Length
2 weeks
Unit Description
Students examine fashion's environmental and social impacts, including fast fashion, labour, waste, repair, reuse, and cultural appropriation. They complete a repair, redesign, or upcycle project that extends the life of an existing textile item.
Historic Notes
For much of history, cloth was valuable and clothing was repaired, resized, handed down, and remade. Industrialization and globalization made clothing cheaper and faster to produce, but often at the cost of worker safety, environmental health, and overconsumption. Indigenous textile and clothing practices are diverse and connected to land, community, materials, knowledge, identity, and protocol.
Contemporary Uses
Sustainable fashion includes repair, resale, redesign, rental, circular design, fibre recycling, local production, ethical sourcing, transparent supply chains, and slower buying habits. Many designers now build collections from deadstock, upcycled garments, and low-waste cutting.
Learning Targets
- I can explain life-cycle impacts of a garment.
- I can repair or redesign an existing textile item.
- I can make cost-aware and waste-aware choices.
- I can discuss cultural respect and appropriation with care.
- I can connect design choices to community responsibility.
Key Notes
Life-Cycle Thinking
Consider:
- Raw materials.
- Farming/extraction.
- Processing and dyeing.
- Labour and manufacturing.
- Shipping and packaging.
- Use, washing, repair.
- Disposal, reuse, resale, recycling.
Indigenous Respect In This Course
Chilliwack is in Stó:lō territory. In fashion class, respect means learning that textile/clothing knowledge belongs to people, families, and communities. Students may study broad ideas such as protocol, relationship to land, material respect, and anti-appropriation. Students should not reproduce protected designs or present Indigenous-inspired work as their own identity.
This unit connects to the First Peoples Principles of Learning (FPPL):
- Learning is embedded in memory, history, and practice — textile knowledge is passed through generations and practice, not copied from an image.
- Learning takes patience and time — skill and relationship are built slowly, like good construction.
- Learning is relational and connected to place — materials, knowledge, and design relate to land and community.
- Learning recognizes the role of Indigenous knowledge — which is owned by people and communities and shared on their terms.
If local Stó:lō knowledge keepers or artists are involved, follow school and district protocols, compensate guests where possible, and let local guidance shape the activity. See https://www.fnesc.ca/first-peoples-principles-of-learning/.
Hands-On Assignment: Extend the Life Project
Task
Choose one:
- Repair a damaged garment.
- Redesign a thrifted garment.
- Convert textile waste into a useful item.
- Create a visible mending sample and apply it to a garment.
Students must document the original item, problem, plan, cost, construction steps, and life extension.
Cost
Very low to low. Target cost: $0-$10.
Worksheet
- Choose a garment you own. Map its life cycle.
- What is one environmental issue connected to textile production?
- What is one labour issue connected to fast fashion?
- What is the difference between appreciation and appropriation?
- Plan a repair or redesign. What will it cost?
- How will your project reduce waste?
Quiz/Test
- Define fast fashion.
- Name two ways to extend a garment's life.
- What does life-cycle design consider?
- Why is cultural permission important?
- Explain one tradeoff between low cost and sustainability.
- Scenario: A brand uses sacred imagery on a jacket without permission. Identify the issue.
Answer key: Accept reasoned answers; scenario issue is cultural appropriation/misrepresentation/lack of permission.
Rubric
| Criteria | Emerging | Developing | Proficient | Extending |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waste reduction | Limited | Some reuse | Clear life extension | Creative, practical, high-impact reuse |
| Construction | Fragile | Functional | Durable and clean | Refined and well integrated |
| Ethics understanding | Minimal | Basic | Clear and respectful | Nuanced and locally aware |
| Documentation | Sparse | Basic | Complete before/after/process | Strong visual and written evidence |
References and Further Learning
Watch
- The life cycle of a t-shirt (Angel Chang) — Traces a single garment's global journey and environmental cost, a clear way into fast fashion (TED-Ed).
- How can we redesign the future of fashion? — Shows how clothes can be designed to stay in use rather than be thrown away (Ellen MacArthur Foundation).
Read
- Circular Fashion: a circular economy for the fashion industry — An overview of repair, reuse, resale, and designing out waste (Ellen MacArthur Foundation).
Explore
- Fashioned from Nature — Explores where fashion's materials come from and the search for more sustainable options (Victoria and Albert Museum).
- First Peoples Principles of Learning — Authoritative grounding for respectful engagement with Indigenous knowledge and protocol (FNESC).
_Links were verified at publication; if one moves, search the title._