*Breaking It Down* with Rachel Arthur, lead author of The Sustainable Fashion Communication Playbook, an actionable guide co-published by UNEP and UN Climate Change

In episode 307, Kestrel welcomes Rachel Arthur, a strategist, journalist, and the Advocacy Lead for Sustainable Fashion at the United Nations Environment Programme, to the show. Rachel is the lead author of The Sustainable Fashion Communication Playbook, which was published earlier this year by the United Nations Environment Programme and the UN Climate Change Fashion Charter.

“Communicators themselves, on a couple of levels, have had the ability to participate and to contribute I think is what I’m looking for here, and that is the first of all. But they themselves, by being communicators, have a skill set that is missing in the sustainability space, which is around this notion of making something desirable, creative — making people fall in love with things. That is fundamentally what fashion does, and we need to redirect it toward sustainability.” -Rachel

Are you a communicator in the fashion space? Whether it’s through your work or everyday life, communicating about sustainability and fashion can be challenging and complex. 

This week’s guest is the lead author of a new framework for fashion communicators – it’s called the Sustainable Fashion Communication Playbook, and it’s a deep dive into why we must all play a role in shifting the narrative. 

The Playbook provides actionable steps communicators can take including: establishing a foundation with verifiable information, acknowledging that fashion is integral in building culture, and highlighting the role storytellers must play in advocating for change.

We address head-on one of fashion’s biggest issues today – misinformation. As the report highlights, A 2020 study by the European Commission found 53.3% of environmental claims communicated in the EU at large were vague, misleading or unfounded. And a fashion specific report by Changing Markets from 2021 finds that 60% of sustainability claims by European fashion giants are “unsubstantiated” and “misleading”.

The Playbook recommends that one way communicators can break the cycle of misinformation is by leading with science. While this is absolutely necessary, I regularly hear frustrations over the lack of accessible scientific data and research available in the fashion space. We explore this tension as well.

Telling stories is powerful and can influence change.

Quotes & links from the conversation:

• “So, I don’t think that there is a silver bullet here — there isn’t the single answer in the playbook, but the intention is to open up this discussion and put it on the table and importantly say that marketers, communicators, anybody in that sort of job function, which basically means that they spend time communicating with consumers in some capacity, has a role that they can play here to help towards change.” -Rachel (16:58)

• The Sustainable Fashion Communication Playbook Report

• The Sustainable Fashion Communication Playbook Interactive

• FashMash, global community Rachel helped cofound 

• Rachel’s LinkedIn

• Follow Rachel on Instagram >