Sustainability also means responsibility for beauty

In her "Letter to the Earth", fashion designer and activist Vivienne Westwood, who for decades has used fashion as a means of furthering the environmental cause, alerting public opinion to climate change and the mass extinction of life on earth, has uttered strong words, which she wished to address directly to the planet, via Youtube. In it she details the plans for her Climate Revolution campaign. This letter, of course profiled to find an echo at the Cop26 in Glasgow, is supported by the British Fashion Council. Just as Stella McCartney, another pioneer in the fight against global warming and spokesperson for activists against animal fur, also gave her voice in Glasgow. Is it vain? Futile? Limited in scope? Not so sure, since fashion is the third largest manufacturing sector on the planet, accounting for up to 8% of carbon emissions according to the World Resources Institute.

But beyond words, actions are already measurable on the ground. Research is advancing in the field of innovative and natural materials. Young designers no longer think without this component. At the 36th Hyères International Fashion, Accessories and Photography Festival, a new Sustainability Prize was awarded to ten young designers. Their creativity is exceptional, their aesthetic desirable and sustainable. An impetus, driven by a responsibility for beauty. This is also what luxury is all about.