Fostering biodiversity on World Environment Day

Fostering biodiversity on World Environment Day

Can fostering native plants and animals in our neighbourhoods help stem the loss of biodiversity? Is sustainable fashion achievable? Our experts examine the possibilities on World Environment Day.

Making a bee hotel gives solitary native bees somewhere to rest and breed Making a bee hotel gives solitary native bees somewhere to rest and breed

Biodiversity conservation in your backyard

We can all encourage native plants and animals in our neighbourhoods – at home, school or work, according to the Centre for Urban Research’s Dr Laura Mumaw, by “gardening for wildlife”.

“Improving habitat on your balcony or in your garden provides food, shelter and corridors for native plants, insects, birds and mammals,” she said, “by linking plots of land into a nourishing landscape.

“You can add water features, make bee hotels and lizard shelters, layer shrubbery, remove environmental weeds, and plant species from your local indigenous nursery.”

Most importantly, she said, watch, enjoy and record your garden visitors.

“Wildlife gardening programs that partner community members with local government build stewardship ethic and skills, community connections, personal wellbeing, and hope for the future,” she explained.

She said linking these programs across councils and shires – like the Gardens for Wildlife Victoria network – expanded the scale, impact, and innovation of wildlife gardening, fostering biodiversity one neighbourhood at a time.

Sustainable fashion

Sustainable fashion

As one of the most polluting and waste producing industry sectors globally, the impact of the fashion industry was significant for our future wellbeing, according to PhD researcher at the Centre for Urban Research Tamzin Rollason.

Its land use, water consumption, chemical pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and waste were attracting increasing, though long neglected, scrutiny.

As awareness and criticism had increased, production had begun to include sustainable design innovations that used cleaner and more efficient resources, she said.

Despite this, the environmental impact of the industry had continued to increase as garments became cheaper and trend cycles shorter.

“Quantities of textiles waste are increasing so much that recycling markets in developing countries are overwhelmed with our clothing waste,” she said.

“In keeping with Sustainable Development Goal 12, sustainable production and consumption, there is an urgent need to focus on different approaches to the production, use and disposal of fashion.

“During the COVID-19 slowdown of our lives, the way we wear and use clothes has been very different,” she said.

“This provides an opportunity to consider a new relationship with the clothes in which we present ourselves to the world.”

Fashion’s environmental impact

Many fashion companies had been badly affected by the COVID-19 crisis, according to Associate Dean for Fashion Enterprise in the School of Fashion and Textiles Stephen Wigley.

As a result, many would be focused purely on commercial survival and profitability, which may mean their environmental and sustainability initiatives had been put on the back shelf for a while. 

But with every crisis there was also an opportunity.

“Consumers are aware now more than ever of the environmental challenges we face and are willing to support organisations that make genuine efforts to address them,” he said. 

At the same time, the crisis had provided impetus for innovation in how fashion products were made and distributed. 

“Breakthroughs in materials technology and in fabric treatments and dying can reduce the environmental impact of manufacturing,” he said, “while whole business models and supply chains have been forced to become more efficient.”

The biggest environmental – and economic – boost for the Australian fashion industry would be for initiatives to support the localisation of manufacturing. 

“We are a country of innovators and we are leading the world in terms of developing new production methods, processes and business models that can make a fashion company not just profitable, but a good citizen of Australia and the World,” he said.

 

Story: Diana Robertson

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Acknowledgement of Country

RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business - Artwork 'Luwaytini' by Mark Cleaver, Palawa.