{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Beth Jensen of Textile Exchange on fashion's complex history with data, how the organization is addressing it through their open-source reporting and the need to ensure the search for *perfect data* doesn't hinder real action","description":"In Episode 339, Kestrel welcomes Beth Jensen, the Chief Impact Officer at Textile Exchange, to the show. Leading the organization\u2019s efforts to achieve beneficial climate and nature impacts, Beth oversees key functions at Textile Exchange including impact data and Life Cycle Assessment studies; impact tools and reporting mechanisms; reports and research; fundraising; and public affairs\/policy. \u201cA big part of vulnerability is really admitting that you don't have all the answers. So in sustainability, in fashion, apparel, and textile space, this is just the way we have to operate. If you said you had all the answers, you wouldn't be taken seriously in this space \u2026 What you present as data might change the next time you present it because you have new and better information. You just have to be able to work in the gray and really take the best available information and make informed decisions based on that information.\u201d -Beth THEME \u2014 DATA & FASHION: METHODS & ACCESS Before we dive in, I want to take a moment to remind us all that FASHION IS POLITICAL.   Whenever a big politically-charged moment arises in the U.S., there is this narrative I see creeping around that expects fashion (brands, designers, creators, etc) to stay silent on quote unquote political issues \u2013 that fashion should stay in its so-called lane, detached from the world around it.  Here\u2019s the thing \u2013 FASHION IS POLITICAL. It always has been and it always will be. It doesn\u2019t exist in its own little vacuum. If you care about the fashion industry, and its impact on people and the planet, it\u2019s imminent to pay attention and engage in so-called politics, because it\u2019s entirely interconnected. Just to mention a few of these significant overlaps \u2013 The origins of the fashion industry in the United States \u2013 cotton grown by Black enslaved folks who were forced to immigrate \u2013 is political.  The way clothing supply chains operate \u2013 predominantly spread across the Global South where our clothes are made by mostly women of color, who are often paid less than a living wage \u2013 is political. How certain materials permeate the fashion industry \u2013 fossil fuel-derived fibers AKA plastic. While other natural fibers were historically made illegal to grow AKA hemp \u2013 is political. The largest garment manufacturing city in the U.S. is Los Angeles, employing over 46,000 garment workers, most of whom are immigrant women from Mexico and Central America. L.A. is the wage theft capital of the U.S., with the average hourly wage being $5.85 (Labor Violations In The LA Garment Industry, Garment Worker Center, 2020) The institutionalized violent origins of ICE as well as the continued horrific acts they have made toward immigrants and nonimmigrants, fellow members of our communities \u2013 is political. As Faherty called it in their recent IG post \u2013 systemic inhumanity affects us all \u2013 our families, friends, colleagues, neighbors and communities, and that is political. If you try to separate fashion from politics, clothing from humans, it\u2019s impossible. Clothing is made by people who are integral members of our communities and valued creatives along the supply chain. We must advocate for our fellow community members and the safety of our neighbors. This is the second episode is a 2-part series dedicated to DATA IN FASHION. While many of you may already have an understanding of these elements, I think they are important to reframe and contextualize the following conversation.  The fashion industry and the so-called sustainable fashion space has a concerning history with data. The so-called stat \u2013 fashion is the 2nd largest polluter globally, second only to oil \u2013 unfortunately spread like wildfire before it was found to be unsubstantiated \u2013 in 2017, journalist Alden Wicker brought this to light in an article on Racked, and the NY Times did a deep dive into it the following year, calling it the \u201cbiggest fake news in fashion\u201d. It\u2019s clear that the fashion industry has a massive impact on the earth and its inhabitants \u2013 it\u2019s an industry that not only thrives with models of overproduction and waste, it also prioritizes synthetic fossil fuel-derived materials like polyester. But, considering how long this inaccurate claim was utilized by the sustainability and fashion realm (to note, I still see it used today and often have to send articles to folks to remind them that it was never substantiated) \u2013 I guess, it becomes challenging for fashion to be taken seriously in the greater climate conversation.  Being that fashion is one of the most underregulated industries \u2013 I know this is shifting with more policy coming into play, but it\u2019s slow. This has further reduced the amount of data collected from brands, because it hasn\u2019t been required.  As you can tell, data, fashion and sustainability have a complex history. This week\u2019s guest understands this reality, and is pushing to shift the narrative through her work with Textile Exchange. But it\u2019s a tricky task, when for her, a lack of data shouldn\u2019t prevent us from taking action.  \u201cWithout having data to underpin statements about something working toward reducing impact or creating beneficial impact, there's really nothing for those statements to stand on. Now the challenge there is making sure that we're striking the right balance of not letting perfect data get in the way of doing the work that we need to do to improve practices and create beneficial outcomes for the industry.\u201d -Beth Materials Market Report 2025 (Press Release) Paper on Ensuring Integrity in the Use of Life Cycle Assessment Data (Press Release) Industry Reports Library Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) Library Follow Textile Exchange on Instagram ","author_name":"Conscious Chatter","author_url":"http:\/\/consciouschatter.com\/","html":"