Liv Merete Nielsen
Oslo Metropolitan University
Oslo, Norway
Household consumption has an impact on the environment. The production and use of products and services consumed by households is contributing to more than 60% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and between 50% and 80% of total land, material, and water use. The footprints are distributed across regions, with wealthier countries generating the most significant impacts per capita (Ivanova et al., 2015). Ivanova and her team points at a robust and significant relationship between households’ expenditure and their environ- mental impacts, driven by a rising demand of nonprimary consumption items.
Both food and clothing are closely connected to individual decisions in everyday life. Discussions on food in perspective of self-sufficiency have increased after the covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine, as Norway is dependent on import of around 50% of the consumed food (FAO,2022). It is obvious that self-sufficiency of food has to be improved in perspective of coming crisis. The clothing industry represents another challenge, as production, transport over long distances and disposal of garments have a negative impact on the environment. The garment industry contributes to about 8% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) (Quantis, 2018).
For inhabitants in wealthy countries, reflection upon consumption beyond primary needs, has ethic aspects. In this article I will discuss if design education in schools has any possibilities to break some of the cultural patterns of garment consumption in Norway. National resources and industry will, together with policy documents, national curriculum and research, form the base for my discussion.
The cold climate in Norway does not permit growing of textile resources, like cotton. Earlier linen was grown in a small scale, and the great amount of spruce has made production of viscose possible. The climate for production of wool, leather and fur is good, but this is a resource with unused potentials (Klepp et al., 2019). Norwegian textile industry is today minimised and the few, new or still in business, are exclusive. Most garments are today imported from low-cost countries. A question to discuss is if repair and maintenance of garment will have any impact on consumption of garment from low-cost countries. An awareness of garment impact on the environment is a part of such a discussion. A design literate general public might prefer to buy garments of high quality instead of cheap fast fashion, as longer lasting products are a brick in perspective of building a sustainable and greener future (Nielsen & Brænne, 2013).
Younger generations’ awareness is however an important brick in changing western consumer culture in a greener direction. We can see a culture change where people gather for local ‘repair café’, trading of second-hand clothing or visible mending. Political regulations are however missing for giving such local initiatives economic balance. Sweden has already reduced economic taxes on repair, this has not yet been done in Norway. Formulations in the national curriculum for Art and crafts (LK2020) might contribute to make young students design literate, and thereby build their cognitive and practical skills and knowledge to become responsible consumers in perspective of environmental impacts–now and in future. This a heavy burden to hang upon young student shoulders. A balance between political regulations and a design literate general public might however contribute to real change.
References
FAO (2022). The state of food security and nutrition in the world. Repurposing food and agricultural to make healthy diets more affordable. https://www.fao.org/3/cc0639en/cc0639en.pdf
Ivanova, D., Stadler, K., Steen-Olsen, K., Wood, R., Vita, G., Tukker, A., & Hertwich, E. G. (2015). Environmental Impact Assessment of Household Consumption. Journal of Industrial Ecology. https://doi.org/doi:10.1111/jiec.12371
Klepp, I. G., Tobiasson, T. S., Haugrønning, V., Vittersø, G., Grøva, L., Kvingedal, T., Espelien, I., & Kubberød, E. (2019). KRUS final report: Enhancing local value chains in Norway. https://oda.oslomet.no/oda-xmlui/handle/20.500.12199/2906
LK20. Curriculum for Art and crafts. (2020). https://www.udir.no/lk20/khv01-02?lang=eng
Nielsen, L. M., & Brænne, K. (2013). Design literacy for longer-lasting products. Studies in Material Thinking, 9, 1-9. https://www.materialthinking.org/sites/default/files/papers/SMT_V9_07_KarenBraenne_LivNielsen_0.pdfQuantis. (2018). Measuring Fashion: Insights from the Environmental Impact of the Global Apparel and Footwear Industries. https://quantis.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/measuringfashion_globalimpactstudy_full-report_quantis_cwf_2018a.pdf
Liv Merete Nielsen is professor emerita at OsloMet. She is educated classroom teacher from Oslo and design teacher from Konstfack university college of arts crafts and design in Stockholm. She holds her PhD from Oslo School of Architecture (AHO). Her research interest is design education from kindergarten to PhD. She is one of the founders of the Design Literacy International Network (DLIN) and a member of the convener group in DRS’s Design Education Special Group (EdSIG).
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