Meet Unravelled: The UK campaign pulling the thread on fast fashion

With the fast fashion sector expected to grow to £28.97 billion by 2025, the strain of fast fashion on our planet’s resources is unavoidable. Each year masses of unwanted garments go to landfill and the over-production of cotton causes water shortages. Meanwhile vast amounts of chemicals used in the production of clothing negatively impacts our soil and water. In recent years more and more people are become increasingly aware of the impacts of fast fashion and are beginning to come up with solutions to tackle it.

Unravelled UK are one of many campaigns across the world taking on fast fashion with compassionate action, education and support. Led by UK young people, Unravelled are focusing on three areas through their campaign: The growth of UK charity shops and their preloved items; Creating positive relationships between young people and sustainable fashion options; And encouraging others to avoid buying garments made from new, raw materials.

There are currently 15 young members of the Unravelled campaign taking action against fast fashion. Meet a few of them!

Meet Annie

I pitched the Unravelled campaign to Raleigh International because far too many times I see people locked out of shopping for clothes sustainably due to the price points and accessibility. Unravelled, for me, is a campaign about showing empathy, compassion and understanding for each other’s fashion choices. We can fight fast fashion by focusing on education and breaking down barriers to access, as opposed to shaming.

Meet Julliet

I’ve always been quite interested in fast fashion on several levels, be that garment workers’ rights, or the impact it is having on our oceans, the level of pollution or the level of waste. I’ve always looked for ways I could personally be fashionable but on a more sustainable level. I thought being part of Unravelled would be a great opportunity to join and put some of my skills to use and have a bigger impact. I really like the focus that we have on making sustainable fashion more accessible and more inclusive.

Meet Melissa

I previously volunteered with Raleigh International and it was a life-changing experience. Through this experience, I became more aware of our climate emergency and so I joined the Unravelled campaign to support Raleigh International’s efforts to create a sustainable future and to learn more about fast-fashion and how it is fuelling climate change.

Meet Jo

When time’s not on our side, what good is it to be a lone, quiet activist? I joined the Unravelled call to action to be able to rally together with other young activists, to learn from each other and create powerful impact on fast fashion as a team – while we’ve got the chance.

Meet Iona

Unravelled is an opportunity to act for something worthwhile and to make a bit of a difference. I liked the idea of meeting like-minded, socially and environmentally conscious people and learning how a campaign works, in the hope that I will be involved in more in the future! The process so far has been great, and I feel we really have the chance to have an impact on how people think and respond to the fast fashion market.