Progress, innovation and research have always been the engines that push modern industry towards the future.
The great climate changes, partly derived from the exasperated push towards unregulated development in recent decades, impose a further and more difficult challenge: to continue the race towards innovation by applying ethical and sustainable production processes both from an energy and environmental point of view.
The large sector of fashion in general, and textiles in particular, is at the forefront in pursuing these issues.
A study by Innovatec's Clean Technology Observatory showed that 70% of Italian companies believe that sustainability has a positive impact on business and that the energy and environmental transition is the only answer to the business challenges of today and the future.
In this regard, the members of the European Fashion Alliance (EFA – an association founded in June 2022 that represents more than 10,000 fashion companies of all sizes) met last October for a first Summit with the aim of agreeing on a package of measures and actions able to promote and support the necessary transformation process of the Fashion industry.
One of the main topics of the meeting was the "Green Deal" formulated by the European Union in 2019 by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050, to which according to the EFA's commitment, the fashion industry must also urgently contribute, as the CO₂ footprint and environmental impact of textile production and fashion consumption are still enormous.
The European Fashion Alliance aims to contribute significantly to achieving a CO₂-neutral, environmentally sustainable, non-toxic and fully circular textile industry and to raise awareness among fashion manufacturers, designers and consumers.
To this end, four pillars have been defined on which targeted measures will be based: sustainability, education, policy and innovation.
The European Fashion Alliance believes that sustainability and digital transformation, together with innovation, education and labour market measures, will be the factors pushing the fashion industry to make fabrics more durable, repairable, reusable and recyclable. To accelerate this transition process, EFA will also focus on intercultural exchanges and interactions between creatives and support young talents as drivers of change through actions, research and campaigns.
Carlo Capasa, president of the Camera della Moda Italiana said:
"Our mission is to educate consumers and fashion brands about what it means to be sustainable and to place great value on creativity, underlining our appreciation for all the people behind the system. One of EFA's main roles is to involve our Associates in the storytelling of what lies behind their products and to represent a new idea of fashion of the future. By collaborating in EFA, we can show other sectors what can be achieved by working together."
For the period from 2023 to 2027, the European Fashion Alliance translates this belief into four main objectives based on the four defined pillars:
definition of an ethical, social and sustainable code of conduct for EFA members and, by extension, for the fashion industry;
a new European Fashion Green Deal representing fashion culture and enterprise, based on a circular and social fashion ecosystem at European level, based on shared data and measurement system;
creation and application of sustainable training, technological and social and cultural responsibility practices for EFA's key stakeholders;
Empowering Generation Z and new generations as valuable drivers in the digital, circular and social transition of the fashion industry.
"Fashion goes beyond the market, it is culture. We are in a market economy; It is also interesting for those outside the market to understand that creative fashion can play a role as a sustainable engine on a more global level", commented Pascal Morand of the Federation de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.
For 2023, EFA will therefore launch a Europe-wide survey through its members to investigate the needs and challenges of micro, small, medium and large enterprises operating in the fashion and textile industry, as well as education and research institutions and other stakeholders in the sector from which to generate a European strategy for sustainable and circular textiles and the creation of new EU policies and programmes to support fashion and creative industries.
Cecilie Thorsmark of Copenhagen Fashion Week wrote, among other things: "A fashion week can use its position to accelerate change and demand it, to move the industry forward..."
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