The year of Digital Fashion Weeks - but are they sustainable?
This year has rapidly digitalised several industries, not at least the fashion industry. Several fashion shows were cancelled and some had their first digital fashion show ever, such as Milano Fashion Week in september.
Creators has started to use the digital arena as a new way to express their art. One of them, Alessandro Michele at Gucci, has been cherished for his digital presentation of the Epilogue collection. In september, the final act out of three were broadcasted. Watch the video and get inspired on how Gucci presented the final act digitally.
The environmentalists and several people in the fashion industry has long before the current pandemic encouraged fashion shows to become more digital and reduce its physical size due to high carbon footprint. Less traveling by air has been associated with lower carbon footprint, which is true, but this doesn’t mean that digital can be synonymous with sustainable.
The global carbon footprint of information technology represents 3.7% of the global carbon footprint (The Shift Project), almost the same size as aviation who stands for 2.5% of the global carbon footprint (Our World in Data). According to some the information technology footprint is lower and according to others the aviation is higher. To digitally participate, comes with a climate cost. But it can, on the social side, lead to higher inclusion (depends on who’s invited).
One of the shows that have looked into their sustainability profile already from the start was Helsinki Fashion Week founded by Evelyn Mora. At their website you can read about how they have partnered with Normative and other tech companies to audit everything to be able to set data and fact-based targets for the whole industry.
We’re are curiously waiting for the results.
Until then, without proper data, the question remains unanswered. However, as an ethical fashion user, you can still ask digital fashion shows of their carbon footprint to create awareness of a transition that needs to be sustainable in all possible ways.