Degrowth and Fashion

The fashion industry is one of the most resource-intensive industries in the world. Each year, approximately 100 billion garments are produced globally, while 92 million tonnes of textile waste end up in landfills. Even more striking, less than 1% of clothing is recycled into new garments.

Despite growing conversations around sustainability, the industry is becoming less circular, not more. In 2024, global textile production reached 132 million tonnes, more than double its volume in 2000. This imbalance reveals a fundamental issue: fashion operates on a linear model, produce, consume, discard.

Historically, clothing followed a circular logic: garments were repaired, reused, and passed down. Industrialisation flipped this system, making clothing cheaper, faster, and disposable.

What Is Degrowth?

Degrowth proposes a planned reduction in production and consumption, focusing on well-being, equity, and sustainability rather than profit maximisation.

Its core values include:

Sufficiency instead of excess
Care instead of disposability
Cooperation instead of competition

These principles directly clash with the fashion industry's dominant logic of mass production, efficiency, and constant growth.

This raises a key question: Can an industry built on selling more survive by producing less?

Upcycling

Unlike recycling, which breaks materials down, upcycling transforms waste into higher-value products.

Examples include:

Turning discarded food into natural textile dyes
Reusing sailcloth to create handbags
Transforming fabric scraps into new garments

Upcycling is not just a technique, it’s a philosophy. It reframes waste as a resource, encouraging us to reconnect with:

The origin of materials
The people behind production
The ecosystems involved

In this sense, upcycling aligns strongly with degrowth values, promoting creativity, care, and reduced resource extraction.

Local Systems and Human Connections

Research on upcycling practices, particularly in textile-producing regions like Turkey, highlights the importance of local and relational systems.

Key dynamics include:

Collaboration between designers, manufacturers, and NGOs
Partnerships with local communities, such as rural women producing handwoven garments
Use of waste-sharing platforms, acting as “libraries” for textile waste

These systems create social and ecological value, not just economic profit.

A powerful idea emerges from these practices: Nature produces no waste, everything becomes part of a cycle.

Upcycling attempts to mimic this natural logic within fashion.

Circular Fashion

Circular fashion has become a major industry buzzword. Concepts like:

Resale platforms
Textile-to-textile recycling
Circular business models

are gaining visibility.

Successful examples include:

Platforms like Vinted and Vestiaire Collective, making resale mainstream
Innovations in recycled fibres and low-carbon materials

However, the reality is more complex.

The Limits

Most circular initiatives remain small-scale pilots
The system still favours virgin material production
Circular jobs (sorting, recycling) are often informal and unsafe
Circularity risks becoming a marketing tool rather than systemic change

To scale circularity, three major challenges must be addressed:

Investment in scalable solutions
Regulation that makes circularity the default
Demand driven by brands, not just consumers

The Role of Design

Design is central to transforming fashion.

Key Circular Design Strategies
- Cradle-to-Cradle Design (C2C)Products are designed to be fully biodegradable or recyclable
- Zero Waste DesignEliminates textile waste during production
- Sustainable MaterialsOrganic cotton, recycled polyester, mushroom leather, lab-grown silk

These approaches aim to extend product life cycles and reduce environmental impact.

Industry Examples
- Eileen Fisher: repurposing returned garments
- Patagonia (Worn Wear): repairing and reselling used clothing
- Adidas x Parley: transforming ocean plastic into sportswear

These initiatives show that circular design is not just theoretical—it is already reshaping parts of the industry.

The Limits of Degrowth and Circular Fashion

While promising, both degrowth and circular fashion face important limitations:

Economic resistance: growth remains central to profitability
Accessibility issues: sustainable fashion can be expensive
Lack of awareness: limited circular literacy among industry actors
Policy gaps: insufficient funding and support for innovation
Scaling challenges: local initiatives struggle to compete globally

Upcycling, in particular, remains a niche practice, limited by access to materials, skills, and infrastructure.

Toward a New Fashion System

The transition toward a sustainable fashion industry requires more than innovation, it demands systemic change.

This includes:

Rethinking how we produce and consume
Valuing durability over novelty
Building local, collaborative networks
Embedding care and responsibility into design

Circularity is not new, but applying it to a global, high-speed industry is the real challenge.

My Thought

What I find most interesting is that the solution is not just technological—it’s cultural. Upcycling and degrowth force us to rethink our relationship with clothing. Instead of seeing fashion as something temporary, we begin to see it as something with history, value, and meaning.

However, I don’t think degrowth alone can “fix” fashion. The industry is too deeply rooted in growth and globalisation. But what feels realistic is a hybrid future: where large systems become more circular, while smaller, local initiatives redefine creativity and value.

In a way, upcycling is not just about waste, it’s about changing how we see beauty and worth.

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