Organic by Design: fashion students meet cotton farmer

Posted by David on 16 May 2008

While organic cotton is fast becoming the height of fashion in Western Europe, few clothing designers have ever met with a cotton farmer, let alone an organic cotton farmer.

Fashion designers usually have little knowledge of the supply chain and rarely accept that they work in the same industry as cotton farmers. It is therefore not surprising that they often fail to realise the massive impact their design decisions have on the lives of millions of farming communities in the developing world.

Last November, the Pesticide Action Network (PAN) decided this had to change, and embarked on a three week speaking tour of fashion colleges across Europe. Barnabas Paul, an organic cotton farmer from Benin entrusted his cotton fields to his brother and left his homeland for the first time to deliver a simple, yet powerful message to the European fashion designers of tomorrow.

Speaking on behalf of the 6,000 West African cotton farmers engaged today in organic agriculture, Barnabas explained how organic cotton had transformed his life:

"With conventional cotton, I used to have no money left for me or my family once I had paid back my debt to agrochemical suppliers. I also used to go to the hospital every other week when I was spraying pesticides. Now I get to keep all of my profits as I no longer use pesticides."

Barnabas also showed students a picture of his many children who all wear school uniform as he can now afford to pay for their education.

PAN visited 14 colleges across Germany, France, and the UK, and talked to 950 students of fashion and textile design. But why such a focus on fashion students, one might ask? If there is one lesson the organic cotton pioneers have learned over the years, it would be that nobody buys an organic garment just because it is organic.

According to recent surveys, most consumers are prone to declare they would be happy to pay slightly more for environmentally friendly or ethical clothing. But in reality they all end up buying the garment they like the most: the one which fits best, and makes them look good, organic or not. This is why fashion designers have so much influence on our purchasing decisions. They are the key to the continuous success of organic cotton.

"I enjoyed learning about organic cotton, it was good to have the chance to meet a farmer who actually works with the cotton we use over here" said a fashion student from the University of Derby. "It got me thinking about organic and fair traded fabrics: it might well be the future for a designer such as me".

PAN's goal is not only to inspire students to use organic cotton for their final year collection and later in their professional life, but also to offer them the tools and advice they need to understand the organic cotton supply chains.

This is why PAN UK is supporting ten of the most talented fashion students across the UK in their efforts to showcase the creative potential of organic cotton through their final year collections.

During the information tour, a range of organic cotton pioneers joined Barnabas and shared their experience with students. In PAN UK's new booklet ORGANIC BY DESIGN, specifically written for fashion students, many organic cotton pioneers reflected back on their experience and agreed to reveal some of their secrets for success.

Among the many stories Barnabas told, one was particularly revealing. Barnabas recently bumped into some of the nurses he used to know from the hospital. They called out to him, "Barnabas! What is going on with you? We never see you at the hospital anymore".

Help PAN: Every single student they meet can become an ambassador for organic cotton and will contribute to transform the textile industry from the inside. PAN needs support to continue their work with fashion colleges next year and invite an African cotton farmer to visit. To sponsor PAN UK's Organic by Design Project please contact Damien Sanfilippo, or simply make a donation.