Ethical Fashion Forum

Today I spent some time in the Ethical Fashion Forum held in the Triangle Gallery at Chelsea college of art.
"The EFF network connects thousands of individuals, businesses, and organisations interested in a more sustainable future for fashion."
The day mainly consisted of arranged talks and seminars from different organisations of the EFF and believers in the theory. As a Textile student i whole-heartedly believe in ethical textiles, and trying to accomplish the manufacturing and design of Textiles in such a way that the environment is not harmed and also in doing the best by the people who work in the industry right the way from the farmers of the materials to the designers.
There are a number of different issues and goals surrounding what the Eff hopes to achieve, these include:
BURNING ISSUES
What is ethical fashion?
Fashion & development
Standards and labelling
PEOPLE
Wages and workers rights
Fair trade Culture
Sustainable livelihoods
ENVIRONMENT
Pesticides
Dyes Water Energy
to name a few, the Eff is designed to make people more conscience about what is happening as a result mainly due to the fashion industry, how product is wasted, the energy created to manufacture it and who it affects.
We were given the opportunity to visit the stalls at the show to try and understand more about how independent retailers are trying to make the difference and make people more aware of what is happening, the stalls featured a number of their products of which they sell to the mass consumer and information on how this is a step forward in making a sustainable future possible. For example GreenFibres was a company involved that deals with supplying eco goods, garments, and textiles. With over 30 different types of fabrics available retailers are now open to more eco-friendly options for similar prices as their already getting.
Another supplier is HempFabric, the company only stocks Hemp products, available for bulk buy or individual purchases.
The forum event proved that people are trying to make a change and are certainly moving forward with it, but whether in the future the whole textile industry becomes ethical is still shady.