Are fashion brands on track to meet the 1.5C emissions pathway?
October 28, 2021

Dirty fossil fuels like coal continue to power the manufacturing of apparel, footwear and other fashion goods sold by leading brands, and fracked fabrics like polyester have become a mainstay of fast fashion and athleticwear.
Fashion companies are collectively responsible for 5% to 8% of climate emissions every year. Dirty fossil fuels like coal continue to power the manufacturing of apparel, footwear, and other fashion goods sold by leading brands, and fracked fabrics like polyester have become a mainstay of fast fashion and athleticwear.
Recognizing their massive role in driving climate change, many of the largest global brands came together in 2018 to sign the United Nations Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action — committing to reduce their climate emissions 30% by 2030, including in their supply chains, which contribute more than 90% of their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
In August 2021, nearly three years after the launch of the UN Fashion Charter, Stand.earth released its Fossil Free Fashion Scorecard, benchmarking 47 luxury, sportswear, outdoor, fast fashion and casual wear companies on their efforts to reduce climate emissions. We found that while some progress had been made by a handful of brands in transitioning away from fossil fuels in their own operations, most brands had made little to no progress eliminating coal and other fossil fuels from their supply chain, where the vast majority of their emissions lie. In fact, some were even more dependent on coal than when they first signed the charter.
As the world prepares to gather in Glasgow next week for COP 26 to assess progress in reducing GHG emissions, and what actions are needed by 2030 to respond to the “code red for humanity” declared by the UN, a new Stand.earth analysis takes a closer look at how some of the biggest fashion and apparel companies are performing in reducing their supply chain emissions in line with a 1.5C emissions pathway of the UN Paris Agreement, which, as outlined this week in the UN Emission Gap Report, necessitates a 55% reduction in absolute emissions by 2030.