Water. Our lives depend on it. It’s so plentiful that the Earth is sometimes called the blue planet – but freshwater is a remarkably finite resource that is not evenly distributed everywhere or to everyone. The number of people on our planet is growing fast, and our water use is growing even faster. About 1 …
I have been saying for years that fabric is the forgotten product. People just don’t seem to care about what their fabric choices do to them or to the environment. (Quick, what fiber is your shirt/blouse made of? What kinds of fibers do you sleep on?) They are too busy to do research, or they’re …
OK, I know it sounds self-serving to begin talking about the price of something when we’re in the selling business. But how many times have you bought something because of the low price? A new book by Ellen Ruppel Shell, called “Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture”, examines the price, value and cost of …
Synthetic fibers are the most popular fibers in the world – it’s estimated that synthetics account for about 65% of world production versus 35% for natural fibers.[1] Most synthetic fibers (approximately 70%) are made from polyester, and the polyester most often used in textiles is polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Used in a fabric, it’s most …
Although most of the current focus on lightening our carbon footprint revolves around transportation and heating issues, the modest little fabric all around you turns out to be from an industry with a gigantic carbon footprint. The textile industry, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, is the 5th largest contributor to CO2 emissions …
Discussion of the energy used to produce cloth.
I just watched Downstream – and had my eyes opened about an industrial project which is considered to be the most ecologically destructive project on Earth: the Alberta tar sands. Downstream is a new documentary by Academy Award nominee Lesley Iwerks, which you too can watch at http://www.babelgum.com/downstream . But I warn you, it’s unsettling …
OEcotextiles 