Reframing Consumption : A transdisciplinary approach for the promotion of mindful consumption in home fashion textiles

Abstract: Textile waste is a growing problem in the world and although it is being noticed in the fast fashion category the industry providing home fashion textiles is being largely ignored. However, with companies such as H&M and Zara entering the market there is a cause for concern due to their current business models. To address such complexities modern research practices are needed. With a transdisciplinary group, an innovative solution can be discovered in the process of defining and developing solutions for such problems. Focusing on the topic of home fashion textile waste the team learned that people often took their unwanted textiles to second hand or thrift stores rather than throwing them in the trash. However, when purchasing home fashion textiles there was a conscious decision to avoid going to secondhand sources to acquire their textile items. This posed a problem as consumers felt good about donating but then expressed disdain for those same outlets as a method of acquiring their home fashion textiles. This offers an opportunity for companies, such as IKEA to act with consumers to develop new ways to tackle this problem. The team decided to address this disparity through a communication tool where multi-level co-creation would be used. The United Nations encourages developments such as the Dare to Care framework as is expressed in sustainability goal 12.8 where exposure and education in consumption is vital to create sustainable behaviour. Through workshop participation, based on the framework provided, it is possible to achieve this goal through mindful consumption exposure, development of sustainable actions that consumers can take part in, and partner consumers with industry to develop new sustainability measures that focus on consumer acceptance.