Sustainability in fashion: The role of a fashion designer in shaping a future that is ecologically acceptable and socially responsible

Abstract

In this paper the relationship between the current global crisis of environmental protection, the modern vision of sustainability in fashion and the creative process of realization of clothing items in the fashion industry is investigated from the aspect of fashion design. The fashion industry is expected to change the way garments are produced and designed, the way it communicates with consumers, and the way garments are handled at the end of a product's lifespan. In addition to all the usual aspects of creativity, a fashion designer nowadays and especially in the future is expected, to have an additional sort of creativity that should contribute to sustainable development by seeking and developing new creative-experimental design solutions. Different strategies are available to a designer for achieving this goal. In the process of creating a product that has aesthetic and functional values on the market and at the same time the least possible environmental impact on the planet a designer is a key factor of the fashion industry.