Many clothing donations end up in African landfills • Hacker News Board

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#91

Post by Dma54rhs » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 7:56 AM UTC

gexla wrote: post #31

Hopefully the climate change issue could motivate to change this. Even if this stuff is piling up in a place sight unseen from the origin, it's still coming back to that origin in ways which we don't well understand. Just as the pandemic accelerated global cooperation and change, so could the climate issue. If the US wanted to shut down this problem, regulators could find the key spot to put a bullet into. Ideally th…

What I've anecdotally seem is that it makes these fast fashion "green brands" pop up who claim to plant trees or use "organic" materials instead of common sense reuse, recycle point of view.

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#92

Post by sangnoir » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 7:59 AM UTC

AussieWog93 wrote: post #69

I'm in e-commerce, and reading through this thread I think many people have the misconception that people make purchases to solve problems and want that solution to last as long as possible. In reality, and this is something I spent a long time coming to terms with, much shopping is done because it's fun. Spending money isn't a cost - it's the whole point of the exercise.

Did shopping become fun because fast-fashion clothes were cheap, or did clothes become cheap because shopping is fun?

I'm also e-commerce-adjacent, but I believe fast-fashion (especially synthetics) is bad for humanity. Sure, people are making loads of money[1], but it's an ecological disaster in the making.

1. Me included, but only getting a little. Shein is getting ALL the money.

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#93

Post by throw8932894 » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:05 AM UTC

dexwiz wrote: post #49

deathanatos wrote: post #19

> Today, the average American buys 68 new items of clothing per year. > “You wonder, do people in America have so much money that they can just wear things once and then throw them away?” I uh… I too would like to know. What scares me is that the use of whatever demographic is causing that average has to be way higher than the actual average, but this feels like it has to be bimodal. And there are lots of these numbe…

Living with my girlfriend really opened my eyes to how many clothes women go through. She even tries to be responsible about it and sell items to second hand markets, but I still think it’s a bit crazy. - Women’s fashion cycles much faster then men’s. Office wear is a bit more stable but anything aimed as social settings like weddings may only provide a few opportunities to wear it before it’s out of style. Men can r…

Maybe I live in different environment. I see women wearing yoga pants and tank tops at official environment, and cheap plastic dresses at evening. Men are expected to wear expensive suits, watches, leather shoes and splash cash all around.

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#94

Post by mint2 » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:06 AM UTC

Talanes wrote: post #65

mint2 wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s only true if one is an average size or isn’t mindful of fit. Shopping new can be a huge drag otherwise.

But it's not like any of that is easier second-hand? If I go jean shopping new I might not find my size in every style, but it's very rare that I find second-hand pants that fit without needing to hem.

True, if there was a store with lightly used 80 and 90s clothing and shoes it would be great because sizing was different and less standardized between brands. But second hand is mostly recent stuffs so it’s equally ill fitting. Some stuff can’t be hemmed easily.

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#95

Post by dustymcp » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:16 AM UTC

Aerroon wrote: post #74

deathanatos wrote: post #19

> Today, the average American buys 68 new items of clothing per year. > “You wonder, do people in America have so much money that they can just wear things once and then throw them away?” I uh… I too would like to know. What scares me is that the use of whatever demographic is causing that average has to be way higher than the actual average, but this feels like it has to be bimodal. And there are lots of these numbe…

The answer is "yes". This is part of what makes America (and the rest of the world) so rich compared to the past. A while ago I was looking to buy a small knife for the kitchen and I found a whole pack of them. The average cost of each knife was 60 cents. The meal you prepare with that knife is going to cost more than the knife itself. That just blew me away. Imagine showing this kind of wealth to somebody from the m…

Well the issue with that is overproduction and saturation of the soils its grown in, to the massive amount of nutrients going into the groundwater except for those things over production is good /s

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#96

Post by chaostheory » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:18 AM UTC

t8y wrote: post #22

I think people should really talk about mass market fashion vs luxury fashion. Many people seem to think that buying LVMH clothes or other luxury brands is somehow more ethical when those brands can be even worse. Those brands just sell far fewer items so it's not the same amount. If 99.9% of clothes are fast fashion than 99.9% of left over clothes should also be fast fashion, it's actually more like 100% as luxury b…

They should try the Disney vault model where they keep unsold goods in a warehouse for an ultra pricey limited release. The difference is that there would be actual scarcity, but yeah maybe warehouse costs would offset any profit. It would be nice to see the experiment though.

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#97

Post by null_deref » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:29 AM UTC

x3iv130f wrote: post #84

t8y wrote: post #22

I think people should really talk about mass market fashion vs luxury fashion. Many people seem to think that buying LVMH clothes or other luxury brands is somehow more ethical when those brands can be even worse. Those brands just sell far fewer items so it's not the same amount. If 99.9% of clothes are fast fashion than 99.9% of left over clothes should also be fast fashion, it's actually more like 100% as luxury b…

I buy mostly luxury brands however there are quite a few tricks with it. Buying luxury off the rack at a well known store is almost always a bad financial decision. I stick primarily to lesser known brands that still maintain good quality. I almost always buy used with just a few exceptions. For some reason it is hard for me to find good pants used or with any sort of discount.

Where do you find second hand clothing? I use Facebook Marketplace for furniture and electronics, but I find it uncomfortable to buy second hand clothing from there

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#98

Post by germ » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:35 AM UTC

bruceb wrote: post #12

rileyphone wrote: post #6

I've taken to buying almost all my clothes second hand recently, both for this reason and I find the selection and styles far better than what fast fashion provides. Thrift stores like Goodwill provide some gems, but the best shopping comes from we-buy-your-clothes type places like Buffalo Exchange and Crossroads, and the prices are better too!

But you exchange more of your time at 2nd hand places. The reason new exists is not just the styles, but the higher likelihood you are going to find the correct (or near to it) size.

Time is half of the appeal though, the other half is randomness. If I had a nickel for every time I assembled an outfit or three around something so outside of my normal, I'd probably have a few bucks. It's delightful to find a funky 70s coat that you can work with and spend a few hours running around.

Also the cost factor is nice. My partner works at a local thrift and getting steep discounts on top of the already reduced prices is amazing. And whenever something outgrows my wardrobe it's back off to the donation bin (wear providing)

Sizing is tough though, you're right. My body is outside being sized for most clothes so a ton of otherwise good finds just won't do (but that's what traditional shops are for filling). Thankfully my partner has a similar sizer torso so we can share tops, jackets and whatnot style providing. Organizing two stuffed closets is a bit tricky however

There's always more stuff to dig through and finds to discover!

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#99

Post by WHA8m » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:43 AM UTC

null_deref wrote: post #97

x3iv130f wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I buy mostly luxury brands however there are quite a few tricks with it. Buying luxury off the rack at a well known store is almost always a bad financial decision. I stick primarily to lesser known brands that still maintain good quality. I almost always buy used with just a few exceptions. For some reason it is hard for me to find good pants used or with any sort of discount.

Where do you find second hand clothing? I use Facebook Marketplace for furniture and electronics, but I find it uncomfortable to buy second hand clothing from there

For the German and French crowd I can recommend videdressing (more on the luxury side) and Kleiderkreisel.

Re: Many clothing donations end up in African landfills

#100

Post by kleiba » Sat, Jan 22, 2022, 8:58 AM UTC

Everything that gets produced eventually lands in a dump. The moral justification for shipping stuff your nation has no use for anymore, i.e. your garbage, off to Africa needs to be discussed. Some of that stuff will find second use, which is good in some ways and bad in other ways, but whether that happens or not, everything that gets shipped to Africa will end up in a dump in Africa sooner or later - unless it gets shipped away again somewhere else.