We need consensus on climate goals

Garment makers, governments, NGOs and fashion retailers all agree on one thing: carbon emissions in the clothing production must be reduced. Our industry is one of the world's most emissions-intensive, and it is simply not sustainable in its current format.

While it is a positive sign that we all agree on the need to take action, there is a lack of consensus on what action to take and the level of urgency required.

Fashion brands and retailers hold all the cards here. It is they who set climate targets with the ultimate goal of achieving net zero emissions in their own operations and supply chains. The problem is that these targets differ greatly from one retailer to another. Some fashion retailers have set targets for 2030, some have gone for 2040, some are even talking about 2050.

Now, the question is whether anybody is keeping track of all these targets. This whole area has become complicated. It feels at times as though the RMG industry is being pulled in different directions, with new climate targets being announced every day.

The fact is, if the fashion industry wishes to achieve its climate goals, it will be almost completely dependent on apparel suppliers. About 90 percent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions occur in fashion supply chains. Retailer operations in the West have mainly switched to renewable energy. Logistics networks are making the transition to electric vehicles and so on. Suppliers are where the challenges lie.

Already, as suppliers we are getting the message from fashion retailers, our buyers, about the need to reduce our environmental impact and become less carbon-intensive. The challenge, however, is that there is a lack of unity in these requests. All fashion retailers, as discussed above, are working at a different pace where climate is concerned. This means that all are placing different demands on suppliers. As a supplier, I could be working with five different fashion brands, each of which is working towards a different climate target, with varying degrees of urgency.

This is a huge problem. Climate is the most important issue of our time; surely, we need industry consensus on this issue? Surely, the whole fashion industry should be working towards a single, unified climate target?

There are several benefits to having one goal. First, it means we are all on the same page. Governments, NGOs, suppliers and their customers are all unified on what we are trying to achieve and when we are trying to achieve it. If one customer is talking about the climate targets of 2030 while another is talking about 2050, this could create confusion among some suppliers. Let's agree on one target and work to achieve it.

Second, with a unified target, it is easier to hold our industry to account. If fashion retailers are not held to account, there is little incentive to change. We know from experience that targets will be missed and profits prioritised. Clear, unified targets and consensus on this issue make it easier to track what our industry is doing on climate issues.

Third, a single, unified climate target means that laggards are exposed. If a few leading retailers all set the same, ambitious climate target, others would be forced to follow. If not, they would immediately be set apart as laggards. At the moment, with so many targets and so much confusion, it is easy for individual businesses to do what they like, and there is little scrutiny.

Finally, one climate target would help governments and policymakers adapt. Say, for instance, fashion retailers mainly adopted a 2030 net zero target. In Bangladesh, that would mean we would have no choice but to transition rapidly to renewable energy.

Some may say eight years is not enough time to make such a transition. In response to that, I would say that there is nothing like one, clear goal to focus all our minds on. We all know that renewable energy is the way forward for fashion supply chains. This shift is going to happen anyway, so why not make it now? If our government knew that some of their biggest exporters risked losing huge orders if they did not rapidly transition to renewable energy, surely they would act now.

The alternative, with uncertainty around targets, is that the pace of change is too slow. It is easier for policymakers to procrastinate when targets and goals are unclear. Excuses are not so easy when we all know what we need to do and when we need to do it.

We urgently need consensus on this critical issue. There is no time to waste.

Mostafiz Uddin is Managing Director of Denim Expert Limited, and Founder and CEO of Bangladesh Apparel Exchange (BAE) and Bangladesh Denim Expo.