What's the "Big Idea": Wear

In a single month, our nation spends $18.4 billion dollars on clothing, footwear and accessories. Image the impact this has on our environment! But there is a way to become more ecologically aware with what we wear.

The best green clothes are those you already own. Rather than replace clothing when you have a rip or tear, repair them. The production of new clothing is a long process that includes material extraction, transportation, industrial processing and production and distribution. 

Here are some tips for caring for your clothes:

• Fold clothes as soon as you take them out of the dryer. You won't be as likely to iron and use less energy.
• Hang non-delicate garments with a little water still in them. This will remove creases.
• Donate and shop at thrift stores

However, if you do buy new clothes, keep these thoughts in mind:

• Buy clothes that can be cold water washed and line dried. This is better for the environment than hot water washing and tumble drying.
• Avoid clothing that needs dry cleaning. You use less energy and chemicals this way.
• Choose organic clothing. Generally organic materials are products that are cultivated on land that hasn't been subjected to chemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers for at least 3 years.

What are today's designers doing?

Many of today's designers are choosing to use greener materials that include renewable and natural ingredients. Soy, corn, seaweed, bamboo and wood bulb can be blended with organic cotton, hemp, linen and raw silk.

Patagonia, Levi's and Nike are just a few of the designers who are creating green clothing. To learn more, you can chat will Jill Dumain of Patagonia in The Green group this Tuesday @ 2PM EST.

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Tune into the Sundance Channel on Tuesday, May 8^th to learn more:

9:00pm e/p

“Big Ideas for a Small Planet: Wear” - Eco-couture designer Linda Loudermilk creates an outfit for Robert Downey Jr. and prepares for a fashion show in New York featuring her eco-friendly designs made from sustainable materials; Jill Dumain, head of Patagonia’s environmental products division, spearheads the company’s cutting edge sportswear line, which recycles used soda bottles and worn out garments to produce high quality active wear; and Lori Petitti, hosting her first Swap-O-Rama-Rama, invites people to channel their creative energies into constructing new fashion statements from used clothing and fabric that would have previously been thrown away. 

9:30pm e/p

Art from the Arctic  (U.S. Television Premiere) – Directed by David Hinton.  From 2003-2005, British artist/filmmaker David Buckland organized three sailing expeditions to the High Arctic as part of his Cape Farewell project, a series of collaborations between artists, educators and scientists designed to create public awareness of global climate change.  Hinton’s film captures those expeditions, immersing us in the Arctic’s otherworldly sights, sounds and silences as Buckland and his companions explore the dramatic landscape.  Some, like sculptor Antony Gormley, musician/sound artist Max Eastley, and photographer Alex Hartley, begin creating work virtually on the spot; others, like writer Ian McEwan and sculptor Rachel Whiteread, quietly absorb their surroundings and the evidence of climate change not yet knowing how it will fuel their art.

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Do you have a "Big Idea" for the environment? Join The Green to learn more about Robert Redford's new television series about sustainable living. To join, click here.