Accepting Award for United Nations, Deputy Secretary-General Urges Fashion Council to Help ‘Turn the Tide’, Change Industry’s Share of Emissions
Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s acceptance remarks, as prepared for delivery, for the Environmental Sustainability Award on the occasion of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Awards event, today:
On behalf of the United Nations, I am honoured to receive the CFDA Environmental Sustainability Award. Thank you, Steven Kolb and all the members of the CFDA. We value your collaboration in inspiring the global fashion industry to put sustainability at its core. We are united by our love of fashion, creativity and innovation but also in solidarity for climate action.
As we gather this evening, world leaders are meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh at COP27 [twenty-seventh conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change] to account for the promises made in Paris. Sadly, the target of a 1.5°C world is on life support. We need COP27 to deliver a path to save our planet. We need you to help us.
I have always believed that clothing is a way to express oneself, celebrate culture and make a bold statement. I’m here because we believe that the future of sustainable fashion and its influence on our daily lives can help to green our world.
You have made a bold first step. I’m asking you to dig deeper towards real transformation in your industry. Let me take the example of circularity — by that I mean — rethinking the way industry uses resources, then turn the tide for instance on plastic pollution and water efficiency.
By designing processes that reuse materials, we can eliminate 80 per cent of plastics entering our oceans. On water, it takes more than 7,500 litres to produce a pair of jeans. By gaining efficiency, we can give someone drinking water for 10 years.
The global climate crisis we are facing today is man-made. The fashion industry’s share of emissions that cause climate change is 10 per cent. For context, that is more than the aviation and shipping industries combined. The good news is that we have the solutions and resources to shift the industry, without compromising the creativity that makes it so inspiring.
Everything I just shared is part of our Sustainable Development Goals. We need your engagement and leadership to ensure that these 17 Global Goals reach everyone, everywhere. We need an integrated shift to include more young people and influencers.
We offer the UN Conscious Fashion and Lifestyle network — a collaborative and transparent platform for industry leaders. By highlighting innovative products — such as organic dyes, carbon-neutral fibres, and packing made from ocean plastics — we are co-creating a new sustainable ecosystem and accountable mechanism.
From the incredible voices I have heard tonight, I know we have the collective knowledge, means and creativity to make a difference in our world. Together, we can shape a better future for people and for the planet. Thank you!