Fashion Forward? Reflections on the Environmental History of Style

Abstract

Fashion—the never-ending remaking of the style of goods—has become a major driver of environmental destruction. Yet environmental historians have written little about that destructiveness. This essay explores the significance of fashion in American environmental history. Fashion began to shape the American landscape in the late 1500s when growing European demand for stylish hats inspired a 300-year-hunt for beaver in the New World. In the twentieth century, Americans were critical in the rise of the modern fashion-driven economy, where style is part of the marketing of everything from automobiles to smartphones. Now the United States is one of the centers of a global movement to make fashion sustainable, if that is possible. Because understanding fashion requires considering what motivates consumers, this essay sheds light on the environmental history of consumption, still a relatively neglected subject. It also raises new questions about the prospects for greening capitalism.

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