At this point, everybody knows that we can't shop our way out of the climate crisis. Things are reaching a breaking point, but that doesn't mean all hope is lost. Climate reporters often advise people to find their niche — you're not going to be able to reduce your country's reliance on oil, fix the fast fashion industry, and overhaul the aviation industry.
But you might be able to make an impact if you focus on one thing. That's exactly what Space Available is doing, and we caught up with the brand's co-founder to find out how.
"This philosophy behind the brand is something we have been personally passionate about for a long time, and it's very much in response to the ecological damage we are doing in our current system, an economy of ‘take, make, waste’."
"Due to this pandemic, a new space became available for us to stop and reflect - offering us a chance to reconnect, reimagine and redesign a better future. The commercial world here in Bali stopped and there were huge empty billboards on every street which just said ‘SPACE AVAILABLE’. I felt this summed up this current moment on numerous levels and became a fitting name for our brand."
"For our clothing, we only use upcycled cotton. We use water-based inks, recycled plastic swings tags (which come free with each garment and are reusable as desk objects), and biodegradable or recycled packaging for our garments."
"What we are doing is still quite experimental, so there are challenges with dealing with such a new material. Waste is unpredictable — some of it is new, and some is 50 years old, with both types reacting differently to recycling. So getting the consistency with the material has been the biggest challenge."
