Term

Definition

Sustainable Fashion Application

Affective Labor

Work that involves producing or modifying emotional experiences in others.

Recognizing the emotional toll on garment workers producing fast fashion, and the emotional manipulation of consumers through marketing. Supporting brands with transparent and ethical labor practices, and promoting mindful consumption that values the emotional well-being of all involved.

Agency

The capacity of individuals to act independently and to make their own free choices.

Supporting worker-owned cooperatives or fair trade organizations that give garment workers a voice in their working conditions and wages. Empowering consumers to make informed purchasing decisions by providing transparent information about the environmental and social impacts of clothing.

Care Ethics

A normative ethical theory that emphasizes the importance of relationships, interdependence, and caregiving.

Using natural dyes that are less harmful to the environment and workers' health, supporting local artisans and their communities, and designing clothing that is durable and repairable, demonstrating care for both people and the planet.

Discursive Power

The power to define and control meanings through language and discourse.

Challenging greenwashing by critically analyzing brand narratives and marketing claims. Promoting accurate and transparent communication about sustainable practices, and empowering consumers to question dominant fashion narratives.

Epistemology of Ignorance

The study of how ignorance is produced and maintained, often to uphold power structures.

Promoting transparency and traceability in the supply chain to combat the deliberate obfuscation of information. Supporting initiatives that educate consumers about the true costs of fashion, and challenging brands that profit from ignorance.

Exploitation

The action or fact of treating someone unfairly in order to benefit from their work.

Fast fashion business models rely on the exploitation of cheap labor and resources, causing environmental destruction and social injustice. Sustainable alternatives focus on fair wages, ethical sourcing of materials, and reducing the environmental impact of production.

Feminist Economics

An approach to economics that critically examines and seeks to rectify the gendered impacts of economic policies and practices.

Recognizing the hidden costs of fast fashion, like the environmental damage caused by textile waste and pollution, and the social costs borne by exploited workers. Feminist economics advocates for a circular economy that prioritizes fair wages, resource efficiency, and waste reduction.

Gender Performativity

The idea that gender is not an inherent trait but rather a set of behaviors and expressions that are performed and reinforced through social interactions.

Promoting gender-neutral clothing reduces the need for separate wardrobes, minimizing textile waste and resource consumption. Encouraging the use of durable, versatile garments that transcend gender norms extends garment lifespan.

Intersectionality

The interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, gender, and sexuality as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.

Consider cotton farming. A focus on "sustainable cotton" might overlook that many cotton farmers are women of color in developing nations who face land rights issues and exposure to harmful pesticides. A truly sustainable approach addresses these intersecting inequalities, ensuring fair wages, safe working conditions, and equitable access to resources, alongside environmentally sound practices.

Material Feminism

A feminist perspective that emphasizes the material conditions of women's lives and the ways in which bodies and objects are socially constructed.

Advocating for fair wages, safe working conditions, and sustainable material sourcing. Analyzing the environmental impact of specific textiles and production processes, and promoting circular economy models that minimize waste.

Objectification

The act of treating a person as a thing or object, disregarding their personhood and agency.

Promoting diverse and inclusive representation in fashion media, and challenging the objectification of bodies through design and marketing. Supporting brands that celebrate body diversity and promote body positivity.

Patriarchy

A system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded from it.

Fast fashion's exploitation of predominantly female garment workers in developing countries, who are often paid below living wages and subjected to unsafe working conditions, is a direct result of patriarchal structures that undervalue women's labor. Sustainable fashion challenges this by advocating for fair wages, safe working conditions, and worker empowerment.

Postcolonial Feminism

A form of feminism that critiques Western feminist perspectives and considers the experiences of women in postcolonial contexts.

Acknowledging the environmental burden placed on developing nations through the dumping of textile waste from Western countries. Promoting local production and consumption, and supporting initiatives that empower local communities to manage their own resources and reduce waste.

Representation

The way in which a person or group is depicted or portrayed.

Showcasing diverse body types and cultural backgrounds in sustainable fashion campaigns can help to challenge the narrow beauty standards that drive overconsumption. Showing people repairing clothing, or using clothing for many years, also changes the representation of fashion consumption.

Situated Knowledge

The idea that knowledge is always produced from a particular perspective and context, and is not objective or universal.

Supporting fair trade and ethical sourcing initiatives that prioritize the knowledge and expertise of local communities. Promoting cross-cultural collaboration and exchange in sustainable fashion design, and valuing diverse perspectives on sustainability.

Symbolic Violence

The often unconscious and indirect forms of violence that are embedded in social norms and cultural practices.

Promoting cultural sensitivity and awareness in design and marketing, and challenging the appropriation of cultural symbols and practices. Supporting brands that celebrate cultural diversity and promote ethical representation.

Transnational Feminism

A feminist perspective that focuses on the global connections and inequalities that shape women's lives, particularly in the context of colonialism and globalization.

Advocating for fair trade and ethical sourcing practices that address the global inequalities in the fashion industry. Supporting initiatives that empower women workers in developing countries, and promoting sustainable development that benefits all communities.