“As we work to heal the earth, the earth heals us” – Robin Wall Kimmerer  

Our mission is to go beyond sustainability.

But how?

How can we strengthen our efforts to combat climate change? And is there any way to actively restore health to our environment?

To meet this challenge, we look to the soil and those that have nurtured it for centuries.

One of the soil’s many superpowers is that –– when farmed in a regenerative way –– it has the ability to capture huge amounts of carbon from the atmosphere and store it in the ground. This kind of carbon drawdown has proven to be one of the most effective ways of mitigating climate change.

This past year, it has been our honour to partner with a collective of farmers in Erode, Tamil Nadu, to grow the fibres for our clothing. By practicing an ancient approach to carbon farming, guided by indigenous ecological wisdom, they have revived & replenished a previously-depleted plot of land.

 

This method of farming works in harmony with nature (e.g. composting, cover cropping, intercropping, no-till, no pesticides, adapting to the local environment, etc.) which in turn:

Sequesters carbon

Increases soil fertility

Revives essential biodiversity (think: earthworms, butterflies, dragonflies etc)

Improves water retention (avoiding floods & drought)

Strengthens the land’s resilience against disease

Removes any reliance on pesticides or fertiliser (which degrade the soil & damage the ecosystem)

 

This return to traditional land stewardship is a beautiful, healing process and everyone involved is paid at least a living wage.    

Carbon Negative

As close to wearing a house plant as it gets.

We have created our very first Carbon Negative Top, in collaboration with Post Carbon Lab, which contains a photosynthetic coating that absorbs CO2 and releases oxygen during the use phase!  

This is an incredibly exciting step in the direction of climate-beneficial fashion and it's just the beginning.

Fabrics

When it comes to our fabrics’ production / life cycles, we like to emulate the rhythms of nature and keep things circular.

That may mean working with Tencel, which is sustainably produced in a closed loop system where 99.5% of the water/solvents are recycled. Or it could mean working with recycled fabrics, which minimise waste and make use of the abundant material that already exists on earth.

Recycled Cotton

Conventional cotton is notorious for its harmful impact on the environment and those that farm it. To produce just one pound of conventional cotton, a staggering 173 gallons of water are required. On top of that, the pesticides used to treat the soil wreak havoc on the delicate ecosystem and degrade the land significantly. If our cotton isn’t regeneratively grown or GOTS organic, we prefer to opt for recycled cotton which breathes new life into cotton fibre “waste” and extends the lifespan of existing material.

Recycled Wool

Wool is a nifty fibre that’s been used to clothe humans for generations, which is no surprise considering that it’s durable, renewable and 100% biodegradable. But recycled wool goes a step beyond and absolutely zero harmful chemicals are required to make it. Not only does it make use of valuable textile waste but it also removes the need for new fibre production, saving a great deal of resources in the process.