La Mode Verte
Environmental Awareness Through Media ProductionsArchive for Clothing
‘The Grotto Part II’ from Rapanui
We have written several times about Rapanui, the eco-fashion label based on the Isle of Wight, and their innovative work in raising awareness for various environmental issues. They have had the well-known weather man Michael Fish MBE jumping off a skyscraper in aid of climate change and held the world’s first catwalk on a hovercraft to promote low-emission travel. They have no put together a heartwarming Christmas short-film called ‘The Grotto, Part II‘ in aid of the Badger Trust (featuring Michael Fish again as well as Rapanui founders Martin and Rob Drake-Knight, pictured below). Rapanui is a fantastic brand which uses ethically accredited factories powered by wind and solar energy and cutting edge eco-textiles from sustainable sources.
Eco-Label Holds First Catwalk On Water
We here at LMV are constantly on the look out for innovative ways to raise awareness for environmental issues. Recently, the activities of Isle of Wight based eco-clothing company Rapanui have been catching our attention. In August we wrote about their work with renowned weatherman Michael Fish MBE, who they persuaded to jump off a tower block in the name of climate change. Since then we have been in contact with Rapanui founder Rob Drake-Knight, who has alerted us to another PR stunt of theirs: the world’s first ‘catwalk on water’ (despite the name, it was not biblical in nature). The Rapanui team chose the energy-efficient hovercraft crossing between the Isle of Wight and Southsea (operated by Hovertravel) to show their new range of clothing (see pictures above and below) in the run up to London Fashion Week. Ever innovative, Rapanui did without the traditional models and instead employed the hovercraft staff to model the collection of casual wear made from Organic cotton in an ethically accredited, wind-powered factory. Rob said: “We were really excited to bring fashion week to the Island in such a quirky way, giving the commuters a taste of the catwalk in their seats as we crossed Solent.”
Rapanui were supported by Loretta Lale, the commercial and marketing manager of Hovertravel: “Rapanui are a great eco-friendly clothing brand based on the Isle of Wight. We are always keen to work with local businesses from the Island, especially ones that aim to make a genuine contribution to sustainability. We have a strong focus on sustainability at Hovertravel too; the Hovercraft is one of the most efficient ways to cross the water using less fuel per passenger.”
Weatherman Michael Fish MBE BASE Jumping for Climate Change!
What better way to raise awareness for climate change than get a respected meteorologist to jump off a tall building? Make that meteorologist weatherman Michael Fish MBE and put the tall building in the vibrant city of London during the security blitz of the Olympics and we quickly have to thank the imagination of the Rapanui team who put the whole thing in motion. Rapanui is an eco-clothing brand founded by Rob & Mart Drake-Knight and based on the Isle of Wight. It uses ethically accredited factories that are powered by wind and solar energy and cutting edge eco-textiles from sustainable sources.
The Rapanui team got together with Michael Fish (above) to film the latter BASE (Buildings, Antenna, Spans [bridges], Earth [cliffs]) jumping from a tower block in central London. The resulting video can be viewed above and is highly entertaining (“if anything is going to raise awareness for climate change it is doing damn silly things like this”). In Michael’s own words: “Despite what most people think, my TV career was not based on my stunning good looks. I’m a highly qualified meteorologist - and lately I’ve been thinking a lot about climate change. It’s probably the biggest problem we’ve ever faced and it’s not going away. If we want to live sustainably, we need to take action now, not when it’s too late.”
World’s First Carbon Neutral Bra
www.telegraph.co.uk 13th April 2011
UK department store Marks and Spencer is the first in the world to release a carbon-neutral bra. Made in a Sri Lankan factory powered by solar power and hydroelectricity, the actual making of the underwear is not carbon-neutral but the manufacturers say they will offset the remaining emissions by planting 6,000 trees. It is uncertain whether this includes the emissions generated by transport. However, the trees will be indigenous to Sri Lanka, therefore boosting wildlife, and also contain fruit trees that generate money for local communities. The carbon-neutral certificate is issued by The Carbon Trust Footprinting Certification Company who say they will continue monitoring the factory to make sure it remains worthy of the title. According to Mike Barry, Head of Sustainable Business at M&S, bras are only the beginning. He hopes that other department stores will follow suit. ”We don’t want green, eco-friendly products to be in a ghetto in the corner, we should be making all products more environmentally friendly,” he said.
These Green Boots Are Made for Walking
www.independent.co.uk 15th September 2010
Due to a growing demand for eco-friendly hiking gear, several companies have started to produce environmentally friendly footwear. Timberland have just screened an advert for their ‘Earthkeepers Movement’ line of footwear and the UK brand Hi-Tec, alongside the National Trust, have released a pair of walking boots called ‘Altitude IV WPi Enviro’. Hi-Tec’s boots use recycled rubber and minimal amounts of dyes and chemicals in their production. US based Patagonia have also declared the production of an eco-boot called the P26 which will be available early 2011. Other companies with environmentally footwear are North Face and Nike.
