Founded by fashion designers Carry Somers and Orsola de Castro right after the Rana Plaza disaster in 2013 that witnessed the deaths of 1,138 garment workers, Fashion Revolution is a global movement that addresses exploitation in the fashion industry and hopes to put an end to it by educating people and assigning accountability to those in charge.
Their message is simple and direct. “We love fashion. But we don’t want our clothes to exploit people or destroy our planet. We are coming together as a global community to bring our manifesto into reality,” reads the first line on the home page of the Fashion Revolution website below which the manifesto is laid out.
Originally created in 2018, the 10-point manifesto cements the organization’s vision to uphold conservationist values that restore the environment by placing the planet and its people above monetary profit.
Fashion Revolution hopes to achieve a cultural shift by raising public awareness about the different challenges faced by the industry, mobilizing communities to take collection action, educating people about their individual impact, collaborating with artists and activities, and inspiring individuals to consume less by providing complete transparency.
On the industry and policy levels, the not-for-profit global movement aims to shine a light on the environmental and social impacts of the fashion industry, influence brands through consumers, promote honesty and responsibility across the supply chain, and advocate for positive policy changes to regulate the industry.
Coinciding with Earth Day this year, Fashion Revolution Week 2023 marks the world’s largest fashion activism movement from April 22 – 29 and those interested can get involved on social media and IRL discussions. Find more and start a conversation here.