Otto von Busch on sustainability: “What is it we are so eager to sustain?”

Opposing headlines on sustainability dominate our fashion news. There’s can-do optimism one day and apocalyptic gloom the next leaving the average consumer scratching their head in confusion. While brand after brand steps forward to boast of their latest sustainability credentials, The Pulse of the Fashion Industry 2018 report by the Global Fashion Agenda in collaboration with The Boston Consulting Group reveals that the pace of sustainability progress has slowed by a third since 2017. FashionUnited spoke to Otto von Busch, author, theorist, and fashion “hacktavist,” who is at the front end of academia’s embrace of alternative fashion strategies as Associate Professor of Integrated Design at Parsons, The New School for Design. While he cuts through the noise with machete-like precision and offers an authentic sustainability status update, he poses as many questions as answers. And that's just the strategy he advises for all.