58
sustaInaBlE FashIon : a handBooK For Educators

The papers in this chapter are relevant to all fashion
business related courses, including sourcing, retail
management, buying, socially responsible business and
merchandising courses. Educators can explore a number of
ways that businesses impact on workers, their communities
and the environment with students.

Fashion businesses operate in an industry with a history
of tariffs and quotas and global outsourcing, all of which
affect the sustainability of the industry. Brands and retailers
incorporate corporate social responsibility (CSR) into their
business practices, and the impact of these CSR activities
on workers and the environment has varied. Few, however,
are addressing the impact of decisions made by their own
corporate staff. These decisions can undermine the efforts
to improve working conditions and the environment. For
example, demanding short lead times may mean workers
endure a seven day week and 16 hour days to complete
orders, despite the brand’s code of conduct stating a
maximum 48 hour week.

Fashioning an Ethical Industry displays examples of students’
work relating to sustainability on its website at http://
fashioninganethicalindustry.org/studentwork/. Your own
students may find inspiration in these pages. We would also
be very happy to receive images and information about
students’ work in your own university, college or school for
consideration for the website.

aBout thE contrIButIons In thE BusInEss chaptEr

In Global Sourcing Decision Case Study, students

collect, synthesise and analyse information from a variety

of sources and use it to evaluate the advantages and

disadvantages of a country as a sourcing option for a

particular company and product category. Students take on

one or more decision-maker roles within the company in

conducting the research and communicating their analysis.

As a team, students articulate the results of their research

and their decision regarding sourcing from that country.

This case study activity has been contributed by Minjeong

Kim, Oregon State University, Leslie Davis-Burns, Oregon

State University, Marsha A. Dickson, University of Delaware,

and Haesun Park, Louisiana State University, USA.

Global workplace standards, supply chain codes of conduct,

multi-stakeholder initiatives and case studies of company

responses to workers’ rights violations are explored in

Globalization and Supply Chain Working Conditions

by Rachelle Jackson from the US organisation, STR

Responsible Sourcing. The activities have been designed

to develop students’ understanding of the challenges

presented by today’s global supply chain, how some

companies are confronting those challenges and what

impact their efforts have on working conditions around the

world.

Student Book Club: The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global

Economy by Joy Kozar, Kansas State University, USA,

requires students to read The Travels of a T-shirt in the

Global Economy by Pietra Rivoli and respond to multiple

discussion questions stemming from the book. The goal

is to assist students to recognise the structure, dynamics

Business Introduction