Alexandra Palmer opened her class at the University of Toronto with a challenge for students: try not to buy any new clothing this term.
As part of Palmer’s fourth-year course focused on textiles and fashions amid climate change, students are asked to examine global trends in fashion such as escalating clothing production and consumption, and the industry’s growing environmental impact.
“I also won’t buy any new clothes,” says Palmer, a curator, author and lecturer in the department of art history in the Faculty of Arts & Science. “We’re in it together.”
The point, she says, is to shift thinking about sustainability and highlight that choices about textiles and fashion can play an important role. “It’s a place where everyone can participate – once we understand the system,” she says.
Students also learn how to unravel greenwashing and make informed decisions about marketing claims related to climate change.
“The purpose of this course is to show students what’s going on and make them feel that they have agency so that they can respond in whatever way they choose.”
As much as 92 million tonnes of garments end up in landfills each year, according to some estimates, and the trend towards fast fashion over the last 30 years is a major culprit. The business model focuses on rapidly producing high volumes of clothing using low-quality materials and low-wage labour to sell at more affordable prices.
In addition, there are now concerns about the impact of ultra-fast fashion, which relies on a demand-driven supply chain model in which production cycles are measured in mere days.
Compounding these issues is the fact that some fabrics – particularly polyester, which is made from non‑renewable fossil fuels – never break down in landfills. Creating garments also requires enormous amounts of water for growing fibres and dyeing, as well as other resources for packaging and shipping. Meanwhile, mountains of discarded clothing continue to grow in places like Chile and Ghana, creating massive “clothing graveyards.”
The U of T class explores alternatives to capitalism’s focus on endless growth and instead considers ideas like sufficiency and “enough.” Students discuss topics such as regulations, ethics, equity, laws and tariffs. One example is Extended Producer Responsibility, where companies pay upfront for the end‑of‑life of their products, creating a real financial cost for overproduction.
Lily Kumar, a fourth-year art history specialist with a minor in South Asian studies, says she’s a fan of the course’s personal assignments, which include explaining the reasoning behind students’ own clothing purchases and discussing plans for eventually discarding those items.
“Rather than talking about specific readings, a lot of what we discuss are our own experiences, habits and thoughts about fashion and textiles in our own life,” says Kumar, a member of New College, adding that she managed to complete Palmer’s challenge by not purchasing any new clothes for the duration of the course.
“It’s not that I wasn’t aware of the environmental issues around fashion and textiles. But it’s the kind of thing that’s easy to push out of your mind.”
So what can we all do about the problem going forward?
“Everyone can engage in this on some level,” says Palmer. “You can shop less. You can recycle, reuse, repair. You can have a clothing swap locally. You can decide you’re not going to buy from certain retailers.
“The thing is to just really think about what you have and ask yourself what you truly need.”