The Or Foundation and SHEIN Lay Groundwork for Global Change with Multi-Year Extended Producer Responsibility Fund
PR96390
ACCRA, Ghana, June 8, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --
The Or Foundation, a U.S. and Ghana-based not-for-profit organization at the
intersection of environmental justice, education and fashion development, and
SHEIN, an online retailer of fashion, beauty and lifestyle products, today
announced a groundbreaking, multi-year agreement which will launch SHEIN's
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Fund. The Fund will help advance the
design and implementation of ecological and social sustainability strategies
focused on clothing that has entered the global secondhand clothing trade and
often leaves the secondhand trade as waste.
Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1714489/Shein_Logo.jpg
The agreement between The Or Foundation and SHEIN is the first of its kind,
establishing an annual commitment from the brand to support waste management
efforts in communities deeply impacted by textile waste. The agreement is part
of SHEIN's newly announced EPR Fund, to which the company will dedicate $50
million over the next five years. The funds will go toward global causes
aligned with SHEIN's commitment to addressing global textile waste management
and furthering the development of a circular economy, as well as any other EPR
obligations.
Liz Ricketts, Co-Founder and Executive Director of The Or Foundation, states,
"We have been calling on brands to pay the bill that is due to the communities
who have been managing their waste, and this is a significant step toward
accountability. What we see as truly revolutionary is SHEIN's acknowledgement
that their clothing may be ending up here in Kantamanto, a simple fact that no
other major fashion brand has been willing to state as yet."
Adam Whinston, Global Head of ESG at SHEIN, said: "SHEIN has set an ambitious
impact agenda, and we are thrilled to be partnering with The Or Foundation, the
initial recipient of SHEIN's trailblazing fund, for the next step in our
journey. Addressing secondhand waste is an important part of the fashion
ecosystem that is often overlooked. We have an opportunity to make change in
this space and we look forward to working with The Or Foundation on this first
of its kind effort."
As the initial grant recipient, receiving $5 million annually for three years
from the overall Fund, The Or Foundation will utilize the resources to expand
their Mabilgu (sisterhood) Apprenticeship Program for young women carrying
bales of secondhand clothing on their heads, incubate community businesses
transforming textile waste into new products, pilot fiber-to-fiber initiatives
with Ghanaian textile manufacturers and to upfit Kantamanto Market through a
community-based vision to ensure that the world's largest secondhand clothing
market is a safe and dignified place to work. The Or Foundation will also
redistribute a portion of the initial grant to allied organizations in Ghana.
SHEIN will work with The Or Foundation to identify additional grant recipients
in other countries impacted by fashion's waste problem this year and in coming
years.
Daniel Mawuli Quist, Board Member of The Or Foundation, states, "This is an
empowering contribution for The Or Foundation, as we hope it will be for other
organizations around the world, and we must not lose sight of the value that
Kantamanto and communities like it bring to the movement toward circularity. We
hope other brands will follow suit to focus on the people making a real
difference."
Both SHEIN and The Or Foundation are committed to supporting work on the ground
to keep clothing in circulation, to reduce waste and to clean up and regenerate
areas impacted by textile waste. Earlier this year, SHEIN announced it is a
signatory to global partnerships and initiatives to address product reuse and
recycling.
Beyond this, The Or Foundation continues to be dedicated to a vision of
ecological and economic prosperity that inspires global citizens to form a
relationship with fashion extending beyond their role as consumer. Until now,
The Or Foundation has been propelled forward by the goodwill of individual
citizens and small business owners, most of whom are not directly contributing
to fashion's waste crisis itself. This EPR Fund marks a turning point.
About The Or Foundation
The Or Foundation (
) is a USA and Ghana-based not-for-profit organization that has been working
between the two countries at the intersection of environmental justice,
education and fashion development since 2011. The Or Foundation has brought
global awareness to fashion's waste crisis through extensive research and
action around the secondhand clothing trade as it manifests in Accra, Ghana,
home to the largest secondhand clothing market in the world. To learn more
about The Or Foundation, visit www.theor.org .
About SHEIN
SHEIN is a global fashion and lifestyle e-retailer committed to making the
beauty of fashion accessible to all. We use on-demand manufacturing technology
to connect suppliers to our agile supply chain, reducing inventory waste and
enabling us to deliver a variety of affordable products to customers around the
world. In April 2022, the company announced evoluSHEIN, a purpose-driven
collection made with preferred materials such as recycled polyester and
forest-friendly viscose. From our global offices, we reach customers in more
than 150 countries. To learn more about SHEIN, visit www.SHEIN.com .
Press contact:
media@sheingroup.com
SOURCE SHEIN
本プレスリリースは発表元が入力した原稿をそのまま掲載しております。また、プレスリリースへのお問い合わせは発表元に直接お願いいたします。
このプレスリリースには、報道機関向けの情報があります。
プレス会員登録を行うと、広報担当者の連絡先や、イベント・記者会見の情報など、報道機関だけに公開する情報が閲覧できるようになります。