The Slow Fashion Caucus is advocating for fashion and textiles industry leaders to be part of policy discussions. Six members of Congress have requested US President Joe Biden to include fashion and textiles representatives in the White House Task Force on Climate and Trade. Announced in April, this task force aims to shape trade policy addressing climate and emissions issues.
In May, industry leaders appealed to the president, seeking inclusion in the task force to enhance discussions. Now, the Slow Fashion Caucus has echoed this request in a letter to Biden. The caucus, founded in June by Representatives Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Washington), and Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-California), focuses on reducing the fashion industry’s environmental impact and improving labour conditions.
The letter was signed by representatives Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Kathy Castor (D-FL), and Jill Tokuda (D-HI), along with Kamlager-Dove and Pingree. They emphasised the need for diverse stakeholders in shaping effective climate policies. “Fashion and textile industries are crucial to these discussions,” they wrote, urging the inclusion of industry representatives.
The representatives highlighted the US’s lag in sustainable textile policies compared to other nations. Including industry voices, they argued, could boost the economy and create jobs. According to McKinsey, the fashion industry contributed about 4 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2018, potentially rising to 8 per cent now. Addressing these emissions is essential, they said.
Despite the push, industry inclusion in the task force remains uncertain. Politically InFashion, a group that initiated the May letter, reported that the administration plans to limit task force membership to government agency representatives. However, they expressed a willingness to engage with the industry.
Rachel Kibbe, CEO of American Circular Textiles, supported the caucus’s letter, stressing the need for federal action to prevent the U.S. from falling behind sustainably. “Without federal action, we will continue to fall behind other nations that are already capturing the circular textile opportunity,” Kibbe said. Including industry representatives in the task force, she added, would ensure their contributions are not overlooked.
