The Global Fashion System : On its social-ecological intertwinedness

Sammanfattning: The fashion industry contributes to shaping the state of the planet: impacts of production and consumption of textile fast-fashion are rising, and the growing number of sustainability-oriented actions have not slowed current trends. The industry’s (un)sustainability is mainly researched within two epistemic communities: fashion studies concerned with social sustainability, and circular economy focused on material biophysical and technological aspects of material cycles along the value chain. I argue that this split of social and ecological aspects is the problématique of sustainable fashion, and that the epistemic community of sustainability sciences should turn its attention to fashion.My aim has been to develop a theoretically informed way of thinking critically about the intertwinedness of social-ecological systems, using fashion as a case study. I combine a social-ecological systems approach with critical realism as a metatheory of transdisciplinarity. My four mixed-methods research papers draw from data and information synthesis, ‘Keystone actor’ and business ecosystem analysis, literature review, analysis and critique of texts that shape theory and praxis in social-ecological systems approaches, and metatheoretic integration.Paper I investigates the business ecosystem of the fashion industry´s keystone actors, revealing roles and alliances in sustainability efforts operationalized through wide-ranging industry collaborations. It finds the current focus on internal operations of fashion businesses fails to recognize the potential of other types of actors to influence the pace and direction of the industry’s sustainability efforts. This indicates the importance for policymakers within global sustainability to think beyond value chain boundaries and understand fashion as an intertwined system. Paper II explores why sustainability interventions by the industry and policymakers have not been successful. It demonstrates that deepening the systemic treatment of the widely used driver-state-response framework reveals social-ecological dynamics and supports proactive, rather than reactive sustainability efforts. It argues that reducing the fashion industry's planetary pressures requires explicit recognition of the system’s social drivers and shows the need for real-world adaptive actions that include social activities beyond the value chain. Paper III examines and critically reflects on disciplinary perspectives on fashion, showing ways to deepen the treatment of culture and diversity in social-ecological systems research at global levels. It provides systemic approaches for transdisciplinary actors to find more common ground on a ‘fashion system’ approach towards sustainability. It outlines challenges facing scientific research to contribute with knowledge useful for actions. Paper IV explores diverse perceptions and interests in the ‘sustainable fashion’ discourse, and points to ways that a systemic approach can harmonise existing efforts. It shows that academic papers rarely define sustainable fashion, and provided definitions are partial and not always consistent. Ultimately, it argues that a definition would rather impede than be helpful for work towards sustainable fashion. Its critical reflections contribute to interpretive approaches in social-ecological systems research, recognizing that meanings and intentions shape the effectiveness and significance of actions.Together, this provides a better understanding that the depth of fashion’s social-ecological intertwinedness is more than what is observed, studied and experienced. It contributes to a theoretical framework showing why sustainability of fashion needs to be thought of in terms of systems that reflect real connectivity and diversity, supporting fashion industry engagement with intrinsically intertwined material and social dimensions. Bringing attention to this intertwinedness opens up for possibilities and creative thinking for sustainable fashions.