Article
Version 1
This version is not peer-reviewed
The Social Implications of Circular Clothing Economies in the Global North
Version 1
: Received: 19 July 2024 / Approved: 20 July 2024 / Online: 22 July 2024 (05:35:57 CEST)
How to cite: Millward-Hopkins, J. The Social Implications of Circular Clothing Economies in the Global North. Preprints 2024, 2024071639. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202407.1639.v1 Millward-Hopkins, J. The Social Implications of Circular Clothing Economies in the Global North. Preprints 2024, 2024071639. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202407.1639.v1
Abstract
The clothing industry is a hotbed for exploitative working conditions and environmental damages, of which affluent global North countries remain a substantial driver. The circular economy is a potential solution to these issues, but its social implications remain unclear. Using the UK as a case study, this article analyses the global social impacts of a transition to circular clothing economies in the global North, finding these to be (almost) entirely dependent upon the intentions and design of the associated politics. Some aspects of a transition will be unambiguously good for some people; others will only be beneficial with careful governance. Moreover, entrenched global economic inequalities leave trade-offs borne largely by the global South, highlighting the need for circular economy research – its drive for localisation notwithstanding – to look globally to consider how a fair transition can be achieved.
Keywords
climate change; circular economy; fast fashion; sustainable consumption; social impacts; textile waste
Subject
Environmental and Earth Sciences, Other
Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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