Could you give up fast fashion?

Introduction
Could you give up buying new clothes for a year?
Would you do it over concerns for the environment?

This week's question

Do you know how many items of clothing were sent to landfill in the UK in 2017?
(*landfill, noun = a place where rubbish is buried) Was it …?
a) 23 million items
b) 234 million items 
c) 2.3 billion items
(Listen to the programme to find out the answer.)

Vocabulary:

- pledge, verb/noun = to make a serious (and often public) promise to do

something, e.g. Both sides have pledged to end the fighting. / Both sides have made
a pledge to end the fighting.

- outsource, verb = if a company outsources, it pays to have part of its work done
by another company, e.g. Some companies outsource to cheaper locations to cut
costs.

- undercut, verb = to charge less than a competitor, e.g. Big supermarkets can
undercut small family-owned shops.

- stem from (something), verb = to be caused by or be a result of something, e.g.

These treatments stem from traditional Chinese medicine.

- illogical, adj. = unreasonable, not sensible

- backlash, noun = a strong negative reaction to something, especially to change,

e.g. There was a lot of backlash against the government’s proposal.
Listen to the programme and answer the questions.

What is fast fashion? Why is it bad for the environment?

Why does Georgina say that Neil is not a fashion victim?
How many times does someone wear something on average?
Why are clothes today cheaper than before?
According to Lauren Bravo, why do people keep on buying new things?
How do they use the words and phrases from Vocabulary?

Your ideas:
How often do you buy new clothes?
How many times do you usually wear something?
What do you do with the clothes you don’t want to wear anymore?
Do you know anyone who is obsessed with shopping and fashion?
What do you think about buying second-hand or vintage clothes?

Complete the sentences.

1 Most of her health problems stem from (are the result of) an accident she had
when she was younger.
2 The government has pledged (publicly promised) to reduce the amount of
chemicals used in food production.
3 Figures released later sparked a furious backlash (negative reaction) against the
organisation.
4 It was an illogical (unreasonable) decision, but she was in love.
5 They claim to undercut (charge less than) their competitors by at least 5 percent.
6 The bank was attacked over plans to outsource (employ another organization to
do sth) 4,000 jobs to Asia.