With the impending need to initiate a sustainability agenda that addresses ethical, environmental and economic tensions, the current fashion consumption practices need dramatic reform. A particularly damaging practice is where consumers are purchasing low-quality, highly priced garments, wearing them for a season and then sentencing them to closeted detention. There is a plethora of these short-lived garments being pumped into the market and they fail to retain their fashion credibility, value and usefulness. Rather than preaching at consumers to simply stop or at least reform consuming, there is a need to identify tangible solutions that will empower the consumer to adopt more sustainable practices willingly. 'My Sister's Wardrobe' is a clothing exchange concept that aims to stimulate the pleasurable re-consumption of these wasted, inactive garments.

My Sister's Wardrobe is one of a series of case studies performed in Melbourne, Australia in 2004. It endeavours to stimulate a sustainability dialogue within fashion. This particular event involved thirty female participants of varying sizes and styles contributing a selection of unwanted, quality garments and gaining a proportionate selection of 'new' clothing to wear in return. The exchange was designed to promote an appreciation for community-based activity whilst building awareness about the environmental and ethical concerns within the fashion industry. Participants were surveyed to gauge how their ethical and environmental awareness has been heightened and their willingness to acquire second-hand clothing has increased through the experience. This initiative has been developed with the hope that it and like activities, may help build a sustainability dialogue around consumption and have an increasingly positive impact on consumption practices.

Whilst currently living in Melbourne, Australia, I am a full time Fashion Masters student currently investigating sustainability within the context of fashion consumption. I am simultaneously teaching RMIT industrial design students about sustainability and other contemporary issues concerning designers. I have presented my masters research findings this year to a receptive audience and would appreciate the opportunity to share my findings abroad.