Most of the textile industries in today’s world use chemical and synthetic dyes which are released into water bodies after the required use which cause water pollution. This affects the marine life including marine animals and plants and slowly these chemicals also enter the entire ecosystem indirectly. These chemical dyes contain unsaturated oils which gets accumulated in these marine animals and plants which then spread to other living creatures including humans when humans consume these marine plants/animals. These chemical dyes can cause great harm to life as some of these dyes are highly poisonous and some are considered to cause reproductive issues, embryonal misgrowth etc. These also affect the immune system of human beings.
The chemical dyes also affect the workers in the textile industries causing effects such as skin problems, cancer and asthma because of highly toxic flames these dyes produce. It could also affect their eyesight and lungs.
Another problem we would be addressing is the left over synthetic material which is thrown away after the production of garments by the fashion industry. These left over pieces of material are disposed to the environment and they don’t decompose causing land and water pollution. These pieces of clothes accumulate under the soil or on the sea-bed affecting the growth of plants and also stopping the water from penetrating into the soil. Some animals may also consume these cloth pieces affecting them.
Another problem that we would be addressing is of gender inequality and the belief that women are submissive to men which is still persistent in most parts of asian countries. Most of these women also don’t work or earn making them dependent on men in some rural or backward areas which causes the above said belief to still be persistent.
Another problem we are trying to solve is the use of plastic covers in various shops.
So to solve all the above problems we have one single solution. We have developed a recipe for dyes using organic materials mostly from plants which is proven to be 95% natural. Now since it is 95% natural dye, the pollution caused by these dyes is less and also the it doesn’t affect the workers in textile industries much as this dye doesn’t produce any harmful toxic fumes. It also doesn’t cause any kind of skin problems or cancer. Another advantage of natural dyes is that some of these also add a little amount of fragrance to the textile making it more user-friendly.
One of the main product we are focusing on is to develop cloth bags using these dyes which can replace the plastic bags. Plastic bags and covers contribute to a large amount of plastic usage and are thrown in water bodies and on land after use. These block the water which penetrates into the ground and also take a lot of time to decompose. These cloth bags can replace these plastic bags. The cloth bags could also be made with embroidery and various designs and colors also making it fashionable. This would make it compatible for multipurpose use.
Next thing that we include in our solution is the method of ‘zero wastage’. The leftover cloth materials or pieces can be used together to make mats or carpets or applique arts. So again this would help in reducing the pollution and the synthetic material which can’t be decomposed can be reused.
Now all the above mentioned things can be used to empower women. So our proposal is to help the women in slums and backward areas by providing skill training so that these natural dyes can be used to create handmade products such as embroidered cloth bags, cloth jewellery, shawls, curtains etc. Now this products could be sold and this would become a source of earning for those women helping them to become financially independent. This would result in the reduction of the gender inequality and also help in reducing the belief that women are submissive to men. This would not only help in women empowerment but would also help in the production of more sustainable products, ultimately resulting in spreading awareness about sustainability in backward areas.
This doesn’t stop with women. Other people including men in backward areas who are interested could be given skill training and they can start over to produce or manufacture various materials which are sustainable making a life out of the earning and at the same time ensuring it is eco-friendly. It could also help in engaging refugees and job less people and could act as a second source of income to other people. This would contribute to the economy of the country in a positive way.
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