TED@Tommy
Amit Kalra: 3 creative ways to fix fashion's waste problem
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What happens to the clothes we don't buy? You might think that last season's coats, trousers and turtlenecks end up being put to use, but most of it (nearly 13 million tons each year in the United States alone) ends up in landfills. Fashion has a waste problem, and Amit Kalra wants to fix it. He shares some creative ways the industry can evolve to be more conscientious about the environment -- and gain a competitive advantage at the same time.
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:13
A few years ago, I found myself
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looking for the most
cost-effective way to be stylish.
cost-effective way to be stylish.
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So naturally, I wound up
at my local thrift store,
at my local thrift store,
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a wonderland of other people's trash
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that was ripe to be plucked
to become my treasure.
to become my treasure.
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Now, I wasn't just looking
for your average
for your average
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off-the-secondhand-rack
vintage T-shirt to wear.
vintage T-shirt to wear.
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For me, real style lives
at the intersection of design
at the intersection of design
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and individuality.
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So to make sure that I was getting
the most out of the things I was finding,
the most out of the things I was finding,
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I bought a sewing machine
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so I could tailor the 90's-style
garments that I was finding,
garments that I was finding,
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to fit a more contemporary aesthetic.
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I've been tailoring and making
my own clothes from scratch ever since,
my own clothes from scratch ever since,
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so everything in my closet
is uniquely my own.
is uniquely my own.
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But as I was sorting through the endless
racks of clothes at these thrift stores,
racks of clothes at these thrift stores,
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I started to ask myself,
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what happens to all the clothes
that I don't buy?
that I don't buy?
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The stuff that isn't really cool or trendy
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01:00
but kind of just sits there and rots away
at these secondhand stores.
at these secondhand stores.
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I work in the fashion industry
on the wholesale side,
on the wholesale side,
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and I started to see
some of the products that we sell
some of the products that we sell
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end up on the racks
of these thrift stores.
of these thrift stores.
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So the question started to work its way
into my work life, as well.
into my work life, as well.
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I did some research
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and I pretty quickly found
a very scary supply chain
a very scary supply chain
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that led me to some
pretty troubling realities.
pretty troubling realities.
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It turned out that the clothes
I was sorting though
I was sorting though
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at these thrift stores
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represented only a small fraction
of the total amount of garments
of the total amount of garments
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that we dispose of each year.
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In the US, only 15 percent
of the total textile and garment waste
of the total textile and garment waste
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that's generated each year
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ends up being donated
or recycled in some way,
or recycled in some way,
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which means that the other 85 percent
of textile and garment waste
of textile and garment waste
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end up in landfills every year.
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01:42
Now, I want to put this into perspective,
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because I don't quite think
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that the 85 percent
does the problem justice.
does the problem justice.
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This means that almost 13 million tons
of clothing and textile waste
of clothing and textile waste
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end up in landfills every year
in just the United States alone.
in just the United States alone.
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This averages out to be
roughly 200 T-shirts per person
roughly 200 T-shirts per person
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ending up in the garbage.
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02:01
In Canada, we throw away enough clothing
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to fill the largest stadium
in my home town of Toronto,
in my home town of Toronto,
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one that seats 60,000 people,
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with a mountain of clothes
three times the size of that stadium.
three times the size of that stadium.
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Now, even with this,
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02:13
I still think that Canadians
are the more polite North Americans,
are the more polite North Americans,
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so don't hold it against us.
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02:18
(Laughter)
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02:20
What was even more surprising
was seeing that the fashion industry
was seeing that the fashion industry
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is the second-largest
polluter in the world
polluter in the world
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behind the oil and gas industry.
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This is an important comparison to make.
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I don't want to defend
the oil and gas industry
the oil and gas industry
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but I'd be lying if I said I was surprised
to hear they were the number one polluter.
to hear they were the number one polluter.
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I just assumed, fairly or not,
that that's an industry
that that's an industry
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that doesn't really mind
sticking to the status quo.
sticking to the status quo.
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One where the technology
doesn't really change
doesn't really change
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and the focus is more so
on driving profitability
on driving profitability
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at the expense of a sustainable future.
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But I was really surprised to see
that the fashion industry was number two.
that the fashion industry was number two.
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Because maintaining that status quo
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is the opposite of what
the fashion industry stands for.
the fashion industry stands for.
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The unfortunate reality is,
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not only do we waste
a lot of the things we do consume,
a lot of the things we do consume,
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but we also use a lot to produce
the clothes that we buy each year.
the clothes that we buy each year.
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On average, a household's purchase
of clothing per year
of clothing per year
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requires 1,000 bathtubs
of water to produce.
of water to produce.
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A thousand bathtubs of water
per household, per year.
per household, per year.
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That's a lot of water.
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03:12
It seems that the industry
that always has been
that always has been
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and probably always will be
on the forefront of design,
on the forefront of design,
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creates products that are designed
to be comfortable, designed to be trendy
to be comfortable, designed to be trendy
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and designed to be expressive
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but aren't really designed
to be sustainable
to be sustainable
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or recyclable for that matter.
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03:26
But I think that can change.
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I think the fashion industry's
aptitude for change
aptitude for change
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is the exact thing that should make it
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patient zero for sustainable
business practices.
business practices.
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And I think to get started,
all we have to do
all we have to do
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is start to design clothes
to be recyclable at the end of their life.
to be recyclable at the end of their life.
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Now, designing recyclable clothing
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is definitely something
to leave to the professionals.
to leave to the professionals.
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But as a 24-year-old
thrift store aficionado
thrift store aficionado
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armed with a sewing machine,
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if I were to very humbly
posit one perspective,
posit one perspective,
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it would be to approach clothing design
kind of like building with Lego.
kind of like building with Lego.
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When we put together a brick of Lego,
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it's very strong
but very easily manipulated.
but very easily manipulated.
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It's modular in its nature.
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Clothing design as it stands today
is very rarely modular.
is very rarely modular.
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Take this motorcycle jacket as an example.
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It's a pretty standard jacket
with its buttons, zippers and trim.
with its buttons, zippers and trim.
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But in order for us to efficiently
recycle a jacket like this,
recycle a jacket like this,
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we need to be able
to easily remove these items
to easily remove these items
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and quickly get down to just the fabric.
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Once we have just the fabric,
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we're able to break it down
by shredding it
by shredding it
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and getting back to thread level,
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make new thread that then
gets made into new fabric
gets made into new fabric
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and ultimately new clothing,
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whether it be a new jacket
or new T-shirts, for example.
or new T-shirts, for example.
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But the complexity lies
with all of these extra items,
with all of these extra items,
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the buttons, the zippers and the trim.
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Because in reality, these items
are actually quite difficult to remove.
are actually quite difficult to remove.
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So in many cases it requires
more time or more money
more time or more money
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to disassemble a jacket like this.
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In some cases, it's just more
cost-effective to throw it away
cost-effective to throw it away
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rather than recycle it.
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But I think this can change
if we design clothes in a modular way
if we design clothes in a modular way
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to be easily disassembled
at the end of their lives.
at the end of their lives.
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We could redesign this jacket
to have a hidden wireframe,
to have a hidden wireframe,
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kind of like the skeleton of a fish,
that holds all important items together.
that holds all important items together.
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This invisible fish-bone structure
can have all of these extra items,
can have all of these extra items,
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the zippers and the buttons and the trim,
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sewn into it and then
attached to the fabric.
attached to the fabric.
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So at the end of the jacket's life,
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all you have to do
is remove its fish bone
is remove its fish bone
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and the fabric comes with it
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a lot quicker and a lot
easier than before.
easier than before.
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Now, recycling clothing
is definitely one piece of the puzzle.
is definitely one piece of the puzzle.
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But if we want to take
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fixing the environmental impact
that the fashion industry has
that the fashion industry has
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more seriously,
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then we need to take this to the next step
and start to design clothes
and start to design clothes
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to also be compostable
at the end of their lives.
at the end of their lives.
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For most of the types of clothes
we have in our closet
we have in our closet
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the average lifespan is about three years.
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Now, I'm sure there's many of us
that have gems in our drawers
that have gems in our drawers
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that are much older than that,
which is great.
which is great.
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Because being able to extend the life
of a garment by even only nine months
of a garment by even only nine months
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reduces the waste and water impact
that that garment has
that that garment has
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by 20 to 30 percent.
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But fashion is fashion.
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Which means that styles
are always going to change
are always going to change
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and you're probably going to be wearing
something different than you were today
something different than you were today
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eight seasons from now,
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no matter how environmentally
friendly you want to be.
friendly you want to be.
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But lucky for us, there are some items
that never go out of style.
that never go out of style.
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I'm talking about your basics --
your socks, underwear, even your pajamas.
your socks, underwear, even your pajamas.
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We're all guilty of wearing these items
right down to the bone,
right down to the bone,
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and in many cases
throwing them in the garbage
throwing them in the garbage
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because it's really difficult
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to donate your old ratty socks
that have holes in them
that have holes in them
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to your local thrift store.
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But what if we were able
to compost these items
to compost these items
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rather than throw them in the trash bin?
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The environmental savings could be huge,
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and all we would have to do
is start to shift more of our resources
is start to shift more of our resources
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to start to produce more of these items
using more natural fibers,
using more natural fibers,
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like 100 percent organic cotton.
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Now, recycling and composting
are two critical priorities.
are two critical priorities.
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But one other thing
that we have to rethink
that we have to rethink
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is the way that we dye our clothes.
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Currently, 10 to 20 percent
of the harsh chemical dye that we use
of the harsh chemical dye that we use
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end up in water bodies that neighbor
production hubs in developing nations.
production hubs in developing nations.
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The tricky thing is
that these harsh chemicals
that these harsh chemicals
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are really effective
at keeping a garment a specific color
at keeping a garment a specific color
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for a long period of time.
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It's these harsh chemicals
that keep that bright red dress
that keep that bright red dress
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bright red for so many years.
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But what if we were able
to use something different?
to use something different?
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What if we were able to use something
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that we all have
in our kitchen cabinets at home
in our kitchen cabinets at home
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to dye our clothes?
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What if we were able to use
spices and herbs to dye our clothes?
spices and herbs to dye our clothes?
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There's countless food options
that would allow for us to stain material,
that would allow for us to stain material,
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but these stains change color over time.
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This would be pretty different
than the clothes that were dyed harshly
than the clothes that were dyed harshly
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with chemicals that we're used to.
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But dyeing clothes naturally this way
would allow for us
would allow for us
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to make sure they're more unique
and environmentally friendlier.
and environmentally friendlier.
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Let's think about it.
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Fashion today is all about individuality.
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It's about managing your own
personal appearance
personal appearance
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to be just unique enough to be cool.
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These days, everybody has the ability
to showcase their brand
to showcase their brand
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their personal style,
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across the world, through social media.
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The pocket-sized billboards
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that we flick through
on our Instagram feeds
on our Instagram feeds
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are chock-full of models and taste-makers
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that are showcasing their individuality
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through their personal microbrands.
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But what could be
more personalized, more unique,
more personalized, more unique,
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than clothes that change color over time?
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Clothes that with each wash
and with each wear
and with each wear
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become more and more one of a kind.
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People have been buying
and wearing ripped jeans for years.
and wearing ripped jeans for years.
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So this would just be another example
of clothes that exist in our wardrobe
of clothes that exist in our wardrobe
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that evolve with us over our lives.
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This shirt, for example, is one that,
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much to the dismay of my mother
and the state of her kitchen,
and the state of her kitchen,
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I dyed at home, using turmeric,
before coming here today.
before coming here today.
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This shirt is something
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that none of my friends
are going to have on their Instagram feed.
are going to have on their Instagram feed.
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So it's unique,
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but more importantly, it's naturally dyed.
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Now, I'm not suggesting
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that everybody dye their clothes
in their kitchen sink at home.
in their kitchen sink at home.
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But if we were able to apply this
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or a similar process
on a commercial scale,
on a commercial scale,
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then our need to rely on these
harsh chemical dyes for our clothes
harsh chemical dyes for our clothes
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could be easily reduced.
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The 2.4-trillion-dollar fashion industry
is fiercely competitive.
is fiercely competitive.
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So the business that can provide
a product at scale
a product at scale
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while also promising its customers
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that each and every garment
will become more unique over time
will become more unique over time
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will have a serious competitive advantage.
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Brands have been playing
with customization for years.
with customization for years.
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The rise of e-commerce services,
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like Indochino,
a bespoke suiting platform,
a bespoke suiting platform,
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and Tinker Tailor,
a bespoke dress-making platform,
a bespoke dress-making platform,
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have made customization
possible from your couch.
possible from your couch.
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Nike and Adidas have been mastering
their online shoe customization platforms
their online shoe customization platforms
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for years.
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Providing individuality at scale
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is a challenge that most consumer-facing
businesses encounter.
businesses encounter.
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So being able to tackle this
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while also providing
an environmentally friendly product
an environmentally friendly product
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could lead to a pretty
seismic industry shift.
seismic industry shift.
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And at that point,
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it's not just about doing
what's best for our environment
what's best for our environment
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but also what's best for the bottom line.
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There's no fix-all,
and there's no one-step solution.
and there's no one-step solution.
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But we can get started
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by designing clothes
with their death in mind.
with their death in mind.
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The fashion industry
is the perfect industry
is the perfect industry
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to experiment with and embrace change
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that can one day get us
to the sustainable future
to the sustainable future
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we so desperately need.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Amit Kalra - Fashion enthusiastAmit Kalra wants to fix fashion's pollution problem.
Why you should listen
When Amit Kalra was 20, he decided he wanted to be more stylish than his budget would allow. He taught himself to design and make his own clothing, sifting through thrift stores for cheap materials. Kalra's side project of cutting and sewing recycled clothes for friends and small clothing brands led him to an idea that he hopes will turn the fashion industry on its head -- and save the planet while he’s at it.
Kalra holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Queen's University in Ontario, Canada. At PVH Canada, he manages the planning, operations and finances for their Dress Shirt division. Outside of work, he attends fashion school part-time.
Amit Kalra | Speaker | TED.com