The High Cost of Our Cheap Fashion | Maxine Bédat | TEDxPiscataquaRiver
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- čas přidán 20. 05. 2016
- Do you know where your clothes come from? The apparel industry is one of the biggest violators of both the environment and human rights. In this compelling and information-packed talk, co-founder of Zady Maxine Bédat shows how you can take back the power of your wardrobe, and feel better in (and better about) your clothes.
Maxine Bédat is the co-founder and CEO of Zady, a fashion brand and lifestyle destination creating a transparent and sustainable future for the $1.5 trillion apparel industry.
Her background in international law and diplomacy, including serving as a legal clerk for the U.N., led her to found The Bootstrap Project, a non-profit organization that works with entrepreneurs in the developing world.
For its work in sustainability, Zady was named one of the world’s “Most Innovative Companies” in retail by Fast Company and its creativity was recognized by Mashable, which called the company “the #1 business rocking content marketing.”
Bédat serves on the Council of NationSwell, has spoken at some of the world’s leading conferences, including the WWD Apparel/Retail CEO Summit, and has been regularly featured as an expert by Bloomberg, Forbes, Business of Fashion, CNN and the Huffington Post. Bédat is a graduate of Columbia Law School.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at ted.com/tedx
Fast food, fast fashion, fast beauty are killing us faster.
Fast acting illness and disease. Fast death.
Even fast trees.. = miyawaki will kill you
We have an economic system based on product, more you sell the better. The more and cheaper the product the better for the economy. This inturn creates an environment that promotes exploitation and waste. Finally it creates high demand through culture and advertisements.
Shop secondhand!
It keeps clothing out of the landfills, starts and new cycle, and thrift shops donate their profit to charity.
this is partially true. Remember that only 10% of clothes goes to thrift shops, most part goes instead in landfills. Recycling textiles is also expensive and time consuming so no brand really does it. second hand capitalism, is still capitalism. We must reduce our wardrobes and choose good quality and sustainable materials.
Yes!
yes but eventually we should buy sustainable clothing from local compagnies. because the clothes you buy at the thrift store was once made in these bad conditions with polyester. but I totally encourage you to go thrifting! we all start somewhere :))
@@catherinequesnel7431 of course not all clothes in thrift shops are polyester. I've gotten great cotton pieces in thrift shops.
This woman has just spent 20 minutes educating me on a subject I didn't know anything about. Thank you so much ma'am, that was thought-provoking and I'll definitely apply your suggestions as much as I can.
also take your old t shirts and use them as cleaning rags - it will save money on clothes AND give them a new purpose and you will save money on paper towels!
So many things you can do with old clothes give them to teachers so they can clean their white boards, use them as drying rags/ washing rags, turn them into bags to bring shopping at the grocery store, make them into new clothes, hand them down in the family, quilt with them, make hot bags(rice filled bags you can heat up for cramps and aches) SO MANY THINGS!!! :DDDD
It terrifies me how many people shop without thinking, that there are those who don't know what linen is. Thank goodness for the internet and the accessible education it offers. I am optimistic that more and more will become sensitive in the future.
I honestly did not know differences between linen, cotton, polyester etc before this video
I just learned I should not wear polyester clothing. I know it’s wrong. I thank God I found out the truth.
@@gmack8138 well... for sport wear polyester is quite good. I.e. Polartec is pure poliester. It's hard to find natural material like this.
@@seez8164Poliester doesn't breathe. Tencel is better. But I am sure you can find linien or hemp if you try hard
This is why I buy only second hand. Very good video about very important topic
Be careful because some second hand clothes are transported through a long voyage for very long time and a lot of bacteria are accumulated in them
@@thuymonkey470, I dry clean or wash my second hand clothes before wearing them.
@@thuymonkey470 they actually make
Laundry sanitizer and if you’re going to wash them with that before wearing it kills pretty much all of the germs. There has been studies done and no one can find any issues after the clothing was washed. So wash your thrift finds.😭
Excellent talk on a very important and probably under-reported topic.
This is the absolute most concise and easy to digest talk over fast fashion I have ever found!
I use biodegradable cleaning supplies, cruelty-free products, eat organic etc, but NEVER thought about my clothing. Thank you for this information. I appreciate your delivery, candor and call to action. It has certainly moved me to do further research, share this info with others and make better choices.
Same here, we make our own cleaning supplies & air freshners with oils. I no longer buy 1 use items like plastics & paper but never thought about clothing. We even make our own bath soap & working on non-toxic deodorant now. The "polyester" is shocking 😳 😲
We taught our kids about having less is more & they adapted well with the concept.
Anyone who has worked in clothing retail since before 2000 have seen how the quality of clothing has changed. And what is so infuriating is how the well known lables have resorted to cheaper quality and still mark-up the clothing over 80%. Isn't it also interesting how the fashion industry tries to push this "layered style" while making all the clothing with polyester, which is just like the woman said "it doesn't breathe".
"Nobody is winning" and "fast fashion habit" apt terms we should use in rethinking the fashion industry
Excellent talk ! Can't wait for the day when this will be in everybody's mind
I like her hair !
Really appreciate the depth of this research and the steps that Zady is taking to change the fashion industry.
When shops make Summer dresses with polyester i just wanna scream. It might look nice but nobody is going to wanna wear it for long because it makes you sweat
E B yeap! Being from a tropical country and can’t stand these either!
I had no idea that polyester wasn't biodegradable. That's so shocking.
Flamingo Williams, yes, polyester is made from oil.
Bring back Home Economics classes. There were books that gave us information on how to spot quality in fabic and clothes and how to care for our clothing accordingly, it was part of being well groomed. I loved following the guidelines and taking care of the few clothes I had back then. Now if something needs mending I push it to the back of the closet and eventually throw it away
It’s true, the seams are falling apart before I could buy it
98% of my clothing is secondhand. I am spending less money and recycling :) win win
Same here,i wish everyone could see the consequences of fast fashion.
Same here, and my wardrobe is full of beautiful well-made clothing made of luxury fabrics like silk, linen, Cashmere, and wool.
@@wallihaley5194 same
This is why I ONLY buy second hand clothing as THAT is the most sustainable and LEAST costly/destructive option by FAR. I also ONLY buy high quality cotton clothes which I can wear for 10+yrs. Some of my clothes are ones I got when I was 16, or 16yrs ago.
Excellent clear talk. So important! I am showing this to all my students!!
All little things add up - half of my closet is used; I own gently used shoes; I donate clothes and shoes. I think we should start clothing libraries where people can pay 10 bucks a month and rent clothes that are available! Sort of like the netflix of renting clothes and returning them!
Ugh...
No way!!!!
You can rent clothes!.
@@sbella6719 Then I guess you only buy high quality garments made for a fair wage?
@@billmartins5545 I wouldn't even consider renting clothes that a bunch of strangers have worn and done only God only knows what in- PERIOD!!!
Maxine Bédat delivers a hugely informative and highly actionable talk about the negative impact and consequences of Fast Fashion. Some of the content wasn't new for me but I was shocked to learn that only 2% of the largely female workforce receive a 'living wage'. For me the central issue is 'loving and taking care of our clothes'. The old adage 'a stitch in time, saves nine' feels pertinent. I am of the generation that studied 'Home Economics' at school in the 70's, meaning that I learnt to sew so that I could mend, alter and even make clothes. Learning to sew to keep our clothes as good as new, keeps them valuable, should we in the future want to pass them on. Investing in a Fabric Shaver so that we can 'debobble' our clothes is also critical in 'caring' for our clothes. Finally, I personally have adopted the 'one in, one out' rule for many years, which makes my clothing purchases extremely 'conscious' and non frivolous because I know that if buy something new, I have to pass on a piece of clothing that I already love. As a mother of a 10 year old daughter I am keen to model that clothes are an incredible opportunity for valuable self-expression, can always be mended and having become a dab hand at crochet, reinvented. I value my wardrobe hugely...and without sounding morbid... she keeps telling me she wants to inherit them when I die.
I remember Home Economics classes.
I've learned to sew, just to avoid all the polyester and viscose too. I hate H&M, I live in Sweden and unfortunely all of the clothing stores had followed H&M's lead. At least in the US, one can still find some cotton, wool and linen.
I can sew pretty well too. Used to make almost all my clubbing outfits myself.
Thank you! This video blew my mind. I had no clue this was such a problem.
One of the better talks I have heard. Focused, relevant and actionable.
I am glad that I came across this talk, it surely have made me think and inculcate ethical values in my new apparel business for sure
Hey Prachi! Would like to Know about your business a little more if you're still doing it!
Excellent talk tackling a complex & nuanced topic!
An exquisitely put-together presentation. I adore your Citizen Consumer checklist. Bravo! Thank you for shedding light on this hideous problem.
This is a great talk and an important topic. it's definitely given me a lot to think about!
Can anyone send some links or websites who caters unused clothes? I'm from Philippines and we recycled some clothes sometimes we got from our friends and relatives.
We make it as rags, mops, and etc. as long as we can still use those textiles.
Quite insightful, Fast fashion companies are adding up to the impact of Climate Change, because of the availability of cheap clothing that we purchase regularly ✅💯
The best talk on this topic!!! Thank you
Before 2000 closet lasted. I am 50 and I have 4 sweaters I bough in 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000. I buy a sweater now it does not last. By the way I had to get rid of 2 sweaters I bought in 1997 and 1998. Not bad they lasted 20 plus years.
I had 4 Tee Shirts 20 plus years old. 2 are left and 2 had to go.
This was so well delivered and really informative thank you 🙏🏻
very very very goood researched. I was amazed by the fact that apparel industry gives out 10% of all carbon footprint which is 5 times more than all the airline travel combined....
You are so right I myself just cleaned out my closet I was shocked at how many things I had definitely not going to buy for quite awhile it has become.e ridiculous
This video is excellent
I have only natural and good quality fibers which I get from secondhand. Secondhand shopping options all filled with gold :D
Absolutely agree!
incredible i love it i will always bye sustainable
nice speaking and very useful information. Thank you
Amazing speech
I didn't know this about polyester. I'll be more mindful from now on.
I'm writing a speech about this for my spoken language GCSE, wish me luck!
Joyce Lambert good luck!!
Pardon my French thank you! The speech went well, I got a distinction 😊
Could you please send me the speech? I am doing my spoken language gcse in a few weeks about this topic and have almost written it but want some ideas of similar speeches to add information into mine!!!! Thanks
Great job!
I buy clothes mostly second hand or get them second hand from friends. I prefer that anyway. You can find some really cool stuff that wouldn't really be found in stores.
Sooo true...
Most of those fashion brands are from the Europe and North America. The apparel industry must be considered in international policies.
Awesome
Natural fabrics also shed microfibres. We just need to focus on the overproduction levels and reduce to 5 garments per person per year max! Made for longevity and made in decent working conditions.
But not harmful ones that disturb hormonal balance in all living organisms. Animals even starve to death due to acummulation of plastic
beautiful
Great and new info
very interesting information
I think there are Two Standards very important ( fairtrade and Globel Organic Textile Standards)
Two Words, for bringing a chain of production back to our Continent. Textile Hemp. From farming, to weaving textile material, to clothing design, to repurposing.
Yes.
Fantastic
What upsets me about all this is that they (companies) say they care about the environment but guilty of making these non-natural materials.
Back in the 80s, we were told that aerosol cans were bad for the ozone yet, 30 years later, they are still on the shelves.
I try to boycott all non-natural material items. If we do this, companies will get the point & start complying. They want to sell. Well, sell us what we want and we want long lasting items & environmental friendly.
This is NOT a government issue to handle, they can't handle the problems we have now.
We, the consumers, need to make better decisions.
We started with...Things I no longer buy: ziploc bags & aluminum foil (use reusable Tupperware), plastic plates & cups & silverware (instead we bought a whole set of microwave & dishwasher safe plates & have had them for over 4 years) gift bags, tissue, greeting cards (instead we buy 1 roll of wrapping paper & wrap dozen of gifts) less money & less waste. Cheap jeans, I have had 2 pair for over 2 years now, whereas, I was putting holes in my other cheap jeans after just 6 months. Because of this, we have drastically cut expenses & we are 😊.
I have been a big fan of minimalism for the past 6 years. We have learned to buy less and re-use. Our grocery bill was $1,050 a month for 6 people, now it is $360. We make the difference.
We are still learning more & more each day to be simpler.
Ozonem layer is one thing another is that some deodorants contain salt of aluminium which is a heavy metal and blocking pores in ones skin will cause health damage. Maybe cancer
I had no clue it was honestly that much of a problem fast fashion till it was brought to my attention by someone recently. I am I admit part of the issue I shop and shop with everything being online makes it so easy to just press a button and in a week clothes is at my house or 2days If shopping amazon. I want to change that at least two times out of the year I do my closet clean up and I donate bags and boxes full of clothes and shoes the problem is one the shoe rack has an empty space I fill it right back up closet is overfilled again I can't resist the buy one get one 50%off buy XY amount get free shipping 9/10 I end up wearing all that stuff only once and sit in my closet till next closet clean up I will try to do better and be better it's not fair people in china india south America are working to make clothes they can't even afford to buy themselves because they are getting paid so little can't afford to hardly survive thank you for this video and I did think cotton and linen were the same thing learned something new as well as a morally important lesson
Whoa!
It’s right way and right time to do Now not later .
Buy secondhand, fix your clothes if they can be fixed, dye them in a darker colour if they've got some faint stains, make something else out of the material if the garment is at the end of its life, donate good stuff you don't want any more, bring items that can't be worn anymore to get recycled.
The best solution is to design clothes that can be recycled again and again!
The problem is that most of fast fashion companies continue to produce garments which are designed to end up to a incinerator or to landfills...
it's better to buy used than cheap
Exactly
Reaching out to the Kardashian’s / Jenner family and the World 🌍 2
To buy clothing made of linen is only favourable for consumers with money, i like wearing linen, but my budget is limited. Even linen now is mixed with synthetic materials.
Bonprix makes good cotton clothes at affordable prize. They never use dyes in excess.
While I don't advocate wearing ragged clothing to work, I don't have a problem using clothing that shows some natural wear and tear. If they go past a certain point, they get rotated to the 'yard work clothing' drawer until there's enough holes in them my sun tan makes polka dots. Seriously, it's a work shirt, who cares? If your friends judge you on your clothing, trade them on some real friends. The ratio is about 10:1, but the one you get is a keeper. If someone is so bothered by the way you look, I can't be bothered to pay attention to them.
Sad reality we are killing the planet
Which brands should we shop from? Northface is not cheap and they use polyester... so buy cotton clothes?
Linien and hemp is best for summer it has anti-bacterial properties which also make it more odour resistant. Best for sportswear. Cotton is good for autumn it is quite warm. But wool is warmer and has anti-bacterial properties. Merino wool has great termoregulative properties sucks sweat well too.
If you are interested in fashion and the environment, listen to fashion model and campaigner, Nimue Smit here @
Animal agriculture (meat, poultry, dairy, eggs, seafood etc etc), and fast fashion are major polluters.
Sew your own clothes. Bring back clothing manufacturing to the United States.
Where to buy responsibly made clothing then? My first instinct is go to more expensive one. But more expensive one doesn't always pay the labor fairly... If we ask SMEs that sells clothing handmade, we and the seller still doesn't know where did the fabric actually come from and how they were paid...
Check Fair Trade, Fair Wear, B-corp or GOTS certificates
I hatr wearing polyester.
Aquinnah Tikhak it’s good for winter weather
If it’s so energy intensive to produce why are companies using polyester?
Cheap to make
Good point and something she sadly didn't discuss. I think cotton requires loads of water to make, so polyester is probably cheaper because it'll require a lot less water. Cotton isn't the answer if we consume the same number of garments simply because of how much water it requires.
@@JUJU-._.- that's not an answer
Out of sight out of ethics. Trusting lables is just not gonna do it for me. This ties into the major ecological problem called transport. Only getting our clothes, food and everything else we need from production in our communities that we can physically see from start to finish will make the cut.
Go GREENE
We are too much....
At 6:51 doesn''t she mean to say that her linen top takes 1/8th the amount of energy that is does to create polyester? not 8 times??
Yes!
buy from an American manufacture. yes you can still buy american made jeans. roundhouse, texas jeans, all american clothing company, and SOME carhartt just to name a few. i dont buy high designer BS brands.
Although it's always good to buy locally to reduce carbon footprint AND help local economy, it's important to note that there are no laws that force sellers to name all the countries an object was made in. So even if you think you're buying "local" because it says so in the label, it might be that the only thing that was done in the US was adding a zipper and the labels, while the rest was made in a sweatshop in a country in development. And buying high designer brands sometimes IS better, because sometimes they're made with higher quality standards.
We're living in a throw away society. Shameful. 🙄🇦🇺
i had no idea polyester makes you sweat
Coz it doesn't breathe and is a perfect place for bacteria to live on. Due to that poliester clothing gets smelly fast
Who else's Design and Textiles teacher told them to search this up?
The industry is all messed up.
Second hand is not always best. They still throw away clothes that aren’t good, and what do you think they do with clothes that don’t sell?
Not always given to clothing charities... but send overseas and resold and potentially bad prices, which isn’t helping anyone.
Gatcha Geeky, buying secondhand at least remove those clothing items from the landfill. It’s sort of analogous to adopting a dog from the pound.
What's your point?
Kurt-Schwitters Schüler?
Learn how to sow, make the clothes you wear
Who's here
For school 😂
only one in four fish contain microplastics?
Yeah, I am buying cotton clothing now.
no you arent
Cotton is also not very good for the environment. The chemicals used in the cotton production are very bad too
Cotton uses a lot of water to make, so it's good to buy chiffon Vs polyester but you'll have to reduce your consumption to make a difference.
Nice talk, but I'm extremely disappointed in Zady for using animal-based fibers like wool.
Kevin Sarpei Really
Synthetic is better Than? :)
@@ThatLittleTexanWoman Exactly right. Reality isn't hard to grasp with a little common sense, but some fanatics find it gets in the way of their agenda. Wool is a useful fabric, and unlike 40% of the junk we get from China, doesn't have to be shipped from overseas.
I'm From India,
It's An Irony How We Produce most of the blamed products and can't afford it.
And Worst of all,
this is not the only problem we have, overcoming which seems next to impossible. Hence, all the brain drain!
I really wish all of it had a common solution.
I'm from 🇺🇸 and the irony is that a lot of these jobs were shipped overseas for cheap labor and the cheap clothes were then shipped back over here as a solution to stagnant income
The ahead degree revealingly approve because whip fortunately calculate concerning a murky mother-in-law. unaccountable, hulking lynx
Soil is "getting deteriorated"... That's seriously poor English.
Those that you don't know
So many better educational videos out there. Important topic, but she is focusing on the least relevant points. Who cares if we eat fish with plastic in it, we deserve it. The more important point is how nature suffers because of us. And losing American jobs are not the problem, it's the suffering of the people who work basically as slaves in third world countries that is the true horror.
@@kateweatherwax6484 losing American jobs is not the problem? Have you even witnessed the devastation in once thriving small towns because of manuafacturing jobs being sent overseas?
Right, she suggests us to buy 200$ Shirt and ask us to spend 90% of your salary just on "organic" Clothing. Well she wears all the polyester clothing and Not so organic lip gloss to lecture us :) Wow..... Vote with Dollars!!!! Wow....
First of all I see this as an issue yes fast fashion is bad for the workers but for the people buying not so much. I do not want to go back to the 1960's where clothing was expensive. You can not say just buy American made because right now that is 2% of the clothing and it is super expensive. It is just not going to work. Unless the United States makes affordable great quality and inexpensive brands fast fashion will never go away. I do thrift store shop but normal people can not get everything from the thrift store. I get quite a few pieces of brand name and vintage clothing but not enough to make a whole wardrobe for every single season I have here in Ohio which is fall, winter, spring, and summer. I actually enjoy polyester because it does not shrink and if you are plus sized that is a great thing to know and wear. Cotton maybe environmentally friendly but it is not your friend, and wool while great for winter is not good for summer. There really is no solution to this. Fast fashion will keep going on and the brand Zady is selling single items anywhere from 165 to 300 dollars. No thank you, if you are going to put in the time and effort make it reasonable to the people that are buying fast fashion.
Leah Kitty there's tons of youtubes who's whole wardrobes are conducted of thrifted items, my whole wardrobe is thrifted. Clothing swaps, depop, eBay (make sure you use the "used" filter), poshmark. It's completely doable
No not really. My whole wardrobe is not thrifted that would be impossible because I live in a place with a different climate every couple of months. Unless you make that your full time job to buy clothes and search..well you just will not have enough clothing. This is just a video for their company. Zady is a complete rip off and it is not affordable at all. Plus I am a plus size woman. Not many options there. It all depends on where you live, and not everyone can adopt a life style like that. Yes I do buy thrift store things but the things I do buy have to be high quality and good brands.I am not going to buy it just because it is there and it is cheep. That is not how you become a smart shopper. Obviously, nobody loves fashion more then me. I don't even buy things from Forever 21 because they are cheep and fall apart and made out of low quality material. You should be selective on what you buy from thrift stores and Ebay. You have to be careful to clean everything, and it just is not a life style that is for everyone. I do some thrifting, do I have to? No I do it for fun, not because I have to do it.
Leah Kitty if your going to thrift stores yes but there's websites as I mentioned before like depop and poshmark that make buying used clothes as easy as scrolling through Instagram. There's other documentaries and ted talks on this topic and it's an actual issue not just a green washing gimmick.
It is now socially unacceptable (or perceived to be) to wear the same outfit twice in certain circumstances. And we NEED to buy more clothing because it is bad quality and so gets worn out easily. What I'm saying is you don't need as much clothing as you think you do, especially if you buy better quality. It's not essential. Also Zady is one brand, there are other ethical brands that are quite affordable, you just need to look. I know it's not easy, but following ethical fashion bloggers on instagram, etc., the Good on You app, you get exposure to many brands and websites and might be able to find pieces for you. Good luck!
hey! I live in Mexico and although we don't have the climate situation (I have 3 jackets I just layer on top of my regular clothes during winter), we do have a lot of fast fashion brands. However I could assure you even where you live there are new designers that are starting their own brands and do good quality clothes that you can find at small bazars and markets. I found this a good option. Also, I got a friend that does whatever item I ask for at an affordable price, that way she wins and I win. Another good option is to learn to spot good items versus cheap items. I buy a lot at C&A because it's cheap and my bank gives me good deals with them but I only buy basics and clothes made with good quality fabric, also I'm not against polyester, I think it's very durable, I have clothes I passed to my nieces and it's still in good use after 3 people has used it, just avoid stamped clothes and rhinestones and very light fabrics that might end up breaking soon.