Between pesticides, chemical dyes, and plastic, producing a typical sweater eats an enormous amount of natural and industrial resources. Apparel is one of the world’s most polluting industries, and the U.S. sends up to 75 percent of its cotton abroad—only to ship it back as cheap T-shirts.
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| Fibershed founder Rebecca Burgess, Mike Lewis of Growing Warriors in Kentucky, and Arnie Valdez of Rezolana Institute in Colorado collaborate on hemp processing. |
The Northern California Fibershed was designed to circumvent all that.
About 104 farmers, ranchers, weavers, spinners, and designers across 19 counties make up a garment-producing system where every producer uses materials sourced within a 150-mile radius: A shop in Oakland buys marigolds from a farm in Chico to dye yarn shorn from sheep in Sonoma and weaves it into sweaters sold in San Francisco.
The concept started in 2010 when textile artist and sustainability advocate Rebecca Burgess challenged herself for one year to wear only clothes produced near her community.
Read the Yes! Magazine story by Araz Hachadourian - “The 150-Mile Wardrobe: A Solution for One of the World’s Most Polluting Industries.”
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