Mother of Pearl’s Amy Powney on why she launched #FashionOurFuture
If you follow any fashion folk on Instagram, then you may have noticed many of them addressing their consumption and shopping habits in recent days. Famous faces including Alexa Chung, Jameela Jamil and Arizona Muse have joined the #FashionOurFuture campaign, which was launched by Mother of Pearl designer Amy Powney this week, aiming to encourage us to pledge to be better when it comes to our fashion habits.
“Now felt like the right time to launch the campaign as we have limited time left to reverse climate change – and the fashion and textile industry is one of the biggest contributors to the problem,” Powney told us. “There are lots of great platforms on social media already talking about sustainability and others talking pure fashion, but the two topics felt like completely different conversations to me.”
A post shared by #FASHIONOURFUTURE (@fashionourfuture) on Feb 18, 2020 at 3:06am PST
Attempting to fill this gap, Powney is asking people to make one small pledge – this could be anything from giving up buying jeans for a year, only shopping vintage or renting clothes until a certain date or cutting out investing in certain harmful fabrics. None of the suggested pledges are life-altering – they are all small steps that any individual could easily adapt into their lives. But starting small, Powney argues, is the way to make change stick.
“No one can do everything, but everyone can do something. This is exactly what I believe in for achieving sustainability when it comes to the consumer. The best way to reach a goal that big is to work towards it by taking small steps.
A post shared by #FASHIONOURFUTURE (@fashionourfuture) on Feb 13, 2020 at 8:36am PST
“I do not expect this campaign to suddenly reduce the world’s carbon consumption immediately, however, I am hoping that it will start important conversations that may eventually have the effect that's needed. The bigger the noise, the more people will listen. Seeing the way in which Greta Thunberg has made global waves should show us that anything is possible, so why not try?”
Powney also feels that part of the problem with getting the message of sustainability across to the consumer is that the fashion world can often seem impenetrable – her hope is that this campaign will open the conversation.
“Fashion and sustainability can often feel off-limits or intimidating, even for myself. My aim is inclusivity and collaboration, which is what we need for the scale of change we need. We need to be able to create a global conversation as you can’t fix a problem if people don’t know there is one.”
A post shared by Jameela Jamil (@jameelajamilofficial) on Feb 13, 2020 at 8:57am PST
Much of the change that needs to happen around sustainability must come from consumer habits, but before this, change also needs to come from within the industry, for example, with fashion shows, which Powney believes could be the key to making a difference with the climate emergency.
“I believe London Fashion Week, and other fashion weeks globally, could be used as an incredibly powerful platform to creatively think about ways to inspire change and work together (designers, brands, buyers, press, consumers) to celebrate our love for fashion and the planet at the same time.
“Perhaps the industry could consider cutting back in some way on this, not only would it reduce travel and waste, but also the concept of the need for newness. It would also instil some passion back in the art of great design for the tired eyes of those so often viewing shows. We live in a world of constant content and that de-sensitises the viewer, we would all benefit from quality not quantity, as would your wardrobe.”
If you want to take part in #FashionOurFuture, visit the campaign’s Instagram page to see pledge examples or you can even make up one of your own.
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