No. 1 (2023)
Essays

Upskilling Future Workers in the Fashion Sector: An Educational Toolkit for Sustainability Assessment

PDF
  • Claudia Morea
Claudia Morea
Università degli Studi di Firenze
first number yellow cover of fashion highlight journal with black logo
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/fh-2259

Published 2023-06-30

Keywords

  • Education toolkit,
  • SME Upskilling,
  • Sustainable Fashion,
  • Life Cycle Design,
  • LCA

How to Cite

Morea, C. (2023). Upskilling Future Workers in the Fashion Sector: An Educational Toolkit for Sustainability Assessment. Fashion Highlight, (1), 28–36. https://doi.org/10.36253/fh-2259
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

The European Commission within the Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles cited circular business model solutions and ecodesign strategies as paramount for the sustainability of the textile sector. Nevertheless, how can sustainability knowledge be transmitted to the constellation of SMEs? The Eu Act for skills identified a gap between the knowledge currently owned by companies and the skills required for the green transition. The research investigated the possibilities of conducting the upskilling by integrating the Life Cycle Design approach within fashion design education. A toolkit has been developed for the qualitative and quantitative assessment of eco-design strategies in which Life Cycle Assessment analysis has a keyrole. The toolkit validation took place through a set of intensive workshops and a structured course, involving around 400 students at university level. Finally, the brands involved have enthusiastically greeted the effectiveness of students’ outcomes.

PDF

References

  1. Andrews D., (2015) The circular economy, design thinking and education for sustainability, in Local Economy 2015, Vol. 30(3) 305–315.
  2. Brezet J.C., Van Hemel C. G., (1997) Ecodesign: a promising approach to sustainable production and consumption. Paris: United Nations Environmental Programme
  3. Brezet, H., Diehl, J. C., & Silvester, S. (2001, December). From Ecodesign of Products to Sustainable Systems Design: Delft’s Experiences (Keynote). In Environmentally Conscious Design and Inverse Manufacturing, International Symposium on (pp. 605-605).
  4. IEEE Computer Society. Design Council, (2021), Beyond Net Zero: A Systemic Design Approach, UK: Design Council
  5. European Environment Agency - EEA (1997). Life Cycle Assessment: A Guide to Approaches, Experiences and Information Sources. Environmental Issues Series No: 6
  6. EEA (2019) Textiles and the environment in a circular economy.
  7. EEA (2022) Textiles and the environment: the role of design in Europe’s circular economy.
  8. Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) (2017), A New Textiles Economy: Redesigning fashion’s future https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/a-new-textiles-economy
  9. Euratex 2021 https://euratex.eu/news/which-skills-companies-needfrom-their-workforce/
  10. European Commission (EC), (2022) EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles, https://environment.ec.europa.eu/strategy/textiles-strategy_en
  11. EC, (2020) Pact of Skills: Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion. https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1517&langId=en
  12. EC, (2023), European Year of Skills 2023 https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and- policy/priorities-2019-2024/europe-fit-digitalage/european-year-skills-2023_en
  13. Grimshaw, D., & Muñoz de Bustillo, R. (2016). Global comparative study on wage fixing institutions and their impacts in major garment producing countries. International Labour Organization (ILO).
  14. Vezzoli, C., & Sciama, D. (2006). Life Cycle Design: from general methods to product type specific guidelines and checklists: a method adopted to develop a set of guidelines/checklist handbook for the eco-efficient design of NECTA vending machines. Journal of cleaner production, 14(15-16), 1319-1325.
  15. Vogtländer, J. G. (2012). LCA, a practical guide for students, designers and business managers. Delft: VSSD Science and Technology.