Plastic avoidance is an essential part of climate and environmental protection, as the “European Strategy for plastics” shows. The goals are the substantial reduction of plastics and microplastics in all areas. While the reduction of plastic packaging is directly visible in one’s own waste volume and there are alternatives, the role of clothing in the plastics problem is largely unknown. Clothing alone accounts for 35% of the microplastics generated by washing synthetic materials (IUCN, 2017). A city with 100.000 inhabitants emits microfibres equivalent to 15.000 plastic bags every day by washing them into the water (Hartline et al. 2016).
Thus, the ERASMUS+ project “Weareable – Best dressed sustainably” aims at:
- raising young people’s awareness of plastics in clothing throughout the entire product life cycle
- developing alternatives for an environmentally conscious and yet affordable way of dealing with fashion
- training peer guides and youth workers in order to achieve the widest possible dissemination of the project results beyond the duration of the project.
The project is conducted over 2 years (2020-2022), involving partners from 4 different countries (Austria, Poland, Italy, Lithuania). Following results are going to be achieved:
- Report on problem exploration and research in the project countries
- Best- practice collection with existing alternatives and instructions for action
- Learning material in printable and digital form
- A haptic toolbox with materials that can be practically used to avoid plastic in clothing (e.g. upcycling material, wash bags, fabric samples etc.).
Wear(e)able does not only offers awareness-raising and know-how for young people in the sustainable use of clothing, but also concentrates on concrete alternatives for action. Contents are conveyed digitally and analogously and the training of peer guides, youth workers and other multipliers is a focal point of the project.
Further information can be found on the project’s website: https://www.weareable-fashion.eu/de/
