Which brands are sustainable?

Recently, there’s been a lot of stress in my life. It’s the end of the quarter, so teachers are giving us end-of-the-quarter work, which is starting to pile up. Additionally, I took the PSAT yesterday, so I haven’t had much time to have fun or rest. But it’s not just the past few days, it’s been the whole school year so far. I haven’t had the time to play soccer every day or hang out with friends on the weekends like the past few years.  On Tuesday, I was looking through blogs by classmates of my nonfiction english class. Danbi’s was called “Little Things to Stay Sane” and had an article called “How to Relieve Stress”, so I clicked on it, knowing it’d probably be useful. Some of the activities in the article included drawing, talking to friends, or meditating, but the main example was exercise, because it heavily applied to the author. Upon reflection, I realized I hadn’t been doing much exercise, since soccer got pushed to the spring. So, I decided I’d go play with some friend...

    If you’ve ever bought any clothes in your life or seen someone wearing clothes, you know what Nike is. It’s been one of the biggest clothing companies for a long time now, known most for high-quality, stylish, innovative products. But how sustainable are they? On their website, they boast the use of recycled polyester, sustainable cotton, and sustainable blends (of cotton and polyester) to create their products. They also have an almost 30 year old program called Reuse-A-Shoe, which uses recycled shoes to make “community spaces”, such as basketball courts and running tracks. For 2020, they have some impressive goals, including “e liminate footwear manufacturing waste to landfill or incineration” and “enabling Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHS)”, which is a program that encourages companies to use sustainable chemicals. Additionally, they are “on target” to reach a goal of only using renewable energy by 2025!  But, a long time ago (maybe 30 years ago)...

     If you’re interested in environmental brands, you’ve probably heard of Patagonia. Patagonia is known for its long-lasting and incredibly comfortable clothes. On their website, they promote a LOT of environmental activism, including combating uranium, copper sulfide, and oil mining. They also provide funding for over a thousand environmental groups and they sponsor athletes who are activists. And while their attire can be quite pricey (up to $800 for a new jacket!), they are praised for their incredibly lenient return and exchange policy. There are an astounding number of online reviews that have some story along the lines of exchanging a ten-year old jacket with a broken zipper for a new, more expensive one (here’s a link to a reddit post with some stories: ( https://www.reddit.com/r /malefashionadvice/comments/96ln5y/is_patagonia_clothing_worth_the_money/ ). They also have a branch of their company (called Worn Wear) dedicated to selling used apparel.    ...

In this age, buying clothes is often so easy that all you have to do is open your computer, go to a website, and find some nice clothes. At that point, all that’s left is to buy them. But, if you’re like me, you may often find yourself wondering whether or not the clothes were produced ethically. And when you go to look it up, the company may say that the clothes benefit a cause or were ethically produced, but when you go to review sites, there is clashing evidence. In this blog, I’ll be reviewing popular clothing brands and giving you more information on whether or not they’re sustainable, ethical, affordable, and comfortable.