This week, the Ohio Newsroom is joining NPR to tell stories about climate solutions on the local level, as the federal government walks back environmental regulations.
Anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 tons of trash are brought to the Montgomery County Waste Transfer Station south of Dayton each day. And the county鈥檚 most recent data from 2014 shows that textiles, like clothing, make up 8% of that waste.
Kelly Bohrer, a program specialist with the Montgomery County Solid Waste District said nationally, waste management districts and recycling companies are aware it鈥檚 an increasing problem.
鈥淏ut there's just not the infrastructure yet, especially here in Montgomery County, for that textile recycling that forms it right back into new clothes,鈥� she said.
As the fashion industry produces clothes faster, cheaper and in larger quantities, it also creates more pollution. Like Borher described, in the U.S., fabric isn鈥檛 often recycled 鈥� finds 85% of textiles are either sent to landfills or burned.
But a group of University of Dayton students are spearheading an initiative to prevent that fate by keeping clothing in circulation among the student body.
The environmental consequences of fast fashion
Experts attribute the uptick in textile waste to an emerging phenomenon known as fast fashion.
鈥淔ast fashion is a term used for any piece of clothing or fashion item, which includes shoes (and) bags, which are produced at a very low price. The speed to market is the core reason of their existence,鈥� said Colorado State University associate professor Sonali Diddi, who has studied the fashion industry for over 20 years.
Think those PacSun jeans or that Shein crop top.
Diddi said clothing like that creates pollution through every part of its life cycle: from the , to the fossil fuels burned to manufacture garments, to the , to its ultimate fate at a .
Globally, the fashion industry makes annually, and contributes to roughly 10% of global carbon emissions.
鈥淭o put that in context, that is the kind of emissions from all the international flights and maritime shipping combined,鈥� Diddi said.
The scientific research community finds these .
In addition, the garment and textile industry is responsible for and its workers are often .
Making fashion circular
While it鈥檚 a global issue, the Hanley Sustainability Institute at the University of Dayton brings a solution closer to home鈥搊r campus. That鈥檚 through its Clothing Swaps, which it hosts three times a semester.
In the shuffle between classes in late March, a stream of students browsed racks and tables teeming with pants, shorts, t-shirts, blouses and button-ups.
鈥淲e wanna make sure we're also giving that retail experience to our students,鈥� said UD junior Zay Min Htike.
Except, everything there is donated by students and free.
Zay Min Htike founded the initiative in the Fall 2024 semester. He鈥檚 a member of the Sustainability Institute鈥檚 Circularity team, composed of UD students that put on programs promoting reuse and repairs.
In researching similar initiatives across college campuses, he said he found inspiration from TikTok to use a pop-up format for their clothing swaps to draw students in.
鈥淎s a younger person, this fashion industry in general, they produce trending clothing that are very attractive to us so that people wanna buy,鈥� he explained. 鈥淎nd at the same time, the prices are also very affordable. But the issue with it is that these clothes that we buy are not durable.鈥�
Circularity team members set up donation bins around campus during the school year to collect clothes for their swaps.
Team member and UD Senior Christy Shin said they track the swaps鈥� efficacy.
鈥淲e collect our data. We track the metrics. We get personal testaments and everything. And we produce an impact report,鈥� Shin said.
Quantifying鈥攁nd qualifying鈥攖he impact
Since the program started less than two years ago, the team said they've diverted nearly 900 pounds of clothes from landfills, including 452 pounds swapped among students.
They donate excess clothing to the social services nonprofit .
UD freshman Mary Ely-Holden nabbed a pair of black flowy pants from Marshalls with the tag still on them at the March swap.
鈥淚'm broke. I'm a college student. But I do like affordability, I'm always at the thrift stores and I also like the sustainable aspect of it,鈥� she said.
鈥淟andfills are full, fast fashion is on the rise, so anything we can do to reduce our carbon footprint and our effect on the earth, I am all for.鈥�
Other universities have similar initiatives. Although its clothing isn鈥檛 free, Ohio State University student group hosts thrifting and donation events. Wright State University has a donation-based clothing closet for professional wear and hosts school-branded gear swaps at the end of its school year. And Ohio University campus groups host clothing swaps too.
Creating a campus culture of sustainability
At UD, the circularity team鈥檚 biggest goals are to increase the range of clothes they collect, such as more formal clothing, athletic wear and gender-neutral garments, Shin said.
Professor Diddi said she鈥檚 seen success with such programs at other universities, and that real change can happen if they鈥檙e adopted more widely.
鈥淪hort term, it does help the students, especially on a university campus from an affordability point of view, but it also helps build their perspectives around longevity of products and making better decisions and not falling for the newness or the trendy stuff鈥ust so that they have something new to show on their social media or to fit in a certain group,鈥� she said.
But sometimes, the programs end once the people that started them graduate.
鈥淭o build the continuity of these kinds of programs, it's really important the university officials are also involved in this decision-making and planning part of it so that it becomes a signature initiative or resource鈥nd sustains the momentum it has created,鈥� Diddi said.
That鈥檚 why Shin and Zay Min Htike said they have a living document they use to train new students coming onto the team. The school also pays a few of the students running the program as employees.
Shin said it鈥檚 important to think about how a clothing purchase affects the bigger picture, and consumers should support fashion made through cleaner processes and ethical labor.
Zay Min Htike added to her sentiment: 鈥淏y showing that as a younger generation we care about it, I think we're also challenging these big companies to change,鈥� he said.