes? I guess that would be an elephant in the room :P
Fast fashion detrimental for our entire plant.If we want to a healthy environment for our next generation we must be concern about when buying new items.
She's positing that 3.4 BILLION people work in the chain of clothes production? That over HALF the world's working population makes clothes for a living? I'm... skeptical. Otherwise, I appreciate the focus on sustainability.
This is a good point and the number being too high is what could make it hard to believe. (I will try to verify the number later) but I want to emphasis that clothing is a birthright, right? In a world where every single thing is supposed to come from a production and logistics chain, the number now seems even less to me.
I'm curious why TED has been uploading so many talks about the same topic of climate change. We get it, we're hurting the earth, but there are also so many other topics
Climate change has lost the shock factor that keeps people entertained. TED acknowledges that just because people are tired of hearing about it, it doesn't mean the problem suddenly doesn't exist anymore. They understand their responsibility is to educate the population to create a better world, not one that keeps people entertained.
What a weird thing to get upset about. If you can't understand how important of a topic it is and don't care, go watch something else. There's absolutely nothing wrong with this video. 🤷♂ What TED does is great. Let me guess, another American complaining about normal education and entertainment using whatever emotional excuse they can imagine? 😅
@@WattisWatts It's very easy to understand why TED would make videos like these. It's really ignorant to say we should, as the op lightly puts it, ignore hurting the Earth. (I.e. the extinction of all multicellular life) You chose to react to my words while there were two people being more direct. You "can't stand" people who have a sincere reaction to people behaving foolish by both downplaying and wanting willful ignorance of global warming. People will try multiple angles of rhetoric, one isn't objectively the most convincing in every situation, so maybe try growing up? "Gee it's just a question..." 😅
Fashion is the definition of a waste of time, effort and Energy. Your whole industry is based on a throwaway economy. Without changes in fashion there'd be no reason or no wish to change your clothes other than You need something you haven't got or they have become Unreparable. Clothes should be functional, repairable and well made. By the way I hope she realises that the windmill the television and practically everything that she touches or uses has had some material derived from crude oil. The consumers of fashion is mostly women. Even before the Industrial Revolution most clothing was created by women. This is nothing new and it allowed them to work from home whilst looking after their children. This is a good thing and shouldn't be derided. To say that it's mostly women who are creating clothing as a bad thing is to get it 100% wrong. What will make an impact is women not buying clothing as fashion. That would be the biggest driver in reducing and changing the amount and way we use clothing. Even the clothing that men buy is mostly decided by women. Women make 80% of the household purchase decisions. So if she's going to bring gender into this this is not caused by men this is caused by women.
amazing. this conversation about fashion and sustainability needs to be encouraged and continued.
From watching the documentary "Fashion Reimagined" and now this, thank you Amy for educating the world
I personally love fashion and I think there is a way to save the planet and also love what we wear. But most huge companies aren’t making business decisions with the environment in mind.
What a great and meaningful talk.....thanks for this!
How about we make clothes last longer, like our grandparents and ancestors used to do.
Then price will go up and people will be mad..they lack the thought about long-term
Companies use cheaper materials and many people lack the knowledge to repair their own clothes since 1) now it’s cheaper to just buy something new and 2) it’s simply not taught like it used to be. The trend cycle has also significantly sped up thanks to social media and overconsumption has become the norm
You're not going to like this, but the main thing that causes stuff to wear out more quickly from a textile perspective, is making stuff stretchy. Chlorine in water (pools, treated city water, etc), using heat to dry, fabric softeners and chemicals in detergents, and just time itself all causes elastic to break down. If you've ever found an old pair of underwear and heard it make a crunch sound, you know what I mean, or looked at a sock to see little white fibres of elastic sticking out, that's elastic showing signs of wear and age. The only way to make something have some stretch without elastic is to knit a natural fibre, like 100% wool or cotton, but that doesn't replace what we got used to as it's doesn't have that compressive quality. I personally need to wear compression socks, and I find that the only way they can last is to use more natural unscented detergent or hand wash with bar soap, and hang them up to dry. Wearing things more than once between washes helps too, but sometimes that doesn't work. I personally find men's Levis to last a long time because they don't have elastic like most of their women's ones do, and they say right on it to wash less often. 100% wool sweaters also last a long time when cared for properly.
@@Queersailorscout People don't usually believe me when I say how expensive it is to make my own stuff. Just taking an average of what I've seen, it's usually about $200+ for a good sewing machine (unless you get lucky and can get a good machine from a relative or thrift store, I highly recommend Kenmore or Singer machines from the 60s through 80s as long as the motor is good), most machines need maintenance every couple years which is $60 unless you learn how to do it, and for a good fabric that isn't going to fall apart, you're looking at $10-$50 a yard depending on what it's made of. For a shirt, skirt, or jacket, you can usually get away with 1.5, but for pants, a long coat, a dress, you need at least two. I personally don't mind using old or unconventional materials to make clothes, from sheets, to curtains, to whatever fabric a thrift store has, but for new materials, you can see why it's harder to justify. I made a swimsuit, it cost about $50. To get an ethically made one, most sites are around $80, but then you have Walmart with $15, so it's not always an easy choice. Plus you need to practice and know what you're doing.
I love to sew and thrift a lot of my materials. It's hard to trace things back beyond what fabric retailer it came from. Sometimes you can find a manufacturer brand, like Tencel, but it's a complicated system. I like seeing recycled materials and bamboo more often, but they're so expensive. That being said, expensive is relative. I made my wedding dress with Tencel, an upcycled sheet, some scrap lace I had, some zip ties, as well as new interfacing and boning. It cost about $80, but compared to local bridal stores where dresses started at $200 and went up to $2000, it makes mine sound a lot cheaper. People said I should sell things I sew, but when you add in the time it takes to make a pattern that fits, and all the work of putting it together, most people can't justify spending more than $80 on one item of clothing.
Seeing and knowing the impact every small creature comfort should be understood. And not shipped to far away location making it a local issue for others.
Thank You Amy. Beautifully said 👏👏👏
Great talk. It’s so very sad that we are constantly told to, and respond to, change our wardrobe - because if we don’t we won’t be in the in crowd. And Amy explains the cost of that marketing manipulation so well. 😢😢😢
Made a New Years Resolution a few years ago to rid my wardrobe of synthetic fabrics. With how the world is working and what is available this is impossible. I've been trying for three years now, I can't find socks, bras, underwear, shoes or anything in my price range to replace some of the stuff I am able to get rid of. So, my opinion is get affordable plain but well made items out there again. I once had a ten minute argument with a sales person whom I told I wanted a plain white tshirt. She said "We have microfiber. We have 50/50 and 40/60 cotton and poly.". And none of it lasts, I have allergies to synthetics, and the quality clothes I do have are wearing out. As soon as the market gets decent stuff available, I am there. But even high end stuff is made of polyester and nylon. It's ridiculous.
Fashion is in the eyes of the beholder. I see no real fashion trends anymore. Most people just where what is cheap and comfortable, has a brand name stamped on it, and/or accentuates their body in the way they like. It is easy to throw stones at consumers of Shein, Temu, Forever21, etc. But we each need to look at our own consumption practices. Letting produce go to waste, pouring paint or other toxic chemicals down drains, what certain foods do to our bodies. Ask the question “how can what I’m purchasing harm me, others, the planet by what it’s made of, how it’s made, where it will go when I’m done with it?” We no longer just have to live with buyer’s remorse, we now get buyer’s guilt as well. Watching Ted Talks is tough these days.
Yeah it's tough as it's absolutely realistic
There were laws lifted back in I think the late 80's that allowed other countries to produce cheaper clothing and undercut the value of their products which in turn priced out other countries being able to compete. This caused the issue we are in now. But also the mindset of so many generations has changed. Many of them simply do not care past "their front door". Coupled with how inflation has priced out people that normally would be able to afford daily necessities which includes clothing and shoes.
Maybe Shein needs to hear this. Their workers don't get proper compensation. It's all just corruption. Fast fashion isn't worth the risk.
"Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months." Oscar Wilde
Except now it's every 3 weeks.
3:10 so many clothes have lost their quality as well - after just a couple of wears, they look already worn out, lost their shape and fibers make up into the "bubbles" which are very difficult to remove. such clothing is unmendable - there are no holes to mend yet, but it's already misshapen and fabric is heavily pilled. i'm very upset with this because i do prefer to wear my clothes for longer. i have my own taste, and i don't chase fads. when i have my own taste, it's often difficult to find to buy what i like (yes,i end uo making some things myself). so when i do find to buy what i like, i want to wear it as long as possible.
quality of everything has declined, tbh, not only clothes... trying to save costs, quality suffers. trying to mass produce in greater numbers - quality suffers.
just sad.
my favourite fabric is cotton, and i struggle to find 100% cotton tshirts (or other garments) in shops - it's most often either mixed with synthetic fibers like polyester, or is pure polyester to begin with. (but cotton + elastan is also a favourite fabric.)
wool is too itchy, silk is too cold and too smooth, i don't like fur as i didn't find it as warming as synthetic filling or natural dawn. viscose is ok i guess.
i love cotton and denim (also cotton), i love leather (as it's very durable and will last for a very long time, as opposed to "vegan" "leather" or PolyUrethane PU which is just plastic and glue, and will start peeling after a year or two no matter how well you store it, so real leather turns out to be better for the planet in the long run - if they can find 500 year old skeletons still wearing leather shoes, bby, you know it's gonna last 👍). i can't have - and don't want to have - too much of leather goods. one of each for jacket, coat, boots, bag, belt, gloves - that is enough. but i sure do love cotton 🥰
fully support this beautiful concept. but I believe that success will really come and only if we manage to make it economically profitable.
Fashion means nothing, period. It's just vanity and ego.
What about wearing clothes as long as they are in good shape instead of putting on once and throwing as soon as fashion changes? I guess that would be an elephant in the room :P
Fast fashion detrimental for our entire plant.If we want to a healthy environment for our next generation we must be concern about when buying new items.
Dear entitled owners of nature,Please save earth, please open your eyes now 🙏
She's positing that 3.4 BILLION people work in the chain of clothes production? That over HALF the world's working population makes clothes for a living? I'm... skeptical. Otherwise, I appreciate the focus on sustainability.
This is a good point and the number being too high is what could make it hard to believe. (I will try to verify the number later) but I want to emphasis that clothing is a birthright, right? In a world where every single thing is supposed to come from a production and logistics chain, the number now seems even less to me.
Fair trade please. No more Free Trade agreements.
I'm curious why TED has been uploading so many talks about the same topic of climate change. We get it, we're hurting the earth, but there are also so many other topics
There will be a point where the earth will be so hurt that we will go extinct. We need to talk about.
Climate change has lost the shock factor that keeps people entertained. TED acknowledges that just because people are tired of hearing about it, it doesn't mean the problem suddenly doesn't exist anymore. They understand their responsibility is to educate the population to create a better world, not one that keeps people entertained.
What a weird thing to get upset about. If you can't understand how important of a topic it is and don't care, go watch something else. There's absolutely nothing wrong with this video. 🤷♂
What TED does is great. Let me guess, another American complaining about normal education and entertainment using whatever emotional excuse they can imagine? 😅
@@l01230123 Gee it's just a question being asked. Your comment is one reason people can't stand these new wave environmentalists.
@@WattisWatts It's very easy to understand why TED would make videos like these. It's really ignorant to say we should, as the op lightly puts it, ignore hurting the Earth. (I.e. the extinction of all multicellular life)
You chose to react to my words while there were two people being more direct. You "can't stand" people who have a sincere reaction to people behaving foolish by both downplaying and wanting willful ignorance of global warming.
People will try multiple angles of rhetoric, one isn't objectively the most convincing in every situation, so maybe try growing up? "Gee it's just a question..." 😅
How much does her stuff cost, and why the f**k do we need "Fashion" anyway?
shop in asia
Fashion is the definition of a waste of time, effort and Energy. Your whole industry is based on a throwaway economy. Without changes in fashion there'd be no reason or no wish to change your clothes other than You need something you haven't got or they have become Unreparable. Clothes should be functional, repairable and well made. By the way I hope she realises that the windmill the television and practically everything that she touches or uses has had some material derived from crude oil. The consumers of fashion is mostly women. Even before the Industrial Revolution most clothing was created by women. This is nothing new and it allowed them to work from home whilst looking after their children. This is a good thing and shouldn't be derided. To say that it's mostly women who are creating clothing as a bad thing is to get it 100% wrong. What will make an impact is women not buying clothing as fashion. That would be the biggest driver in reducing and changing the amount and way we use clothing. Even the clothing that men buy is mostly decided by women. Women make 80% of the household purchase decisions. So if she's going to bring gender into this this is not caused by men this is caused by women.
Тэд стал такой помойкой, хоспаде….
Repair your shirts,shorts, undergarments etc.. sew and fortify new clothes... Dont succumb to fast fashion trends
does tell us& not invisable
It's amusing you think the world needs saving
TED please upload more 💩💩💩
how about get rich of rich scum and their companies
The founder of TED should be removed and a new person introduced to bring back intellectual curiosity and honesty. Shame on Chris.
TED ED made me loose interest after the vegan wala video
it’s all greed.
First
You are ALL delusional to believe that 😂