The Hidden Cost of Fast Fashion

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1. 01The Hidden Cost of Fast Fashion

   Good afternoon. Take a look at the clothes you're wearing right now. Do you know where they were made, or how much they really cost the planet? Today, I want to uncover the hidden cost of fast fashion.

   下午好。请看看你现在身上穿的衣服。你知道它们是在哪里生产的吗？知道它们真正让地球付出了多少代价吗？今天，我想揭开快时尚背后隐藏的代价。

2. 02What Is Fast Fashion?

   Fast fashion means producing trendy clothes quickly and cheaply. Some brands release new styles every few weeks. As a result, people buy more clothes than ever, but wear each item fewer times.

   快时尚就是快速、低成本地生产流行服装。有些品牌每隔几周就推出新款。结果，人们买的衣服比以往任何时候都多，但每件衣服穿的次数却更少了。

3. 03The Environmental Cost

   The environmental impact is serious. Making clothes uses huge amounts of water, and according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles is burned or sent to landfill every second. Less than one percent of the material used for clothing is recycled into new clothes.

   对环境的影响非常严重。生产服装要消耗大量的水。而且根据艾伦·麦克阿瑟基金会的数据，每一秒钟，就有相当于一辆垃圾车的纺织品被焚烧或送进填埋场。用于制作服装的材料中，被回收再做成新衣服的不到百分之一。

   Source: Ellen MacArthur Foundation, "A New Textiles Economy: Redesigning Fashion's Future" (2017)

4. 04The Human Cost

   There is also a human cost. Many garment workers earn very low wages and work long hours. In 2013, the Rana Plaza factory building in Bangladesh collapsed, killing more than eleven hundred people. It was a wake-up call for the whole industry.

   此外还有人的代价。很多制衣工人工资很低，工作时间很长。2013年，孟加拉国的拉纳广场工厂大楼倒塌，造成一千一百多人死亡。这给整个行业敲响了警钟。

   Source: International Labour Organization, "The Rana Plaza Accident and its aftermath"

5. 05Why We Keep Buying

   So why do we keep buying? Part of the reason is that the true costs are invisible. We see a low price tag and the latest trend, but we don't see the waste or the people behind the product.

   那我们为什么还在不停地买呢？部分原因是，真正的代价是看不见的。我们看到的是低廉的价格标签和最新的潮流，却看不到背后的浪费，也看不到制作这些产品的人。

6. 06What We Can Do

   Fortunately, each of us can make a difference. We can buy less, choose better quality, repair what we already own, and try second-hand shopping.

   幸运的是，我们每个人都能带来改变。我们可以少买一些，选择质量更好的衣服，修补已有的衣服，也可以试试买二手衣服。

7. 07The Role of Brands

   However, individuals can't solve this alone. Brands must be transparent about where their clothes are made, pay fair wages, and take responsibility for what happens to clothes after they're sold.

   不过，光靠个人是解决不了这个问题的。品牌必须公开衣服的生产地，支付公平的工资，并对衣服售出之后的去向负起责任。

8. 08Conclusion

   In the end, fast fashion is cheap for us but costly for the planet and for the people who make our clothes. Every purchase is a small vote for the kind of world we want. Let's vote wisely. Thank you.

   归根结底，快时尚对我们来说很便宜，但对地球和为我们做衣服的人来说，代价却很高。每一次购买，都是在为我们想要的世界投下小小的一票。让我们明智地投票吧。谢谢。