Hello everyone! I’m Nurul Farahanim, the Corporate Communications Intern at Forest Interactive. This year, in honor of the United Nations World Environment Day, I took the initiative to rally my colleagues to create a positive change. Leading the charge, I organized From Home to Cause, a garment donation drive in our office as part of my internship passion project, which is an opportunity given to Forest Interactive interns to pursue and organize a campaign based on their interests and passions. This blog post is for me to share with all of you my journey and process of organizing this donation drive.
During my internship, I noticed that I have several clothing items in good condition that I no longer wanted to wear. Aware of the negative impact of a throwaway culture on our environment and the significant carbon emissions contributed by the fashion industry, I hesitated to simply discard them. Furthermore, I believe these clothing items will be more appreciated in someone else’s hands.
As I pondered on what to do with these clothing items, a donation initiative done by a previous intern surfaced in my mind. With the upcoming World Environment Day, I deemed it the perfect time to bring back this brilliant initiative to honor this international day and practice sustainability, especially as it aligns with Forest Interactive’s continuous efforts to drive sustainable practices.
To host this garment donation drive, I decided to join forces with KlothCares, a women-led social enterprise that aspires to become the driving force of textiles, clothing and plastics circular economy. With 9 years of hard work and an extensive list of achievements and recognitions, I knew that partnering with them was the right thing to do.
Why Our Garment Donation Drive Matters
It came to my realization that many are not aware of or vocal about the throwaway culture that has gotten progressively worse as years gone by. Throwaway culture is known as the practice of throwing something out after a single use, such as plastic bags and clothing items. At present, it is recorded that many clothing items are only worn seven to ten times before being tossed away. This culture has contributed to the statistic of 92 million tons of textiles ending up in landfills every year. If no strict measure is taken in the foreseeable future, the numbers are expected to rise to 134 million tons by the end of this decade.
With the strong chokehold social media has on our lifestyle, the demand for the fast fashion industry skyrockets in the blink of an eye. The clothing items produced by consumer companies are mostly cheap, trendy and also harmful for the environment, a fact that many overlook. When the clothes they bought for a cheap price lose their hype, these items mostly end up being neglected or thrown away. What is unfortunate is that the option to donate is rarely considered due to lack of awareness and knowledge. Clearly, it is important for us to raise society’s awareness of the harm of clothing waste to combat this recurring issue. One of the ways we can start advocating the practice of sustainability is through establishing initiatives such as donation drives as a regular practice within communities, as a collective effort to protect the environment and ensure a healthier planet for our future generation.
From Home to Cause, A Meaningful Journey
The Garment Donation Drive I organized spanned over a week, providing Forest Interactive talents ample time to sort and donate their unused garments. Initially, this donation drive was intended solely for clothing items. However, to maximize its impact and potential, I expanded the range of the donation drive to welcome any gently used garments, clothing accessories, shoes, bags, household textiles, toys, and fabric remnants as I believe that each of these items will have its new purpose once donated, either to be given a new home or to be recycled for a better cause.
Along with the calls for donations, I highlighted the environmental impact of fast fashion, such as how the fashion industry is responsible for 10% of the world’s global carbon emissions. As Forest Interactive has long advocated for sustainability best practices and ingrained a culture of sustainability among its talents, the talents responded well to the insights shared in our corporate team chats.
Over this week, I was very delighted and grateful for the unwavering support and generous contributions from all the Forest Interactive talents who participated in this donation drive. I believe that with every thread donated, it reflects our collective love for the planet, hope for a better future, and compassion for those in need. It fills me with immense hope that our community can continue to make a positive impact, inspiring others to adopt sustainable practices and support those in need.
Once the donation period was up, I then collected and organized the donated items before dropping it off at one of the KlothCares donation bins located in MyTOWN Shopping Centre, Kuala Lumpur. Through this small initiative, I managed to collect 8 KG of garment donations, which is quite a feat for me. For that, I would like to extend my thanks to all Forest Interactive talents that have supported this initiative.
Tying Up Loose Ends; A Hopeful Reflection
Witnessing firsthand the collective efforts and the power of community and compassion in Forest Interactive has filled me with endless gratitude. Through organizing this garment donation drive, I can feel the deep-rooted commitment and positive impact this meaningful initiative brings in fostering a culture of sustainability and empathy in our community. This initiative especially echoes Forest Interactive’s commitment to realizing the UN Sustainability Development Goals, particularly our pledges towards SDG 12, Responsible Consumption and Production, and SDG 13, Climate Action.
Moving forward, I hope that this garment donation drive can inspire many more similar efforts in the future to contribute to our commitment of sustainability practice, steadily igniting a ripple effect of positive change within our company and beyond. Together, let us work towards a future where every action, no matter how small, contributes to a more sustainable and equitable world for generations to come.
Happy World Environment Day.
