One Outfit 100 Days Project Teaches Students About Sustainable Fashion

Today, it’s becoming increasingly clear that small acts can have a big impact on the environment. In addition to swapping out single-use products like straws and water bottles for reusable alternatives, one way to promote sustainability on a small-scale is to consider the consequences of clothing—an approach embodied by Julia Mooney‘s eye-opening experiment.

Mooney, a middle school teacher from New Jersey, is on a mission to curb fast fashion. Rather than simply tell her impressionable students about the importance of sustainable clothing options, she opted to model it—literally.

On the first day of school, Mooney showed up to class clad in a grey, button-down dress. Without revealing the reason to her students, she wore the same garment the next day. And the next day. And the next day. Finally, after several weeks of donning the dress, she let her students in on her experiment, explaining that “there is no rule anywhere that says that we have to wear a different thing every day.”

By buying into the fast-fashion trend, we are contributing to what Mooney describes as a “culture of excess.” This, she explains, is not only harmful to the environment, but to ourselves as individuals—especially, Mooney notes, younger generations. “This is something they deal with every day as 12- and 13-year olds,” she told TreeHugger. “As they try to define themselves, they are often identifying with brands or superficial things like their social media presence. Many seemed excited to have a reason to talk about how silly all of that really is.”

While Mooney is no longer limiting herself to the same, single garment every day, her “One Outfit 100 Days” project has morphed into a movement. If you’d like to join her cause, follow her on Instagram.

In an effort to curb fast fashion, middle teacher Julia Mooney wore the same dress every day for her “One Outfit 100 Days” project.

She donned the dress “through ceramics projects, blizzards, whatever,” proving the endless possibilities of slow fashion.

Julia Mooney: Website | Instagram 
h/t: [TreeHugger]

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