We have partnered with Fashion Revolution -
the world’s largest fashion activism movement that stands for:
- An end to human and environmental exploitation in the global fashion industry
- Safe, dignified working conditions and living wages for all people in the supply chain
- Redistributed and more equal balance of power across the global fashion industry
- A bigger and stronger labour movement in the global fashion industry
- A global fashion industry that works to conserve precious resources and regenerate ecosystems
- A culture of transparency and accountability across the value chain
- An end to throwaway culture and shift to a system where materials are used for much longer and nothing goes to waste
- Heritage, craftsmanship and local wisdom are recognized and valued
Learn more about all the ways you can get involved: www.fashionrevolution.org
Who Made My Clothes?
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5D Studio stands for supply chain transparency
and strives to educate our customers on importance of conscious consumerism to help them make informed decisions about their purchases to bring about positive change in society, the economy and the environment.
The 'True Cost' documentary is a groundbreaking film exposing the dark side of the fashion manufacturing industry. The film puts a human face on how the world’s 40 million garment workers are feeling the squeeze as developing countries, desperate for economic opportunity the business provides, fail to enforce wage and labor laws.
Learn more about the film: https://lifeismymovie.com/projects/the-true-cost/
Watch full-length movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwp0Bx0awoE
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We have partnered with EcoCart - company that provides us with carbon neutral checkout integration.
What is Carbon Footprint?
Ecommerce and Its Environmental Impact
Global e-commerce has grown steadily over the past decade. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the sector even more, triggering changes in consumer behavior and leading to staggering records in sales. Big companies such as Amazon, Alibaba, and Walmart have monopolised online shopping and increased consumers’ expectations. Nowadays, they expect goods to be delivered on the same day and to return them without cost. Digitalisation and technological innovations have indeed allowed the industry to do what was believed to be impossible just a few decades ago. However, this revolution comes with high costs for our planet. We take a look at the growing trends in online shopping and its environmental impact.
Impact of Shipping Goods
Shipping emission is major online shopping environmental impact to consider. The transport of goods across the world is responsible for a huge portion of CO2 emissions generated by e-commerce. In 2020, the shipping and return of products accounted for 37% of the total GHG emissions. The major problem can be attributed, once again, to the consumers’ appetite for convenience. It is estimated that by 2030, the number of delivery vehicles will increase by 36%, reaching approximately 7.2 million vehicles. This will not only result in an increase of about 6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, but it will also increase commutes by 21%, as vehicles will take longer to travel due to higher traffic congestion.
The real problem, however, lies in fast shipping. As new technologies improve the transport of goods and make it as fast as it had ever been before, more and more consumers request same-day and instant deliveries, two options that have been growing 36% and 17% annually, respectively. A study from MIT found that traditional shopping has two times the carbon footprint if compared to online shopping. This discourse, however, is valid only if one does not take the rushed online shopping into account. Indeed, when consumers opt for a fast delivery, the emissions far exceed those generated from in-person shopping. A major reason for this is that delivery companies cannot afford to wait for all products to arrive before shipping them out. When dealing with a one- or two-day shipping window, they are often forced to send out trucks that are filled at half their capacity, generating more traffic and thus emissions.
But shipping is not the only issue. As more and more online retailers, big and small, offer the option to send back goods easily and often for free, return rates, especially of fashion items, have skyrocketed, exceeding 30% of all purchased goods. A study on consumers’ behaviour showed that 79% of consumers want free return shipping and 92% of them are likely to buy again if the items they purchase are easy to return. It is statistics like these that incentivise companies to offer such options, as they will eventually be lucrative for them.
There is little doubt that the e-commerce revolution has brought enormous advantages. However, online shopping and its environment impact must not be ignored. Nowadays, most consumers choose convenience over principles. And, as much as companies trying to become more and more sustainable is a good step in the right direction, these changes alone will not entirely solve the problem. Consumers are the ones that have the last word, and it is their behaviour and their decisions that eventually determine the impact of this industry. Thus, the only way to reverse the dangerous trend that e-commerce has taken, there needs to be a mind shift from both the producer’s as well as the consumer’s side.