The global fashion industry is valued at more than 2.5 trillion dollars and employs over 75 million people worldwide. The sector is an engine for economic development, but how does it align with sustainable development?

Many leading brands and fashion consortiums are increasingly concerned about the environmental and social impacts associated with the textile industry. Almost 65 percent of global fabric consumption consists of synthetic fibers derived from fossil fuels, and the majority of the remainder is made up of water- and pesticide-intensive crops.

Sustainable solutions and alternative materials are required!

Renewable and responsibly sourced forest fibers are part of the solution for a sustainable fashion industry.

Modern wood fibers can be used to produce sustainable, renewable and biodegradable textiles and a range of materials the fashion sector can use to reduce its ecological footprint. New technologies are able to convert wood pulp into fibers with a circular approach, reusing chemicals and lowering the amounts of water and energy that are required in the process of manufacturing synthetic materials.
The 'Forests4Fashion' Initiative

The Forests4Fashion initiative was launched in 2014 to promote sustainable forest management beyond the forestry sector. It aligns with the goals of the UNECE/FAO Integrated Programme of Work, which is to raise awareness about the relevance of forests and forest products and services to other sectors, such as fashion and textiles.

Through communication and outreach activities on social media and through exhibitions and engagement with the design community, the F4F initiative aims to:
raise awareness about the environmental and social impacts associated with textile fibre production;
help initiate real change in the world of fashion by showcasing ways to do things differently together with all stakeholders;
promote sustainable forest management through the use of certified wood pulp for textile fibres; and showcase the work of talented designers that have placed sustainability at the core of their designs.

Partners

UN Alliance for Sustainable Fashion
UN Forum on Forests
Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)
Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI)
Citadellarte Fashion B.E.S.T.
Zoi Environment Network
Independent designers/brands/companies: Olistic the Label, Maria Lafuente, Tiziano Guardini

Tackling climate change and plastic pollution requires decisive measures at all levels, from international policy coordination to innovation in industry and changes to unsustainable practices in our everyday lives. As one example, the rise of online shopping and food delivery services allows us to order anything to our door, but with low costs and convenience comes significant negative impacts, including plastics-based fast fashion and high volumes of often unrecyclable packaging. Complementing strengthened efforts to reduce our overall use of resources, forests can help to disrupt this “buy, use and dispose” model of linear consumption, as well as being key to achieving global climate change mitigation and adaption goals. Forest based fibres can produce innovative fashion and packaging products to support the transition to more sustainable patterns of production and consumption within a circular bioeconomy.

Within this context, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) will mark the International Day of Forests 2022 on 21 March with an online event that focuses on how leaders in the fashion textile and packaging sectors are shaping sustainable relationships between forests and circular production models to reduce carbon emissions, waste and plastics pollution across the global economy.

The event will open with “In the Forest”, a new sustainable fashion collection presented live from Milan by Tiziano Guardini, fashion designer and winner of a Green Carpet Award, which celebrates the best in sustainable fashion. Leading innovators from intergovernmental bodies, research facilities and associates from the private sector will then discuss how the fashion industry can transition away from water and plastic intensive manufacturing processes to using cellulose-based fibres, which are produced in a closed-loop system to lower the industry’s environmental footprint.

Innovative approaches within the packaging industry to replace plastics with renewable products of organic origin, most of which are recyclable, compostable, or both will be presented by leading organizations from the non-governmental and private sector.

Experts will share innovative approaches to embedding the circular economy into supply chains, discuss new ideas and ask critical questions about (over)consumption and our relationship with the natural world such as:

What are the innovative uses of wood fibre-based products in our everyday lives?
How can the sustainable production and consumption of wood products help to decarbonize industries, to transform the way we (re)use resources and to support the transition towards more sustainable lifestyles?
What are our options for choosing wood wisely while caring for our forests within the context of a rapidly changing climate?