It’s that time of year again: Fashion Revolution Week is upon us. Fashion Revolution Week is Fashion Revolution’s annual campaign bringing together the world’s largest fashion activism movement for seven days of action. And this year is especially significant, as it marks 10 years since the Rana Plaza tragedy. Here’s how you can get involved.
Fashion Revolution Week 2023
Fashion Revolution Week came about after the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh on 24 April 2013, which killed 1,138 people and injured another 2,500. In the decade since the tragedy, Fashion Revolution has become a global movement calling for the fashion industry to value people and planet over growth and profit.
The fashion industry is built on the exploitation of labour and natural resources, resulting in money and power being concentrated in the hands of a few. Because profit is prioritised over everything else, fashion brands are in a hectic race to produce more, more quickly, pushing us to buy more, more often. Those at the top of the supply chain keep cashing bigger cheques, while the people who make our clothes are still underpaid and unable to meet their basic needs. We talk a lot about how brands can protect the Earth and be more sustainable, but the truth is, there’s no sustainability without fair pay and safe working conditions.
Over the past ten years, the noise around sustainable fashion has only got louder. But meanwhile, real progress is too slow in the context of the climate crisis and rising social injustice. That’s why we’re making Fashion Revolution Week 2023 an action-packed and future-focused campaign that amplifies solutions from historically overlooked places.
Fashion Revolution
This year again, ethical fashion lovers all over the world will be asking their favourite brands questions like #WhoMadeMyFabric? on social media. Throughout Fashion Revolution Week, Fashion Revolution will educate and inspire us on the real value of what we buy and wear.
During the week, you’ll be able to attend many digital and a few physical events, conferences, exhibitions, workshops, and even online public demonstrations—all spreading the word about building a more ethical and sustainable fashion industry.
Want to participate and make your voice heard? Here’s how you can join the Fashion Revolution online and offline this year.
Attend Fashion Revolution Week events and workshops
Fashion Revolution has planned an epic line-up of online events that will be streaming from all around the world. Here are some of our favourites.
- Fashion Revolution Canada is challenging students across the country to transform existing clothing into a new piece of clothing. Celebrated industry professionals Wendy Liu, Dusty LaGrande, and Sarah Jay will join as guest judges, and hand out a $500 first prize. Open to any student in Canada attending a high school, post-secondary, or continuing education program.
- Join Fashion Revolution Bangladesh and Fashion Revolution Sweden for a discussion about sustainable consumption, consumer engagement, green consumer behaviour, sustainable brand strategy, fashion innovation, and more.
- Watch Fashion Revolution Hungary’s “Craftsmanship and heritage in the heart of fashion” seminar.
- Join a panel discussion about “Transparency in the Fashion Industry” with B Lab Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.
- March to raise awareness of the Good Clothes Fair Pay campaign.
- Attend online or in-person Good Clothes Fair Pay’s conversation with MEPs Delara Burkhardt, Saskia Bricmont, and impacted stakeholders from the fashion industry, on the 25th April at the European Parliament.
- If you’re in Amsterdam, visit the Fashion for Good Museum, which tells the stories behind the clothes you wear and how your choices can have a positive impact. Fashion for Good believes that the industry can and must change, and strives to help raise awareness and share knowledge. A must-visit during Fashion Revolution Week, and any week.
Browse all Fashion Revolution Week events
Post a selfie on your favourite social media platforms, tagging the brand you’re wearing and asking them #WhoMadeMyClothes? and #WhatsInMyClothes?
This is one of the easiest ways you can get involved in Fashion Revolution Week this year—and every year. If the brand doesn’t respond, keep asking. And don’t forget to tag Fashion Revolution @fash_rev so they can stay up to date with if and how brands respond.
Join the conversation
“Speaking with our family and friends about the global impact of our clothes is a powerful step to change the fashion industry,” says Fashion Revolution. On the organisation’s new site, you can map your conversations, taking inspiration from Fashion Revolution’s manifesto, and explore the discussions of other Fashion Revolutionaries worldwide.
If you’re a EU citizen, sign the Good Clothes Fair Pay Campaign to demand legislation on living wages in the fashion industry
But you don’t have to be an EU citizen to get involved. No matter where you are in the world, you can help spread the word. You’ll find ideas and more campaign materials on the official website.
Write an email to your favourite brand asking them #WhoMadeMyClothes?
Fashion Revolution has made this super easy to do for you by providing an amazing template.
On the Good On You app, you can also send a message directly to a brand, urging them to do better or asking a question—you can also give positive feedback to brands you feel are doing great. To send your message, simply go to the “Your Voice” section at the end of each brand’s listing on the app.
