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Transcript/Script((TITLE: TV Fashion Sustainability Act – Vishneva
HEAD: A New York Law Could Change the Fashion Industry If Enacted
TEASER: Aim of the proposed measure is to promote fashion sustainability
PUBLISHED: 02/03/2022 at: 8:15 am
BYLINE: Nina Vishneva
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: New York
VIDEOGRAPHER: Vladimir Badikov
SCRIPT EDITORS: KE(1st), BR
PRODUCER:
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA + Agencies TBD
PLATFORMS: TV only
TRT: 3:33
VID APPROVED BY:KE
TYPE: TVPKG
UPDATE: ))
((INTRO))
[[The fashion industry has always had a relationship with some forms of social activism. But all too often the industry is also seen as one of excess and consumerism gone wild. That could change if New York’s Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act – or FSSAA – becomes law. Nina Vishneva has the story, narrated by Anna Rice.]]
((NARRATION))
((NATS)) ((Nicole McLaughlin showing jacket))
“This is the oven mitt jacket… This one was on display at a museum for a while, it just came back…”
((NARRATION))
She’s so good at giving things a second and third life – it’s no wonder Nicole McLaughlin has been nicknamed the “Upcycling Sorceress.”
((NATS)) ((Nicole McLaughlin shows a jacket))
“This is out of used shoes from a thrift store… It’s very hard and kind of tactical, like an armor!”
((NARRATION))
McLaughlin joined the fashion of sustainability band wagon after working as a graphic designer at a large shoe corporation.
She saw how much got thrown away – huge amounts of fabric, buttons and zippers - thousands upon thousands of trial models. So, McLaughlin started to save whatever she could and transform the salvaged pieces. Soon she was so captivated by the process she decided to fully dedicate herself to sustainable fashion.
((Nicole McLaughlin, Designer))
“Sustainable fashion has always been on the back burner; it was very small. And now if you aren’t putting your money where your mouth is and investing in the future, these brands are not going to be able to sustain.”
((NARRATION))
They may be forced into sustainability if New York’s Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act becomes law.
Introduced into the state legislature earlier this year, the measure would require fashion retailers and manufacturers to be accountable for their sustainability practices. They would need to make
((Mandatory courtesy: NYSenate.gov))
information about shipping, materials used and employees’
((End courtesy))
labor conditions transparent and public – no matter where production takes place.
The Fashion Act will apply to large brands with sales of more than 100 million dollars that do business in the state of New York.
Violators could be fined up to 2% of their annual income, and the list of violators will be published by the New York Attorney General’s office.
Many designers support the initiative, Stella McCartney among them.
Aja Robinson is the sales supervisor at the Stella McCartney SoHo Boutique. She is proud to show the boutique’s new sustainable collection.
((Aja Robinson, Stella McCartney SoHo Boutique)) ((С0093; 01:41-))
“It’s been a miracle, to tell you the truth! To actually be able to have a skin-free skin made of a vegetable, of a fungus – something from the earth, something natural! It’s important!”
((NARRATION))
The United Nations Environment Programme says the fashion industry is responsible for 10 percent of the world’s carbon emissions.
And not only that but according to the Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association (SMART), almost all second-hand clothing and textiles can be recycled and reused - yet 80% end up in landfills.
Mclaughlin says that has to stop.
((Nicole McLaughlin, Designer))
“It’s really important to be able to think about your childhood and your past and kind of use that as reference. There’s a lot of trash and I think this is something that I would consider trash-to-treasure!”
((NARRATION))
Treasure and a gift to efforts to slow climate change.
What is still unclear is what effect the sustainability law will have on the price of clothing if it is enacted.
((For Nina Vishneva in New York, Anna Rice, VOA News))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)New York
Embargo DateFebruary 3, 2022 08:56 EST
BylineNina Vishneva
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English